bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Hieron II of Syracuse
Authors: Zambon Efrem
Published: December 2012

Hieron II (306–215
BCE
) was tyrant and king of Syracuse from 270 to his death. He began his career as an officer of Pyrrhos' army during his expedition to Sicily, and when the king departed from the island in 276, he was appointed by the Syracusan people with the title of
archon
. To strengthen his position and gain the support of the upper classes he married Philistis, the daughter of Leptines, one of the leaders of the aristocracy. He encouraged the prosecution of the war against the carthaginians, more for propaganda reasons than with conviction; he was thus appointed as
strategos autokrator
and commander in chief of the army.
Illyria and Illyrians
Authors: Kos Marjeta Šašel
Published: December 2012

The history of the Illyrians and Illyria, variously understood in modern scholarship, is divided into different phases, of which the first, lasting until the collapse of the Illyrian kingdom, may be explained in terms of (varying) alliances of tribes and peoples of common or similar ethnic background, speaking similar languages.
Isopoliteia
Authors: Rousset Denis
Published: December 2012

Among the Greeks,
isopoliteia
denotes “right of equal citizenship.”
Kallias of Sphettos
Authors: Wallace Shane
Published: December 2012

Kallias, son of Thymochares, of Sphettos (late fourth‐mid‐third centuryBCE) was an Athenian citizen who achieved prominence under Ptolemy I Soter and Ptolemy II Philadelphos.
Kleomenes III of Sparta
Authors: Kralli Ioanna
Published: December 2012

Asde factosole ruler of Sparta between ca. 235 and 222BCE, the Agiad Kleomenes III (ca. 265/260?–219) carried out a program of radical social and political changes that shook profoundly the political establishment and temporarily succeeded in the political and military resurrection of Sparta (Plut.Cleomenes; Phylarchos inFGrH81 F 44, 51–2, 55–6, 58–60; Polyb. 2.46–70).
Laodike, mother of Seleukos III
Authors: Strootman Rolf
Published: December 2012

Laodike II was a Seleukid queen in the second half of the third centuryBCE. She was the wife of Seleukos II Kallinikos (r. 246–226BCE) and the mother of two kings.
Manlius Vulso, Gnaeus
Authors: Kantor Georgy
Published: December 2012

Gnaeus Manlius Vulso was a Roman statesman and general of the early second centuryBCE.
Orophernes of Cappadocia
Authors: Facella Margherita
Published: December 2012

Dynast of Cappadocia for a brief period (159/8–156BCE), Orophernes was a supposedly false son of Ariarathes IV and Antiochis.
Palaces, Hellenistic
Authors: Kopsacheili Maria
Published: December 2012

The Hellenistic palaces were the seats of the kings of major and minor Hellenistic kingdoms, as well as of the local rulers of regions under the control of the kings.
Patroklos, Ptolemaic commander
Authors: Primo Andrea
Published: December 2012

The Macedonian Patroklos, son of Patron, was active at the Ptolemaic court after 280
BCE
(
SEG
40.730); the latest evidence concerning him dates to ca. 257
BCE
(
IG
XI.2 226). Sources usually describe him as a
strategos
(“general”: Phylarchos in
FGrH
81 F 1; Hegesander in
FHG
IV p. 415 fr. 12;
IG
XII.5 1061;
IC
IV iv.3), while Pausanias refers to him as the
nauarchos
(“admiral”) of the fleet of Ptolemy II Philadelphos at the time of the Chremonidean War (Paus. 1.1.1; 3.6.4).
Peace
Authors: Dreher Martin
Published: December 2012

“Peace” (in Greekeirene, perhaps a pre‐Hellenic word) denotes both the state of peace in contrast to the state of war and the conclusion of peace or the concrete peace treaty.
Peripatetics
Authors: Falcon Andrea
Published: December 2012

The label “Peripatetics” was used, at least initially, to refer to the members of the school that Aristotle founded on his return to Athens in 335BCE.
Philetairos
Authors: Heckel Waldemar
Published: December 2012

The son of a Macedonian father named Attalos and Paphlagonian mother, Philetairos (343–263
BCE
) is first attested as the treasurer of Pergamon, apparently under the supervision of the Antigonid commander, Dokimos, before the battle of Ipsos (301).
PhilipVof Macedon
Authors: Čašule Nikola
Published: December 2012

King of Macedon during a turbulent period which included Macedon's first military conflicts with the Romans, Philip V (238–179BCE) was a skillful statesman, adept at handling the complexities of Hellenistic interstate relations. Despite a number of military defeats, Macedon remained a major Mediterranean power at the time of his death.
Phlegon of Tralles
Authors: Brodersen Kai
Published: December 2012

Phlegon of Tralles (
FGrH 257
) was a Greek writer in the time of the emperor Hadrian (117–138
CE
).
Phoenice, treaty of
Authors: Eckstein Arthur , Čašule Nikola
Published: December 2012

This treaty of peace concluded the First Macedonian War (seeMacedonian Wars), between Rome and Macedon, in 205BCE(StaatsverträgeIII 543).
Phraates IV of Parthia
Authors: Heller André
Published: December 2012

Phraates IV, son of Orodes II, was king of the Parthian Empire (38–32
BCE
). After the death of his favourite son Pakoros, Orodes appointed his eldest son as successor to the throne. Phraates immediately killed his father and his twenty‐nine brothers and persecuted the nobility.
Prusias II of Bithynia
Authors: Kleu Michael
Published: December 2012

Prusias II, called “the Hunter” (App.
Mith
. 3), was the son of Prusias of Bithynia and ruled the Bithynian kingdom from ca.
Rhodes
Authors: Gabrielsen Vincent
Published: December 2012

Rhodes is an island in the modern Dodecanese in southeast Aegean, off the Carian coast of Asia Minor.
Seleucids
Authors: Strootman Rolf
Published: December 2012

The Seleucid Empire (312–64BCE) was the largest of the three Macedonian empires that emerged after the death of Alexander the Great.
Sellasia, Battle of
Authors: Kralli Ioanna
Published: December 2012

