Gentius

Gentius (ruled 180–168 BC) was the last king of Illyria. He was the son of the Illyrian king Pleuratus II, of the tribe of the Labeates. He had his capital at Scodra.

In 180 BC the Dalmatians declared themselves independent from his rule. In 171, he was allied with the Romans against the Macedonians, but in 169 he changed sides and allied himself with Perseus of Macedon. He arrested two Roman legati and destroyed the cities of Apollonia und Dyrrhachium, which were allied with Rome. In 168 he was defeated at Scodra by a Roman force under L. Anicius Gallus, and in 167 brought to Rome as a captive to participate in Gallus' triumph, after which he was interned in Iguvium. The date of his death is unknown.

Gentiana lutea, and by extension the Gentiana genus, is named after king Gentius, according to Pliny the Elder because he had discovered the plant's healing capacities.

Gentius is depicted on the back side of an Albanian 50 Lek coin.

The name appears to derive from PIE *g'en- "to beget", cognate to Latin gens, gentis "kin, clan, race". In communist Albania (1950s to 1980s), Illyrian names were encouraged in order to grow a stronger feeling of Albanian nationalism, so that the name is current as a modern personal name as Gentian, Gent or Genti.