The English word "rape" derives ultimately from the Latin verb rapere, "to snatch, carry away, abduct". Raptio (in archaic or literary English rendered as rape) is the Latin term referring to the large scale abduction of women, or kidnapping either for marriage or enslavement, particularly sexual slavery, something that was rather a common practice in many ancient cultures. In Roman law, raptus (or raptio) meant primarily kidnapping or abduction; depicted often in the mythological "rape" of the Sabine women is a form of bride abduction in which sexual violation is a secondary issue.