Sellasia, near the northern frontier of Sparta, was the site of a major battle in 222
BCE
– a battle between the Spartan king Kleomenes III and the Macedonian king Antigonos Doson. The latter was at the head of a
HELLENIC ALLIANCE
consisting of Macedon, the Achaian League, and other federations (Polyb. 2.65–70, 20.5; Plut.
Cleom
. 27–30;
Phil
. 6).
Sosibios
Authors: Coloru Omar
Published: December 2012

Sosibios (before 240–after 204BCE), son of Dioskourides, was a significant political figure of Ptolemaic Egypt.
Successors, Wars of
Authors: Meeus Alexander
Published: December 2012

When Alexander III, the Great died (June 323BCE), he did not leave a successor who could immediately rule in his own name, and a protracted civil war (323–276BCE) ensued among his generals, the Diadochoi or Successors, who competed to fill the power vacuum.
Synoecism
Authors: Kosmetatou Elizabeth
Published: December 2012

The term Synoecism (Synoikismos, συνоικισμός) refers to the creation of a single larger community out of several smaller ones (χωρία, κμαι) throughout antiquity, often, but not always, resulting in full political unity, where individual geographical territories are maintained.
Kallikrates of Leontion
Authors: Dmitriev Sviatoslav
Published: December 2012

Kallikrates, a citizen of Leontion, was a statesman of the Achaian League.
Achilles Tatius
Authors: May Regine
Published: December 2012

Achilles Tatius of Alexandria (late second centuryCE) wrote the extant novelLeukippe and Kleitophon(eight books) and perhaps treatises on the sphere of heaven (fragments survive in a commentary on Aratos'Phaenomena), etymology, and a miscellaneous history of illustrious men (both no longer extant).
Alphabets, Italy
Authors: Penney J. H. W.
Published: December 2012

The alphabet was brought to Italy by Greek colonists from the eighth centuryBCEonwards, in various versions that reflect the usage of the parent cities in Greece.
Anthropology
Authors: Campbell Gordon Lindsay
Published: December 2012

Although anthropology did not exist as a separate discipline in the ancient world, the word may be reasonably retrojected onto ancient ideas and enquiries about the origins of humans and the development of civilization, and ancient ideas and enquiries about other peoples.
Art, Roman
Authors: Hardiman Craig I.
Published: December 2012

The origins of Roman art are a complex mix of native and imported styles and concepts that ultimately coalesced into what we now view as the art created by the Romans.
Music, Greece and Rome
Authors: Fox Matthew
Published: December 2012

Song, dance, and instrumental music –mousike, “arts of the Muses” – were normative ingredients of cultural and religious practice in ancient Greece and, with significant differences, Rome.
Rhetoric, Roman
Authors: Powell J. G. F.
Published: December 2012

Oratory was part of Roman public life as far back as can be traced: in the Senate's deliberations, in public political meetings (contiones), in the law courts, and at ceremonial events (e.g., funeral orations). Publication of speeches began in the third centuryBCE.
Septimontium
Authors: Holland Lora L.
Published: December 2012

The Roman antiquarian Varro says Septimontium was the name of the city before it was called Rome, and that the inhabitants of the hills within the city limits celebrated an annual festival, Septimontium Day (
Ling
. 5.41, 6.24).
Sport
Authors: Poliakoff Michael B.
Published: December 2012

All cultures engage in physical games, but they differ substantially in the way in which they organize these activities into sport, which by definition involves competition.
Statius, Publius Papinius
Authors: Cowan Robert
Published: December 2012

Statius was a Flavian poet, author of the epicThebaidandAchilleid, and the occasional poems known as theSilvae, as well as a lost pantomime libretto,Agave, and an epic on Domitian's German wars.
Translation
Authors: MacIntosh Fiona
Published: December 2012

In Dryden's Preface to his translation of Ovid'sEpistles(1680), he proffers a tripartite typology of translation: “metaphrase” – the “literal”; “paraphrase” – a translation where overall sense predominates over a word‐for‐word rendering; and “imitation” – where liberty is taken with the text in order to adapt it to the present context.
Vergil (Publius Vergilius Maro)
Authors: Harrison Stephen J.
Published: December 2012

P. Vergilius Maro (ca. 70–19BCE), known to moderns as Vergil or Virgil, was the greatest Latin hexameter poet.
Vipsanius Agrippa, Marcus
Authors: Rich J. W.
Published: December 2012

Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (64/3–12BCE) was the principal associate of Octavian/Augustus. Agrippa's family was undistinguished, and he was usually known just as Marcus Agrippa, omitting the family name.
Sound
Authors: Bettini Maurizio
Published: December 2012

Today's life takes place within a “phonosphere”: car horns, roaring engines, televised yelling or prattling, and so forth.
Agrippina the Elder
Authors: Hopwood Bronwyn
Published: December 2012

Vipsania Agrippina (Maior) (ca. 14BCE–33CE), daughter of M. Vipsanius Agrippa (RE2) and Julia (RE550), granddaughter of Augustus (RE132), married Germanicus (RE138) in 5CEand produced nine children (Suet.Cal. 7), six of whom survived infancy: Nero Caesar (RE146), Drusus Caesar (RE137), Gaius “Caligula” (RE133), Agrippina the younger (Minor) (RE556), Julia Drusilla (RE567), and Julia Livilla (RE575).
Quintus Smyrnaeus
Authors: Maciver Calum
Published: December 2012

Quintus of Smyrna (third centuryCE) wrote a fourteen‐book Greek epic poem entitled thePosthomerica. The poem itself narrates the events of the Trojan War that occur after the conclusion of theIliad, but before the events narrated in theOdyssey.
Apollonios Molon
Authors: Honigman Sylvie
Published: December 2012

A prominent orator of the first half of the first centuryBCE, Apollonios Molon taught rhetoric at Rhodes at about the same time as Poseidonios.
Ashdod (Azotus)
Authors: Zimmerle William
Published: December 2012

