Apollonius Dyscolus
Encyclopedia
Apollonius Dyscolus is considered one of the greatest of the Greek
grammarians. He was born at Alexandria
, son of Mnesitheus. The dates for his life are not known. His son Aelius Herodianus
dedicated a work to Marcus Aurelius, which places Apollonius in the early to middle 2nd century.
Nicknamed , meaning "the Surly or Crabbed or Hard to please", because of his irascible and heavily analytical personality, he lived in the reigns of Hadrian
and Antoninus Pius
. He spent the greater part of his life in his native city of Alexandria, where he died; he is also said to have visited Rome and attracted the attention of Antoninus. He was the founder of scientific grammar and is styled by Priscian grammaticorum princeps. He wrote extensively on the parts of speech. Of twenty books named in the Suda
, four are extant: on syntax
, ed. J. Lallot, 1997, and three smaller treatises: on adverbs, on conjunctions
, and on pronouns, ed. Richard Schneider
, 1878.
He and his son Aelius Herodianus had an enormous influence on all later grammarians.
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
grammarians. He was born at Alexandria
Alexandria
Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
, son of Mnesitheus. The dates for his life are not known. His son Aelius Herodianus
Aelius Herodianus
Aelius Herodianus or Herodian was one of the most celebrated grammarians of Greco-Roman antiquity. He is usually known as Herodian except when there is a danger of confusion with the historian also named Herodian....
dedicated a work to Marcus Aurelius, which places Apollonius in the early to middle 2nd century.
Nicknamed , meaning "the Surly or Crabbed or Hard to please", because of his irascible and heavily analytical personality, he lived in the reigns of Hadrian
Hadrian
Hadrian , was Roman Emperor from 117 to 138. He is best known for building Hadrian's Wall, which marked the northern limit of Roman Britain. In Rome, he re-built the Pantheon and constructed the Temple of Venus and Roma. In addition to being emperor, Hadrian was a humanist and was philhellene in...
and Antoninus Pius
Antoninus Pius
Antoninus Pius , also known as Antoninus, was Roman Emperor from 138 to 161. He was a member of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty and the Aurelii. He did not possess the sobriquet "Pius" until after his accession to the throne...
. He spent the greater part of his life in his native city of Alexandria, where he died; he is also said to have visited Rome and attracted the attention of Antoninus. He was the founder of scientific grammar and is styled by Priscian grammaticorum princeps. He wrote extensively on the parts of speech. Of twenty books named in the Suda
Suda
The Suda or Souda is a massive 10th century Byzantine encyclopedia of the ancient Mediterranean world, formerly attributed to an author called Suidas. It is an encyclopedic lexicon, written in Greek, with 30,000 entries, many drawing from ancient sources that have since been lost, and often...
, four are extant: on syntax
Syntax
In linguistics, syntax is the study of the principles and rules for constructing phrases and sentences in natural languages....
, ed. J. Lallot, 1997, and three smaller treatises: on adverbs, on conjunctions
Grammatical conjunction
In grammar, a conjunction is a part of speech that connects two words, sentences, phrases or clauses together. A discourse connective is a conjunction joining sentences. This definition may overlap with that of other parts of speech, so what constitutes a "conjunction" must be defined for each...
, and on pronouns, ed. Richard Schneider
Schneider
Schneider is a surname, common in Germany, it may also refer to:Companies and organizations* G. Schneider & Sohn, Bavarian brewery company* Schneider Rundfunkwerke AG, former owner of the Dual brand record players...
, 1878.
He and his son Aelius Herodianus had an enormous influence on all later grammarians.
Further reading
- Andreas U. Schmidhauser, "Apollonius Dyscolus. De pronomine pars generalis", PhD thesis, University of GenevaUniversity of GenevaThe University of Geneva is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland.It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin, as a theological seminary and law school. It remained focused on theology until the 17th century, when it became a center for Enlightenment scholarship. In 1873, it...
, 2007. Comprehensive critical text with English translation.
External links
- Apollonius Dyscolus – a website dedicated to Apollonius.