Ancient Rome has had a huge impact on our modern world.

Some of which are religion, government, language, architecture, and technology. All of these influences played a crucial part in the formation of our modern world. Without ancient Romes impact, our world wouldnt be the same as it is today. One of Romes biggest influences was their government. Romans, never forget that government is your medium! Be this your art:to practice men in habit of peace, Generosity to the conquered, and firmness against aggressors -VIRGIL, Aeneid. Romes law was hugely impacted by the Stoic philosophy. Emperor Marcus Aurelius sums up this philosophy as to endure all with good-temperedness and patience. Many laws such as all persons had the right to equal treatment under the law, a person was considered innocent until proven guilty, the burden of proof rested with the accuser rather than the accused, a person should be punished only for actions, not thoughts, any law that seemed unreasonable or grossly unfair could be set aside. All these laws were the basis of our and Europes government today. A lot of religion relied off of this philosophy. The prominent religion in Rome was Christianity. The Pax Romana from Augustus reign made ideal conditions for Christianity to spread throughout the Roman Empire. The formation of roads also made it easy for the expanse of these beliefs. Christianity was so widely excepted because it recognized all as equal including women, slaves, Jews, and gentiles (non-Jews). Because of this popularity, it withstood harsh controversy. Though Roman rulers started killing Christians because they threatened their power, many martyrs (people willing to die for their religion) took a stand. This on top of many relentless missionaries kept Christianity alive. The acceptability and openness of Christianity is what made for such a widely shared religion.

Latin was the prime language of Rome. It has influenced the many languages of today. In the twentieth century, Latin was named the official language of the Roman Catholic Church. Latin was adopted and altered into French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and Romanian. These languages are often referred to as the romance language. This is because of its Roman heritage. Besides these languages, Latin influenced over half of the English language. Romes language is what created such diversity in our language today. The architecture of ancient Rome was elaborate and beautiful. The romans combined practical designs with innovative technology. Take the Colosseum and aqueducts for example. The enormity of the Colosseum provided for a huge gathering place for community entertainment. This mimics modern theatres, football stadiums, and many more. Innovation was on display once the aqueducts were created. This provided a practical way to get water to the city. Its because of this practicality and beauty, that Roman designs were used in the U.S. capitol and other state capitols. Another huge technological advancement was roads. Typically composed of stone, concrete, and sand, these roads were well constructed. They were so well constructed that some are still used today. Without the creation of roads, travel today would be severely hindered. Daily tasks couldnt be done. Roads were probably the most important to tool used in trade today. Since trade plays a huge role in todays world, we definitely have the Romans to thank. These major influences are what make up our modern day society. Without ancient Rome, there wouldnt be efficient trade, religion, technological advances, diversity, and government we have today. Its easy to get caught up in the accessibility of everyday life. Though, this could easily not of happened if it werent for the contributions of the ancient Roman Empire.