One of the five Philistine capital cities listed in the Bible, Ashdod (Greek Azotus; modern Tel Ashdod) lies 15 km north of Ashkelon and about 4 km inland from the Mediterranean Sea.
Baruch, Books of (1, 2, 3 Baruch)
Authors: Henze Matthias
Published: December 2012

Well after the canon of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament was closed, Jewish scribes continued to compose stories about events set during the biblical period. It was common practice to write under a pseudonym, typically a biblical figure of renown (e.g., Adam, Baruch, or Enoch). Pseudepigraphy is thus “a reverse form of plagiarism”; it denotes that a text is falsely attributed to an ancient authority, even though it was composed long after the life of its alleged author.
Burial, Jewish
Authors: Koltun‐Fromm Naomi
Published: December 2012

The Ancient Israelites buried their dead in similar fashion to the other peoples among whom they lived.
Caesarea Maritima
Authors: Levine Lee I.
Published: December 2012

Caesarea Maritima, named in honor of the Roman emperor Augustus, was built by Herod the Great over a twelve‐year period (22–10/9bce) and featured impressive harbor facilities, a theater, and an amphitheaterhippodrome. Caesarea achieved prominence in 6ce, when it became the capital of the newly formed province of Judaea. This multicultural city boasted pagan, Jewish, Samaritan, and Christian communities.
Catacombs, Jewish
Authors: Michel Patrick Maxime
Published: December 2012

In the Middle Ages, Christian catacombs were known in Rome and the cult of martyrs made them well known. In modern times, similar Jewish burial places have also been found in Rome and Venosa. As Christians and Jews refused cremation of bodies, a solution had to be found in dense urban communities to permit burial of the dead.
Cemeteries, Jewish
Authors: Grey Matthew J.
Published: December 2012

As in surrounding Mediterranean cultures, burial had an important place in the life cycle of ancient Judaism. Although the Hebrew Bible does not give a systematic description of burial practices in early Israel, archaeological discoveries provide evidence for funerary customs at various levels of ancient Jewish society. The most recognizable Jewish cemeteries, however, contain the tombs of upper‐class families and indicate the degree to which foreign culture influenced this stratum of Jewish society.
Dead Sea
Authors: Klein Konstantin M.
Published: December 2012

The Dead Sea is a salt lake in the Jordan Rift valley. It has a salinity of more than 33 percent, which prevents animals living in it, hence its modern Hebrew and Arabic names (Hebr.Yam ha‐Melah, “Sea of Salt,” and Arab.Bahr al‐Mayyit, “Dead Sea”).
Ecclesiastes
Authors: Barbour Jennifer
Published: December 2012

The book of Ecclesiastes scrutinizes the Hebrew Bible's wisdom tradition from within, in fictional first‐person speech put into the mouth of a king of Israel who strongly resembles Solomon.
Epigraphy, Jewish
Authors: Noy David
Published: December 2012

The basic definition of Jewish epigraphy is straightforward: the study of inscriptions written by Jews on stone and other permanent material.
Esther, Scroll of
Authors: Macchi Jean‐Daniel
Published: December 2012

According to the book of Esther, Esther was a Judaean/Jewish girl who became queen at the court of Persia in the fifth century
BCE
.
Exorcism, Jewish
Authors: Bohak Gideon
Published: December 2012

The belief in demons was widespread among Jews in antiquity.
Ezra/Esdras, Books of
Authors: Rotman Youval
Published: December 2012

The books of Ezra/Esdras refer to four books attributed to Ezra the Scribe.
Havdala de‐Rabbi Akiba
Authors: Harari Yuval
Published: December 2012

The
Havdala
according to Rabbi Aqiva (
Havdala de‐Rabbi Aqiva
) is a short treatise that sketches a magical version of the Jewish ceremony of
Havdala
(separation between the holy and the profane) that is performed every Saturday evening, marking the end of Shabbat.
Bible, Hebrew
Authors: Barstad Hans M.
Published: December 2012

The Hebrew Bible is a collection of holy (canonical) scripture for Judaism and Christianity. In the Jewish tradition it is known as
Tanakh
(see below) or
Miqra
(i.e., that which is read), while in the Christian tradition it is known as the Old Testament.
Herod the Great
Authors: Grabbe Lester L.
Published: December 2012

Herod the Great (ca. 75–4BCE) is one of the few names from the Bible known widely by the public.
John HyrcanusI
Authors: Gera Dov
Published: December 2012

John Hyrcanus I, a son of Simon the Hasmonean, was a general in his father's army (1 Macc 13.53; 16.1–10; Jos.BJ1.51–3;AJ13.225–7). Simon was assassinated by his son‐in‐law, Ptolemy (135/134BCE), while two of his sons were either killed or taken hostage (our sources disagree). Hyrcanus, hearing of the conspiracy, seized Jerusalem and assumed the high priesthood. He then besieged Ptolemy in Jericho, but the latter's hold on Hyrcanus' brothers and mother (Josephus' version) prolonged the blockade, until Ptolemy killed them and fled (1 Macc 16.11–22;BJ1.54–60;AJ13.228–35).
John HyrcanusII
Authors: Atkinson Kenneth
Published: December 2012

John Hyrcanus II was the youngest son of the Judaean monarch Alexander Jannaeus and queen Alexandra Salome. He served as high priest during his mother's nine‐year reign (76–67BCE), and was likely appointed king just before her death. The two were members of the Jewish religious movement known as the Pharisees. Hyrcanus II's brother, Aristobulus II, staged a coup to remove him from power. Hyrcanus II abdicated the throne and the high priesthood after a reign of three months (Jos.BJ1.120–2;AJ14.4–7).
Joseph and Aseneth
Authors: Braginskaya Nina V.
Published: December 2012

This Jewish apocryphon tells the story of a conversion to the true God of Israel prompted by love.
Judah ha‐Nasi/the Prince, Rabbi
Authors: Oppenheimer Aharon
Published: December 2012

Rabbi Judah ha‐Nasi, “our Holy Rabbi” or just “Rabbi,” was the head of the autonomous Jewish rabbinical leadership around 175–220
CE
, first in Beit She'arim, then in Sepphoris/Zippori.
Maccabees, Books of
Authors: Vanhenten Janwillem
Published: December 2012

