Valerius Harpocration (Ancient Greek:Οὐαλέριος orΒαλέριος Ἁρποκρατίων,gen. Ἁρποκρατίωνος) was aGreekgrammarian ofAlexandria, probably working in the 2nd century AD. He is possibly the Harpocration mentioned byJulius Capitolinus (Life of Verus, 2) as the Greek tutor ofLucius Verus (2nd century AD); some authorities place him much later, on the ground that he borrowed fromAthenaeus.[1]
Harpocration'sLexicon of the Ten Orators (Περὶ τῶν Λέξεων τῶν Δέκα Ῥητόρων, or briefly Λεξικὸν τῶν Δέκα Ῥητόρων), which has come down to us in an incomplete form, contains, in more or less alphabetical order, notes on well-known events and persons mentioned by the orators, and explanations of legal and commercial expressions. As nearly all the lexicons to the Greek orators have been lost, Harpocration's work is especially valuable. Amongst his authorities were the writers ofAtthides (histories of Attica), the grammarianDidymus Chalcenterus,Dionysius of Halicarnassus, and the lexicographerDionysius, son of Tryphon. The book also contains contributions to the history of Attic oratory andGreek literature generally.[1]
TheCollection of Florid Expressions, a sort of anthology orchrestomathy attributed to him by theSuda, is lost, but elements of it survive in later lexica. A series of articles in the margin of a Cambridge manuscript of theLexicon forms the basis of theLexicon rhetoricum Cantabrigiense byPeter Paul Dobree.[1]
Attribution:
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Harpocration, Valerius".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 13 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 15. Endnotes:{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) GreekWikisource has original text related to this article:Αρποκρατίων
