hastātus, a, um, adj. [hasta, I. A.], armed with a spear.
I In gen. (very rare): Bellona, Stat. Th. 2, 718: prima utcumque acies hastata: ceteris praeusta aut brevia tela, Tac. A. 2, 14: currum decem milia hastatorum sequebantur, Curt. 3, 3, 10; 4, 15, 7.—
II In partic., milit. t. t.: hastāti , ōrum, m., the first line of a Roman army drawn up in order of battle (behind them were the Principes and Triarii): hastati dicti qui primi hastis pugnabant, Varr. L. L. 5, § 89 Müll.: hastati spargunt hastas, Enn. ap. Macr. 6, 1 (Ann. v. 287 Vahl.); so Liv. 8, 8, 6; 22, 5; Veg. Mil. 1, 20 al.; cf. Dict. of Antiq.—The hastati were divided into ten ordines (companies), Ov. F. 3, 128.—Hence,
B Transf.: primus, secundus, etc., ordo hastatus, and more freq. absol. : primus, secundus, etc., hastatus, the first , second , etc., company of hastati: in eo exercitu miles gregarius fui: tertio anno virtutis causa, mihi T. Quintius decimum ordinem hastatum assignavit, i. e. made me captain of the tenth (last) company , Liv. 42, 34, 5: cum signifer primi hastati signum non posset movere loco, Cic. Div. 1, 35, 77; cf. id. ib. 2, 31, 67: signifer secundi hastati, Liv. 26, 5 fin. —Hence, transf.,
2 (Ellipt. for centurio ordinis hastati primus, secundus, etc., hastatus.) The captain of the first , second , etc., company , Veg. Mil. 2, 8: Q. Fulginius ex primo hastato, late first centurio (i. e. who had been discharged as first centurio, and then served as evocatus), Caes. B. C. 1, 46, 4.—
b κατʼ ἐξοχήν, hastatus, i, m., the captain of the first company , Flor. 1, 18; Inscr. Orell. 3455.