of a
dupondius issued under the emperor
Vespasian depicting Fides Publica, the
public trust, holding a
patera as a symbol of religious fidelity and a
cornucopia is a Latin phrase meaning "good faith". Its
ablative case is , meaning "in good faith", which is often used in English as an adjective to mean "genuine". Some Latin phrases have lost their literal meaning over centuries, but is still widely used and interchangeable with its generally accepted modern-day
English translation of
good faith. While may be translated as "faith", it embraces a range of meanings within a core concept of "reliability", in the sense of a trust between two parties for the potentiality of a relationship. For the
ancient Romans,
bona fides was to be assumed by both sides, with implied responsibilities and both legal and religious consequences if broken. According to
Roman law, "
bona fides requires that what has been agreed upon be done" and was the principle of acting with integrity.{{cite book|last=Berger |first=Adolf|title=Encyclopedic Dictionary of Roman Law| publisher = American Philological Society In contemporary English, is synonymous with
credentials and
identity. The phrase is sometimes used in job advertisements, and should not be confused with the
bona fide occupational qualifications or the employer's good faith effort, as described below. ==Law==