Four extracanonical Jewish books in Greek are connected with “the Maccabees,” referring either to Jewish freedom fighters from the second centuryBCE(seeJudas Maccabaeus; Jonathan Maccabaeus; Simon Maccabaeus) and their period or to martyrs from the same period (the martyrdoms are described in 2 Macc 6:18–7:42 and 4 Macc).
Menorah
Authors: Geller Simone , Fine Steven
Published: December 2012

The menorah, a seven‐branched lampstand whose name is a Hebrew term used to describe appurtenances of the Mosaic tabernacle and the Jerusalem temples, became a Jewish symbol in the Persian period, and particularly in Roman Palestine, and then throughout the Late Antique Roman Empire.
Mezuzah
Authors: Cohn Yehudah B.
Published: December 2012

The Hebrew word
mezuzah
(plural
mezuzot
) appears in the Bible meaning a doorpost, notably as the locus of a bloody mark that was used to distinguish Israelite homes from Egyptian ones, and thereby protect the former from plague, prior to the exodus from Egypt (Exodus 12).
Palestine
Authors: Isaac Benjamin
Published: December 2012

In Greek and Latin texts, the name Palestine occurs first in the fifth centuryBCEin the work of Herodotus (1.104–5; 2.104–6; 4.39; 7.89), where it is a geographic concept referring to the coastal plain from Phoenicia to Gaza.
Paradise, Jewish and Christian beliefs in
Authors: Minov Sergey
Published: December 2012

The Greek word παράδεισoς,paradeisos,isoiIranian origin and derives most likely from Median*paridaeza.
Philo the Epic Poet
Authors: Hilton Naomi
Published: December 2012

Philo (third to second century
BCE
), an unidentified Jewish poet, is said to be the author of six fragments in Eusebius of Caesarea,
Praeparatio Evangelica
(9.20.1–2; 24.1; 37.1–3), who depends on Alexander Polyhistor (ca. 105–35
BCE
).
Piyyut (Jewish liturgical and secular poetry)
Authors: Lieber Laura S.
Published: December 2012

Apiyyut(pl.piyyutim) is a poem created to substitute for, adorn, or preface a passage from the Jewish liturgy or a liturgical rite. The Hebrew term derives from the Greekpoiēsis(something made, created), also the root of the English word “poetry.” A composer of piyyutim is apayyetan.
Prayer, Jewish
Authors: Calabro David
Published: December 2012

In ancient Jewish sources, prayer (most commonly denoted by the Hebrew nountefillah, from the verbhitpallel“pray”) is understood as a means of communicating directly with God.
Proverbs, book of Hebrew Bible
Authors: Miller Charles William
Published: December 2012

The biblical book of Proverbs is a compilation of several collections of brief sayings and short poems representing Israel's contribution to the wisdom traditions of the ancient world.
Ptolemais/Acco
Authors: Klein Konstantin M.
Published: December 2012

Acco (Greek Akē/Akrē) is a Levantine harbor town in the Galilee region located at the northern cape of Haifa Bay, which was renowned throughout Antiquity for its quartz sand (Strabo 16.25–6; Plin.
HN
5.19).
Rabbis
Authors: Belser Julia Watts
Published: December 2012

The rabbis are the architects of rabbinic Judaism, which became the dominant form of Judaism in Late Antiquity and remains so today.
Religion, Samaritan
Authors: Pummer Reinhard
Published: December 2012

With Judaism and Christianity, Samaritanism is one of the three monotheistic religions that grew out of ancient Israelite religion.
S
anhedrin,
J
ewish Court of Law
Authors: McLaren James
Published: December 2012

The term Sanhedrin, derived from the Greek word
synedrion
, is normally used to describe the body that held authority within the Jewish community in the Land of Israel during the late Second Temple period.
Sefer Yetzira
(Jewish Mystical Text)
Authors: Wasserstrom Steven M.
Published: December 2012

Sefer Yetzira
,
The Book of Creation
, is a short Hebrew‐language cosmological treatise of unknown authorship. Its central theme is the revelation of the secrets of creation.
Sepphoris
Authors: Chancey Mark A.
Published: December 2012

Sepphoris, located approximately 5 km north of Nazareth, was one of only two major cities in Galilee in the Roman and early Byzantine periods.
Shi‘ur Qomah (Jewish mystical texts)
Authors: Boustan Ra'anan S.
Published: December 2012

Shi‘ur Qomah (“The Measure of the [Divine] Body”) refers to a class of Jewish “mystical” texts in Hebrew that catalogue the precise size and secret name of the limbs of God's body.
Simon Maccabaeus
Authors: Bernhardt Johannes C.
Published: December 2012

Simon was the second son of Mattathias and a member of the priestly family of the Hasmoneans.
Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice (Dead Sea Scrolls)
Authors: Dimant Devorah
Published: December 2012

Songs of the Sabbath Sacrificeis a Qumranic composition preserved in ten fragmentary copies, nine from the Qumran caves (4Q400–4Q407; 11Q17) and one from Masada (MaslK).
Talmud, Palestinian and Babylonian
Authors: Danzig David , Fine Steven
Published: December 2012

The Palestinian Talmud (also known as the Jerusalem Talmud, ca. 400CE) and the Babylonian Talmud (ca. 600CE) are ostensibly legal corpora, structured as commentaries on the earliest rabbinic legal corpus, the Mishnah (ca. 225CE).
Testament of Job
Authors: Law T. M.
Published: December 2012

The
Testament of Job
is an amusing Jewish folktale that may have been written some time between the first century
BCE
and the first century
CE
, though some have suggested it had a later Christian origin.
Testament of Solomon
Authors: Klutz Todd
Published: December 2012

TheTestament of Solomonis a Late Roman pseudepigraphon attested in various forms by eighteen Greek manuscripts, in which interactions between King Solomon and numerous representatives of the demonic realm are integrated into a retelling of the king's life.
Therapeutae
Authors: Inowlocki‐Meister Sabrina
Published: December 2012

