Bible Dictionaries
Italian Cohort

Holman Bible Dictionary

Name of the archery unit of the Roman army to which the Gentile centurion Cornelius belonged (Acts 10:1 ). KJV calls it the Italian band. Probably 1,000 men who had been mustered in Italy composed the unit. Little is known about this Italian Cohort. Extrabiblical evidence exists for the presence in Caesarea of a unit called Cohors II Italica after A.D. 69. That date, however, is too late for the events recorded in Acts 10:1 . Perhaps the Cohors II actually was in Caesarea prior to A.D. 69. Or perhaps the Italian Cohort to which Cornelius belonged was a different unit. See Cornelius .