TheSuda orSouda (/ˈsuːdə/;Medieval Greek:Σοῦδα,romanized: Soûda;Latin:Suidae Lexicon)[1] is a large 10th-centuryByzantineencyclopedia of theancient Mediterranean world, formerly attributed to an author calledSoudas (Σούδας) orSouidas (Σουίδας). It is an encyclopediclexicon, written inGreek, with 30,000 entries, many drawing from ancient sources that have since been lost, and often derived frommedieval Christian compilers.
The exact spelling of the title is disputed.[2] The transmitted title (paradosis) is "Suida", which is also attested inEustathius' commentary onHomer's epic poems; several conjectures has been made, both defending it and trying to correct it in "Suda".[3]
Other suggestions include Jan Sajdak's theory that σοῦδα / σουίδα may derive fromsanskritsuvidyā (which he translated into Latin:perfecta cumulataque scientia, "collected and systemized knowledge");[17][18] Giuseppe Scarpat's link to an unidentified Judas, the supposed author of the Lexicon;[19] and Hans Gerstinger's explanation which points at Russiansudá "here", as the answer to the question "τί ποῦ κεῖται;" "what is it and where is it?".[20] The most recent explanation[which?] as of 2024 has been advanced byClaudia Nuovo, who defended Σοῦδα on palaeographical, philological and historical grounds[how?].[3]
pecus est Suidas, sed pecus aurei velleris
[Suidas is cattle, but cattle with a golden fleece]— Lipsius
TheSuda is somewhere between a grammatical dictionary and an encyclopedia in the modern sense. It explains the source, derivation, and meaning of words according to thephilology of its period, using such earlier authorities asHarpocration andHelladios.[21][22] It is a rich source of ancient and Byzantine history and life, although not every article is of equal quality, and it is an "uncritical" compilation.[21]
Much of the work is probably interpolated,[21] and passages that refer toMichael Psellos (c. 1017–1078) are deemedinterpolations which were added in later copies.[21]
Thislexicon contains numerous biographical notices on political, ecclesiastical, and literary figures of the Byzantine Empire to the tenth century, those biographical entries being condensations from the works ofHesychius of Miletus, as the author himself avers. Other sources were the encyclopedia ofConstantine VII Porphyrogenitus (reigned 912–959) for the figures in ancient history, excerpts ofJohn of Antioch (seventh century) forRoman history, the chronicle ofHamartolus (Georgios Monachos, 9th century) for the Byzantine age[22][21][24], the biographies ofDiogenes Laërtius, and the works ofAthenaeus andPhilostratus. Other principal sources include a lexicon by "Eudemus," perhaps derived from the workOn Rhetorical Language by Eudemus of Argos.[25]
The lexicon copiously draws fromscholia to the classics (Homer,Aristophanes,Thucydides,Sophocles, etc.), and for later writers,Polybius,Josephus, theChronicon Paschale,George Syncellus,George Hamartolus, and so on.[21][22] TheSuda quotes or paraphrases these sources at length. Since many of the originals are lost, theSuda serves as an invaluable repository of literary history, and this preservation of the "literary history" is more vital than the lexicographical compilation itself, by some estimation.[22]
The lexicon is arranged alphabetically with some slight deviations from common vowel order and place in the Greek alphabet[21] (including at each case the homophonousdigraphs, e.g.αι, ει, οι, that had been previously, earlier in the history of Greek, distinctdiphthongs or vowels) according to a system (formerly common in many languages) calledantistoichia (ἀντιστοιχία); namely the letters follow phonetically in order of sound according the pronunciation of the tenth century, which was similar tothat of Modern Greek. The order is:
α, β, γ, δ, αι, ε, ζ, ει, η, ι, θ, κ, λ, μ, ν, ξ, ο, ω, π, ρ, σ, τ, οι, υ, φ, χ, ψ[26]
In addition, double letters are treated as single for the purposes of collation (asgemination had ceased to be distinctive). The system is not difficult to learn and remember, but some editors—for example,Immanuel Bekker – rearranged theSuda alphabetically.
Little is known about the compiler of theSuda. He probably lived in the second half of the 10th century, because the death of emperorJohn I Tzimiskes and his succession byBasil II andConstantine VIII are mentioned in the entry under "Adam" which is appended with a briefchronology of the world.[21] At any rate, the work must have appeared by the 12th century, since it is frequently quoted from and alluded to byEustathius who lived from about 1115 AD to about 1195 or 1196.[21] It has also been stated that the work was acollective work, thus not having had a single author, and that the name which it is known under does not refer to a specific person.[27]
The work deals withbiblical as well aspagan subjects, from which it is inferred that the writer was aChristian.[21] In any case, it lacks definite guidelines besides some minor interest in religious matters.[27]
The standard printed edition was compiled by Danish classical scholarAda Adler in the first half of the twentieth century. A modern collaborative English translation, theSuda On Line, was completed on 21 July 2014.[28]
TheSuda has a near-contemporaneous Islamic parallel, theKitab al-Fehrest ofIbn al-Nadim. Compare also the LatinSpeculum Maius, authored in the 13th century byVincent of Beauvais.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)A translation of the last of the Suda's 31000+ entries was submitted to the database on July 21, 2014 and vetted the next day.AlsoMahoney, Anne (2009)."Tachypaedia Byzantina: The Suda On Line as Collaborative Encyclopedia".Digital Humanities Quarterly.3 (1).Archived from the original on Dec 9, 2023.
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Sūïdas".Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Suidas".Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.