The Therapeutae are described by Philo of Alexandria (20
BCE
–50
CE
) (
see
Philo Judaeus) in his
De vita contemplativa
, our only first‐hand source for their existence, as a group of Jewish ascetics.
Tobiads
Authors: Capponi Livia
Published: December 2012

The Tobiads, present in Judaea from the Persian period according to the Book of Nehemiah (13:4), were a family of feudal cavalrymen who controlled the region called Ammonitis (Transjordan).
Women, Jewish
Authors: Ilan Tal
Published: December 2012

In postbiblical antiquity Jewish women were viewed as lesser than men. In this Jews were like their various non‐Jewish neighbors. Yet their inspiration was found in the Hebrew Bible. Women's subordinate position was derived from their secondary creation and their culpability for original sin. Contemporary concerns and Hellenistic influence interfered with the biblical justification for women's subordination. One midrash compares the biblical creation of Eve with the Greek Pandora myth, in which woman is created secondary and is the source of all evil (Genesis Rabbah19.10).
Zealots (Jewish)
Authors: Spilsbury Paul
Published: December 2012

The term “Zealot” emerges from Josephus's account of the causes and conduct of the Jewish revolt against Rome in 66–70CE, and has come to refer in some circles to any kind of Jewish rebel or insurgent from that period.
Abu Mina
Authors: Brooks Hedstrom Darlene L.
Published: December 2012

Abu Mina was the largest Christian pilgrimage site in Egypt during the Late Antique period (480–700CE) and is located about 45 km south‐west of Alexandria. The extensive pilgrimage city, identified in sources only as the Church of St. Menas in Maryût, is associated with the relics of St. Menas (d. 296CE), a Roman soldier who was martyred under Diocletian.
Anglo‐Saxons
Authors: Hofmann Petra
Published: December 2012

The term Anglo‐Saxons collectively denotes the Germanic peoples who settled in post‐Roman Britain from northern Germany and Denmark in the fifth centuryCE.
Boethius
Authors: Moreschini Claudio
Published: December 2012

Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius (the manuscripts often add, erroneously,TorquatustoManliusto connect him to the hero who defeated the Gauls; thegens Manliawas extinguished at the end of the republic, but Manlius was a common name of some noble families in the imperial age) was born about 480, son of Manlius Boethius,consulof 487; his mother was a member of the Anicii, a prominent senatorial Christian family.
Bury, John Bagnell (1861–1927)
Authors: Klein Konstantin M.
Published: December 2012

John Bagnell Bury (October 16, 1861–June 1, 1927) was an Irish historian and philologist whose scholarly interests ranged over all periods of antiquity, but who is best known for his work on the late Roman and Byzantine empires.
Celtic languages
Authors: Mullen Alex
Published: December 2012

The Celtic languages form a sub‐group of Indo‐European languages which, in Antiquity, were spoken widely on the Continent, Britain, and Ireland.
Claudian
Authors: Vanderspoel John
Published: December 2012

Claudius Claudianus (ca. 370–404CE) was an Alexandrian poet who made his reputation as a panegyrist at Rome and Milan from 394 to 404.
Columban
Authors: Naerebout Frederick G.
Published: December 2012

Columban was born around 543 in the kingdom of Leinster, in the southeast of Ireland (all dates are disputed).
Cyrus, patriarch of Alexandria
Authors: Jankowiak Marek
Published: December 2012

Cyrus (d. Alexandria March 21, 642
CE
) was bishop of Phasis (Lazika) and later Chalcedonian patriarch of Alexandria (633?–642).
Doctrina Iacobi
Authors: Deroche Vincent
Published: December 2012

This Christian polemical text, written in Greek shortly after 634
CE
, is historically exceptional because it is the only known source to combine: (1) an account of a critical moment in the relations between Christians and Jews; and (2) a first‐hand narrative of the first encounters of Christians with Islam.
Ephrem
Authors: Law T. M.
Published: December 2012

Arguably the most important figure in the history of Syriac Christianity, Ephrem the Syrian (ca. 306–73
CE
) was a deacon, theologian, exegete, poet, and hymnographer who wrote before the schismatic controversies that would entangle the church in the following century. Ephrem's writing is of great historical and theological importance, not least because it exhibits a Christianity almost entirely free of western influence.
Euesperides
Authors: Quinn Josephine Crawley
Published: December 2012

Euesperides, now in an eastern suburb of Benghazi (Libya), lies at the western edge of the Cyrenaican seaboard, next to a chain of salt lagoons that must have attracted the Greek colonists who arrived ca. 600
BCE
.
Gelimer
Authors: Merrills A. H.
Published: December 2012

Gelimer was the last of the Vandal rulers of the Carthaginian kingdom of North Africa.
Holy men
Authors: Sizgorich Thomas
Published: December 2012

“Holy Man,” “Holy Woman” and, collectively, “Holy Persons” are terms used in modern historiography of the Late Ancient world to describe charismatic figures representing a variety of confessional and philosophical communities, all of whom were associated with the capacity to effect apparently impossible changes in the material world, because of their intimacy with God, gods, or transcendent truth.
Iberia (Kartli)
Authors: Rapp Stephen H.
Published: December 2012

In its narrowest sense, Iberia is the Classical and Byzantine designation for the inland, eastern Georgian region of Kartli, which straddled the Mtkvari (Kura) River. Ancient Greeks identified two Iberias on the edges of the known world: one encompassing modern‐day Spain and Portugal and the other eastwards past the Black Sea, just below the main line of the Caucasus Mountains. The meaning of Caucasian “Iberia” in Mediterranean sources is highly variable: the term denotes Kartli proper, the whole of eastern Georgia (esp. Kartli and Kakheti), and even Caucasian Chalcedonian Christians, including the Armenians. “Iberia” is not used in Old Georgian, although Armenian “Virk” is likely based upon it.
Iranian languages
Authors: Tucker Elizabeth
Published: December 2012

