Athenodorus Cananites

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Athenodorus of Tarsus
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Athenodorus Cananites
Ἀθηνόδωρος Κανανίτης
Tarsus
(now Tarsus, Mersin, Turkey)
Died7 AD
Occupation(s)Philosopher and teacher
RelativesSandon (father)
EraAncient philosophy
RegionWestern philosophy
SchoolStoicism

Athenodorus Cananites (

philosopher
.

Life

Athenodorus was born in Canana, near

Apollonia. He was a personal friend of Strabo, from whom we derive some knowledge of his life.[2]

In 44 BC, he seems to have followed Octavian to Rome and continued mentoring him there. He is reputed there to have openly rebuked the Emperor, and to have instructed him to recite the alphabet before reacting in anger. Later, Athenodorus returned to Tarsus, where he was instrumental in expelling the government of Boëthus and drafting a new constitution for the city, the result of which was a pro-Roman oligarchy.[3]

Athenodorus is also written of by

Aarne-Thompson-Uther tale type 326A, "Soul Released from Torment."[5][6]


Works

Strabo, Cicero, and Eusebius regarded him highly. Works attributed to Athenodorus include:

None of these are extant, but he also assisted Cicero in writing his

Following his death, the people of Tarsus held an annual festival and sacrifice in his honour.

Notes

  1. ^ Strabo, xiv. 14
  2. ^  One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainChisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Athenodorus s.v.". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 2 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 831.
  3. ^ a b Chisholm 1911.
  4. ^ Pliny the Younger (1909–14). "LXXXIII. To Sura". In Charles W. Eliot (ed.). Letters, by Pliny the Younger; translated by William Melmoth; revised by F. C. T. Bosanquet. The Harvard Classics. Vol. 9. New York: P.F. Collier & Son.
  5. ^ Uther, Hans-Jörg (2004). The Types of International Folktales: Animal tales, tales of magic, religious tales, and realistic tales, with an introduction. Helsinki: Academia Scientiarum Fennica. pp. 210–211.
  6. ^ Anderson, Graham (2020). Ancient Fairy and Folk Tales: An Anthology. London: Routledge. pp. 72–73.
  7. ^ Plutarch: Life of Publicola 17.

Further reading