Balonia gens
The gens Balonia was an obscure plebeian family at ancient Rome. No members of this gens are mentioned in ancient writers, but a number are known from inscriptions. Origin. The nomen "Balonius" belongs to a class of gentilicia formed using the suffix ', originally applied to cognomina ending in ', but later used as a regular gentile-forming suffix, without regard to the orthography of the root. These nomina tended to be of plebeian origin, and were frequently Oscan. Chase suggests that "Balonius" might be derived from the cognomen "Bala", perhaps from Latin "balare", "to bleat". The spelling "Bellonius", found  in a few inscriptions, suggests a possible derivation from Bellona, the goddess of war, although the two forms could also have developed independently. Praenomina. The main praenomina of the Balonii were "Aulus", "Gaius", and "Marcus", all of which were common throughout Roman history. Other names used by this gens included "Gnaeus" and "Lucius", which were also common, and "Numerius", which was relatively uncommon, and much more distinctive.