 To the Roman people, Germanicus was the Roman equivalent of Alexander the Great due to the nature of his death at a young age, his virtuous character, his dashing physique, and his military renown.Germanicus' "praenomen" is unknown, but he was probably named Nero Claudius Drusus after his father (conventionally called "Drusus"), or possibly Tiberius Claudius Nero after his uncle.He took the "agnomen" Germanicus, awarded posthumously to his father in honor of his victories in Germania, at which point he nominally became head of the family in 9 BC.