Iranian languages represent a sub‐branch of the Indo‐European family, which were spoken not only in Iran, but also, according to evidence from Late Antiquity, across a geographical area extending from the Caucasus to eastern Central Asia.
Mecca
Authors: Lecker Michael
Published: December 2012

Mecca, the holiest town of Islam, is located in a valley 277 m above sea level.
Mines, mining, Late Antiquity
Authors: Power Timothy
Published: December 2012

Following a general hiatus in the third century, a resurgence of mining activities in the Byzantine provinces of the east becomes apparent in the fourth century.
Nestorian Church
Authors: Walker Joel
Published: December 2012

The Nestorian Church is the name commonly given to the Church of the East, which formed in the Sasanian Empire (224–642CE). At its height between the sixth and ninth centuriesCE, this Church, also known as the East‐Syrian Church, constituted the largest Christian community in Asia, and possibly in the world. Its patriarch, based at the Sasanian capital of Seleukeia‐Ktesiphon, and later at Baghdad, oversaw more than eighty bishoprics spread across fourteen modern countries. Although the Church fell into sharp decline in the post–Mongol period, its modern branches, including the Assyrian and Chaldean Churches, remain active in india, Europe, North America, Australia, and some parts of the Middle East.
Qur’ān
Authors: Sijpesteijn Petra
Published: December 2012

Qur'ān, recital or reading in Arabic, is the Islamic scripture which was revealed in Arabic to the Prophet of Islam, Mu, by God through the agency of the archangel Gabriel.
Raqqa
Authors: Genequand Denis
Published: December 2012

Al‐Raqqa is a town of modern Syria situated on the left bank of the Euphrates River. It belongs to the western part of the Jazīra or northern Mesopotamia. Since the Hellenistic period, it was the site of a city called Kallinikos or, alternatively, Nikephorion, but it became much more important in the early Islamic period. In 639, the city was conquered by a Muslim army led by ‘Iyāḍ b. Ġanm after a short siege and the conclusion of a treaty.
Consular Annals
Authors: Deliyannis Deborah M.
Published: December 2012

“Consular annals” is a term used by modern historians to refer to lists of Roman consuls that were annotated with brief references to major events for each year.
Sermons, Late Antiquity
Authors: Schwartz Daniel L.
Published: December 2012

Christian clergy preached sermons to their congregations for the purpose of proselytism, moral exhortation, biblical exposition, and theological education.
Shenoute
Authors: Krawiec Rebecca
Published: December 2012

Shenoute of Atripe (ca. 348–465) was one of the most important monastic leaders in Upper Egypt in the fourth and fifth centuries.
Syriac literature
Authors: Tannous Jack
Published: December 2012

“Syriac” is the name given to the Aramaic dialect of the city of Edessa (modern Urfa in Turkey) in Northern Mesopotamia (
see
Aramaic and Syriac); in Late Antiquity, Syriac became the literary lingua franca of much of the Christian population of the Middle East and remained so until it was eventually superseded by Arabic in the Medieval period.
Theoderic
Authors: Mathisen Ralph
Published: December 2012

Theoderic the Great (r. 493–526
CE
) was the ruler of the Ostrogothic kingdom of Italy. His reign provided a model for an effective and peaceful integration of Barbarians (
see
Barbarians, Barbaroi) and Romans.
Theodore of Mopsuestia
Authors: Schwartz Daniel L.
Published: December 2012

Theodore (ca. 350–428) was the bishop of Mopsuestia (Misis in southern Turkey).
Seeck,Otto (1850–1921)
Authors: Traina Giusto
Published: December 2012

Otto Karl Seeck (Riga, 1850–Münster, 1921) was a German ancient historian. A pupil of Theodor Mommsen, he taught in Greifswald and, from 1907 on, in Münster.
Actor(accusator, petitor)
Authors: Perry Matthew J.
Published: December 2012

Actor,accusator, andpetitorwere titles used in Roman law to describe the plaintiff or prosecutor in a court case. In both civil and criminal law, theactordrove the proceedings; he was responsible for initiating charges, obtaining and analyzing evidence, and even ensuring the defendant's attendance. To strengthen their cases,actoresregularly enlisted the services of trained advocates to present and explain material in court.
Adrogatio
Authors: Drogula Fred K.
Published: December 2012

Adrogatiowas the process of Adoption by which a manSui Iuris(that is, aPaterfamiliaswho was not under another man'spotestas) could give up his independence and come under thepotestasof an adoptive father (a different process calledadoptiowas used to adopt individualsin potestate parentum).
Antigraphe, ‐eus
Authors: Scafuro Adele C.
Published: December 2012

In the first half of the fourth century, the
antigrapheus
(“revenue secretary”) was an elected official in charge of Athenian revenues; he reported them to the city every
prytany
.
Atimia
Authors: Scafuro Adele C.
Published: December 2012

Atimiain Archaic Athens is a penalty characterized as“outlawry” and means the deprivation of all rights: theatimos(person sufferingatimia) could be killed without legal redress; the killer was not liable to prosecution or penalty and was apparently free of pollution. Suchatimiawas tantamount to expulsion from Athens. Demosthenes cites an early fifth century decree that made Arthmios and his family (from Zeleia in Asia)atimosand an enemy of the Athenians“because he brought theMedes' gold into the Peloponnese” to bribe the inhabitants to support the Persians (D. 9.41–5).
Boulomenos, ho
Authors: Leão Delfim F.
Published: December 2012

Boulomenos, holiterally means “whoever wishes” (to initiate a procedure).
Causa
Authors: Perry Matthew J.
Published: December 2012

Causais a multifaceted term with variable meanings in Roman law, meanings usually derived from its basic definition of “cause” or “reason.”
Centumviri
Authors: Rüfner Thomas
Published: December 2012

The
centumviri
(hundred men) were the judges of a Roman court with jurisdiction over inheritance disputes.
Chresis
Authors: Banfi Antonio
Published: December 2012

In Athenian law,
chresis
is the contract that temporarily transfers an object from the owner or from the possessor to another person, who acquires the right to use this object.
Codex Hermopolis
Authors: Lippert Sandra L
Published: December 2012

