Biographical Overview & Key Facts

Subject:

Anacreon

Role / Field:

Ancient Greek lyric poet celebrated for his themes of revelry, love, and drinking.

Born:

570 BC

Died:

485 BC

Century / Era:

-570s Historical Era

Database Source:

2Day Chrono-Wiki & Wikipedia CC BY-SA 4.0

Origins & Early Life

Anacreon (c. 573 – c. 495 BC) was an Ancient Greek lyric poet, notable for his drinking songs and erotic poems. Later Greeks included him in the canonical list of Nine Lyric Poets.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Anacreon wrote all of his poetry in the ancient Ionic dialect. Like all early lyric poetry, it was composed to be sung or recited to the accompaniment of music, usually the lyre. Anacreon's poetry touched on universal themes of love, infatuation, disappointment, revelry, parties, festivals, and the observations of everyday people and life. Anacreon lived in the sixth century BC. His exact year of birth is not known, with the general scholarly consensus being that he was likely born in the 570s BC: Hans Bernsdorff says c.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

575, David Campbell says c. 570. The Suda reports four possible names for his father: Eumelus, Aristocritus, Parthenius, and Scythinus. Ancient sources agree that Anacreon came from Teos, on the coast of Ionia (modern Turkey); this tradition is attested as early as Herodotus, and at least one of Anacreon's fragments mentions the city. When Teos was conquered by Persia in the 540s BC, the Teians moved to Abdera, Thrace; Anacreon was probably already an adult. Anacreon spent time...

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

• Sappho — Contemporary (Died in -570) (-570): Master lyric poet from Lesbos, celebrated for her intimate and musical verse.
• Xenophanes — Contemporary (Born in -570) (-570): Pre-Socratic philosopher known for pioneering naturalism and social critique.
• Śāriputra — Contemporary figure (Born in -568) (-568): A foremost and leading disciple of the Buddha, pivotal in early Buddhist development.
• Apries — Contemporary figure (Died in -567) (-567): Pharaoh of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty, known for building projects and defense efforts.
• Cleisthenes — Contemporary figure (Born in -565) (-565): Athenian lawgiver credited with establishing the democratic constitution of Athens.
• -570 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from -570
• -485 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from -485

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