Xenophon of Ephesus

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Xenophon of Ephesus was the author of one of the few surviving novels from ancient times.

Xenophon of Ephesus wrote his Ephesiaka ( Greek  Ἐφεσιακά , "Ephesian stories") in Roman times, probably in the 2nd century, in Greek .

The plot revolves around the young couple Anthia and Habrokomes, who suffer a variety of fates on a journey that are typical of the ancient novel (shipwreck, separation, alleged breach of loyalty, ...). Anthia is kidnapped by pirates on her honeymoon. As a beautiful young woman, she is the object of many desires. But she manages to maintain marital fidelity - as does her husband, whom she is looking for in the whole of the Mediterranean. Eventually the two find each other again and return to their home in Ephesus. The work is sometimes also interpreted religiously, as a praise to the goddess Isis . Nothing is known about Xenophon itself; the name Xenophon may be a pseudonym chosen based on Xenophon of Athens .

Editions and translations

  • Georges Dalmeyda (ed. And transl.): Xénophon d'Éphèse. Les Éphésiaques ou Le Roman d'Habrocomès et d'Anthia (= Collection Budé) . Paris 1926, Ndr. 2018
  • Antonius D. Papanikolaou (ed.): Xenophontis Ephesii Ephesiacorum libri V. De amoribus Anthiae et Abrocomae. Teubner, Leipzig 1973.
  • James N. O'Sullivan (Ed.): Xenophon Ephesius. De Anthia et Habrocome Ephesiacorum libri V (= Bibliotheca Teubneriana ). Saur, Munich and Leipzig 2005.
  • Bernhard Kytzler (transl.): The weapons of Eros or Anthia and Habrokomas. Novel. Ullstein, Frankfurt a. M. 1968.
  • Bernhard Kytzler (translator): Abrokomes and Anthia. The lovers of Ephesus. Reclam, Leipzig 1981; Paperback edition, ibid. 1986, ISBN 3-379-00035-3
  • Jeffrey Henderson (Ed. And transl.): Longus, Daphnis and Chloe. Xenophon of Ephesus, Anthia and Habrocomes (= Loeb Classical Library) . London and Cambridge 2009

literature

  • James N. O'Sullivan: Xenophon of Ephesus. His compositional technique and the birth of the novel (= Studies on ancient literature and history. Volume 44). De Gruyter, Berlin 1995, ISBN 3-11-014310-0 .
  • Consuelo Ruiz-Montero: Xenophon of Ephesus: An overview. In: Hildegard Temporini (ed.): The rise and fall of the Roman world . Volume 34, Part 2. De Gruyter, Berlin 1993, pp. 1088–1139 (accessed via De Gruyter Online).

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Xenophon of Ephesus
BRIEF DESCRIPTION ancient writer
DATE OF BIRTH uncertain: 2nd century
DATE OF DEATH uncertain: 2nd century