Designation of a demotic manuscript (third century
BCE
) written on the recto of apapyrus found at Hermupolis Magna (Ashmunein) in Upper Egypt in 1938, now in the Egyptian Museum at Cairo (
P.Cairo
JE 89127–89130+ 89137–89143); on the verso is a mathematical text.
Cognitor
Authors: Rüfner Thomas
Published: December 2012

Cognitor is a technical term of Roman law referring to a legal representative acting for either side in civil proceedings. The
cognitor
had to be appointed in the presence of the opponent using certain solemn words.
Consensus
Authors: Schermaier Martin J. , Dedek Helge
Published: December 2012

The termconsensussignifies, just as in modern English, agreement: something that is “felt together.” In expressing a harmony between different parts of a larger structure,consensusis close toconcordia. The termconsensusis frequently used in political rhetoric; the concept of agreement is also the foundation of the classical law of contract as developed by the Praetor.
Constitutio Antoniniana
Authors: Buraselis Kostas
Published: December 2012

Under the term
Constitutio Antoniniana
(C.A.), “(imperial) decision of Antoninus,” we have come to understand the official act (probably 212
CE
) of the second Severan emperor Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, nicknamed Caracalla, to grant the Roman citizenship to all (or nearly all) free inhabitants of the Roman Empire who had not yet possessed this status.
Conubium
Authors: McGinn Thomas A. J.
Published: December 2012

Conubium(“the legal capacity to marry”) carries the double sense of a right and a requirement.
Corpus iuris civilis
Authors: Miglietta Massimo
Published: December 2012

Corpus iuris civilis(“corpus of civil law,” an expression created by medieval jurists) refers to the most important compilation of legislative and jurisprudential material (i.e.,legesandiura) ever accomplished in the history of law, ordered by the Roman emperor Justinian (527–65CE), who expressly gave it the efficacy of law.
Delphinion
Authors: Wolpert Andrew
Published: December 2012

In Athens, the king archon brought cases of justifiable homicide to the
ephetai
to judge in the court of the Delphinion, located near the Temple of Zeus, southeast of the Acropolis.
Denuntiatio
Authors: Rüfner Thomas
Published: December 2012

Denuntatioi
is a term for a formal communication in Roman law.
Diagraphein, diagraphe
Authors: Yiftach‐Firanko Uri
Published: December 2012

In legal and administrative language,
diagraphein
has two main meanings. In Athens, every suit was recorded in a list by the official in charge of presenting it to court.
Diaitetai
Authors: Scafuro Adele C.
Published: December 2012

Diaitetai(sing.diaitetes) in classical Athens were arbitrators who settled disputes in either an official or a private capacity.
Dikasterion
Authors: Wolpert Andrew
Published: December 2012

Thedikasterion(pl.dikasteria), meaning “court of law,” rivaled the popular assembly of democratic Athens in importance and power.
Dikastes
Authors: Wallace Robert W.
Published: December 2012

Adikasteswas a “lay‐judge” (pl.dikastai), convening in adikasterion(“justice place”), and charged with hearing courtroom speeches and laws, deciding the facts, and passing sentence, in most court cases (seeAreopagos) in classical Athens.
Eisangelia
Authors: Harris Edward M.
Published: December 2012

Eisangelia
was a special type of public action in Athenian law.
Ephetai
Authors: Scafuro Adele C.
Published: December 2012

Theephetaiare attested inIGI3104, where the (re‐)publication of Draco's law on homicide in 409/8BCEis ordered.
Graphe
Authors: Harris Edward M.
Published: December 2012

Athenian law divided legal procedures into two main categories, private suits (dikai) and public suits (mostlygraphai).
Iniuria
Authors: Ellart Carlos Sánchez‐Moreno
Published: December 2012

The Roman‐law term
iniuria
can be used in two senses (
Dig
. 47.10.1pr. Ulp. 56
ad ed
.; Paul
Col
. 2.5.1).
Ius Italicum
Authors: Fuhrmann Christopher
Published: December 2012

The
ius Italicum
or “Italian right” was a special status enjoyed by some provincial communities in the Roman Empire that entitled them to treatment as an Italian community in taxation and other administrative procedures.
Iusiurandum
Authors: du Plessis Paul J.
Published: December 2012

The Latin nouniusiurandumrefers to an oath sworn initially to Jupiter (and other deities) or later (in the time of the empire) to thegeniusof the emperor.
Jucundus, tablets of
Authors: Terpstra Taco
Published: December 2012

The Jucundus tablets are a collection of wooden writing tablets, found in the ancient city of Pompeii.
Kyrios
Authors: Schaps David M.
Published: December 2012

A
kyrios
was anyone who had responsible power (
kyros
) over something. Aperson might be
kyrios
(“entitled”) to do an action (Aesch.
Ag
. 104),
kyrios
to deal with (Soph.
Aj
. 734), or decide (Xen.
Hell
. 2.2.18) a matter,
kyrios
of a household (Aesch.
Cho
. 658) or of astate (Arist.
Pol
. 1281a11). Avalid decision was
kyrios
(Dem. 24.1), an invalid one
akyros
(Andoc.1.8).
Law, “Greek”
Authors: Harris Edward M.
Published: December 2012

During the Classical and Hellenistic periods, Greece was divided into hundreds of city‐states (poleis), each with its own laws and legal institutions.
Law, Roman
Authors: du Plessis Paul J.
Published: December 2012

The legal history of ancient Rome is commonly divided into five epochs. They are: the Archaic period (753–250BCE); the Preclassical period (250–27BCE); the Classical period (27BCE–284CE); the Postclassical period (284–527CE); and the Justinianic period (527–65CE). Central to this nomenclature, which corresponds broadly to more conventional historical classifications of Roman history such as republic and empire, are notions of growth and decline.
Law, sources of (Greek and Roman)
Authors: Karambelas Dimitris
Published: December 2012

The nature of the sources of Greek and Roman law – what Greeks and Romans believed gave birth or authority to their laws – was, as in all legal cultures, determined by their political, social, and economic context and, consequently, changed over time.
Legislation, Greek and Roman
Authors: Fisher Roger S.
Published: December 2012

