Contubernalis means something like tent-mate (or in modern terms, room-mate). It has both a sexual sense (in the case where at least one of the pair is a slave) and a non-sexual sense (the soldiers in a contubernium are all contubernales). In the sexual sense, it is never a marriage, because a slave, being a "res" or "thing", is incapable of legal marriage.
I'd like to add to this. If I understand the position of the Roman soldiers correctly, they were actually in a similar position to a lot of people getting married today, especially men. The rank and file Roman soldier outside of Rome / Italy was denied the form of marriage that allowed them the most legal protection for their wife and children.
Contubernalis means something like tent-mate (or in modern terms, room-mate). It has both a sexual sense (in the case where at least one of the pair is a slave) and a non-sexual sense (the soldiers in a contubernium are all contubernales). In the sexual sense, it is never a marriage, because a slave, being a "res" or "thing", is incapable of legal marriage.
From: Treggiari, Susan. “‘Contubernales’ in ‘Cil’ 6.” Phoenix, vol. 35, no. 1, 1981, pp. 42–69. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/1087137. Accessed 22 Apr. 2023.
“Contubernium existed by permission of the slave-owner and was not protected by the law, for it was sanctioned by custom only.”
I'd like to add to this. If I understand the position of the Roman soldiers correctly, they were actually in a similar position to a lot of people getting married today, especially men. The rank and file Roman soldier outside of Rome / Italy was denied the form of marriage that allowed them the most legal protection for their wife and children.
contubernalis means roommate, right?
So, not married, if I'm reading that right.