A variant spelling of 'canabae,' referring to the civilian settlement that grew around a Roman military camp.
From Latin 'canabae,' possibly derived from 'canna' (reed) or related to camp structures. The term describes the unplanned commercial and residential zones that developed outside fort walls.
Roman 'canabae' were basically the first military towns—prostitutes, merchants, blacksmiths, and beer brewers would follow the legions and create entire shadow economies around the forts, essentially inventing the military-industrial complex!
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