Legislation is the deliberate and formal process of making, changing, or repealing laws by a person or body of persons recognized by a legal system as having the authority to do so.
Lex Aquilia
Authors: Miglietta Massimo
Published: December 2012

According to tradition, in the third century
BCE
, an otherwise unknown Aquilius,
tribunus plebis
(“tribune of the plebs”), let the Roman people vote a plebiscite on damage that has come to be the basis of modern civil liability (Gai.
Inst
. 3.210–19 and Ulp. 18
ad edictum
). The
lex Aquilia
was probably the outcome of a combination of previous laws about damage (
Dig
. 9.2.1 pr.), and consisted of three chapters.
Lex Voconia
Authors: McGinn Thomas A. J.
Published: December 2012

The
lex Voconia
was a plebiscite, brought before the
concilium plebis
in 169
BCE
by the tribune Q.
Manus
Authors: McGinn Thomas A. J.
Published: December 2012

The older form of Roman marriage entailed the subjection of the woman to the authority and control (manus) of her husband.
Notary
Authors: Caseau Béatrice
Published: December 2012

Notaries were in charge of writing, classifying, and authenticating documents.
Oaths, Greek and Roman
Authors: Bolmarcich Sarah
Published: December 2012

The oath (Greekhorkos, Latinius iurandum) was central to Greek and Roman law, society, and religion.
Oratory and Roman law
Authors: Ellart Carlos Sánchez‐Moreno
Published: December 2012

The place of oratory in Roman law has been approached from two not totally unrelated points of view: its place in Roman litigation; and the possible influence of rhetoric in general on Roman jurisprudence and its methodology.
Quaestio
Authors: Alexander Michael C.
Published: December 2012

Derived from a verb (quaerere, meaning “to seek”),quaestiorefers to various kinds of investigations. In a Roman legal context it can refer to an interrogation of a witness, often with the use of torture, or a judicial inquiry, or a court designed to conduct such an inquiry. In juristic literature it refers to a discussion of a case, either based on real life or from the classroom, as part of education in the law.
Sui heredes
Authors: Dedek Helge , Schermaier Martin J.
Published: December 2012

Sui heredes
, “his heirs,” is a technical term referring to legal heirs according to the Roman
ius civile
.
Sui iuris
Authors: Dedek Helge , Schermaier Martin J.
Published: December 2012

Sui iuris
, “of his/her own right,” were those free Romans – men and women – who were not
alieni iuris
, i.e., subjected to the power of the male head of the Roman family unit, the Paterfamilias.
Tabula Contrebiensis
Authors: Richardson John
Published: December 2012

The
Tabula Contrebiensis
is a bronze tablet, dated to 87
BCE
, discovered at Botorrita (Zaragoza) in Spain in 1979 and containing a judgment on a dispute about water rights between two indigenous peoples.
Tabulae nuptiales
Authors: Ellart Carlos Sánchez‐Moreno
Published: December 2012

The so‐calledtabulae nuptiales,instrumentum nuptiale, orintrumentum dotalewere actually written, signed, and witnessed agreements that included different provisions concerning the constitution and possible restitution of the dowry (Pacta Dotalia).
Theft
Authors: Harris Edward M.
Published: December 2012

The laws of Athens and Rome regarding theft contain several striking similarities.
Culpa
Authors: Schermaier Martin J. , Dedek Helge
Published: December 2012

Culpa
can be translated as guilt, fault, or blame. He who is guilty, at fault, or to blame is being held responsible.
Culpa
, therefore, is a concept whose function it is to convey a judgment about responsibility. Regarding the substance of this concept, we can distinguish between two traditions and hence two different meanings of
culpa
, depending on the context in which responsibility is to be assigned.
Alexandria in Margiana
Authors: Lerner Jeffrey D.
Published: December 2012

Alexandria in Margiana (modern Merv, Turkmenistan) is located in the Murghab oasis.
Amphiareion sanctuary
Authors: Keesling Catherine M.
Published: December 2012

The Amphiareion was an oracular sanctuary located at Oropos, on the border between Attica and Boiotia, and dedicated to the hero/god Amphiaraos. The attested method of oracular consultation at the Amphiareion was incubation.
Amphilochia
Authors: Strauch Daniel
Published: December 2012

Amphilochia was the name of a territory in northwestern Greece, east of the Gulf of Ambrakia. The tribe which inhabited the territory was called the Amphilochoi.
Ankyra
Authors: Zahariade Mihail
Published: December 2012

Ankyra in Galatia stood on the site of presentday Ankara, the capital of Turkey.
Antioch in Persis
Authors: Lerner Jeffrey D.
Published: December 2012

Antioch in Persis corresponds to either modern Bushire on the Persian Gulf or inland Taoke (modern Borazjan) (Bernard 1990: 46–52; Fraser 1996: 31, no. 68).
Aphrodisias (Ninoe)
Authors: Ratté Christopher
Published: December 2012

The Carian city of Aphrodisias is one of the richest archaeological sites in Turkey. Aphrodisias lies in the Maeander river basin, about 130 km east of the Aegean Sea. The city first became important in the first century
BCE
, and continued to flourish throughout the Roman period.
Astypalaia
Authors: Zahariade Mihail
Published: December 2012

An ancient town (present‐day Chora) on the island of the same name situated between Anaphe and Kos. The literary tradition speaks about the rule of King Minos on the island.
Athos mountain
Authors: West William C.
Published: December 2012

Athos is the mountain at the extreme end of the Athos peninsula, in the Chalcidice, of northern Greece.
Aulis
Authors: Keesling Catherine M.
Published: December 2012

Aulis is situated on the eastern coast of Boiotia, just south of the Euripus, the channel separating Boiotia from Chalcis on the island of Euboea.
Bethlehem
Authors: West William C.
Published: December 2012

Bethlehem (“House of Bread” in Hebrew;
Beit Lahm
, “House of Meat” in Arabic) is located ca. 10 km southwest of Jerusalem on the road to Hebron.