a Roman citizen. In ancient Roman law it was the name by which a Roman called himself in a civil capacity, in contrast to the name Romanus, used in reference to his political and military capacity. The jus Quiritium in Roman law denoted the full body of rights for Roman citizenship.

It was an early name and was associated by ancient scholars with the Sabine element in Rome, the Sabine deity Quirinus, and the Quirina tribe. The word referred to citizens exclusively as civilians; it is said that Julius Caesar quelled a military mutiny by addressing the soldiers as “Quirites.”