Eponymous archon

 ( Ancient Athenian Titles ) 

In ancient Greece the chief magistrate in various Greek city states was called eponymous archon (ἐπώνυμος ἄρχων, epōnymos archōn). "Archon" (ἄρχων, pl. ἄρχοντες, archontes) means "ruler" or "lord", frequently used as the title of a specific public office,At first the chief of the city was only a priest. "The charge of the public sacrifices of the city belongs according to religious custom, not to special priests, but to those men who derive their dignity from the hearth, and who are here called kings, elsewhere Prytaneis, and again archons." (Aristotle, Politics, VIII.5) while "eponymous" means that he gave his name to the year in which he held office, much like the Roman consular years.

In Classical Athens, a system of nine concurrent archons evolved, led by three respective remits over the civic, military, and religious affairs of the state: the three office holders were known as the eponymous archon (ruler of Athens, the highest political office in the city-state), the polemarch (πολέμαρχος, "war ruler", the commander-in-chief of the Athenian military), and the archon basileus (ἄρχων βασιλεύς, "king ruler", the high priest of the city).Michael Rostovtzeff, Greece, passim."The Athenian archons when they entered upon their duties ascended to the Acropolis wearing crowns of myrtles, and offered a sacrifice to the titular, divinity of the town. It was also customary for them to wear crowns of foliage when they exercised their functions. And it is certain that the crown, which became and which still remains the emblem of power, was then only a religious symbol, an exterior sign, which accompanied prayer and sacrifice. Amongst the nine archons, the second archon, the one called the King, was the representative of the high priestly function of the old Kings, but each of his colleagues had some priestly duty to fulfill, some sacrifice to offer to the gods. ("Gustave Ducoudray, The history of ancient civilization: a handbook, 1889 pg 129) The six others were the thesmothetai, judicial officers. Originally these offices were filled from the wealthier classes by elections every ten years. During this period the eponymous archon was the chief magistrate, the polemarch was the head of the armed forces, and the archon basileus was responsible for some civic religious arrangements, and for the supervision of some major trials in the law courts. After 683 BC the offices were held for only a single year, and the year was named after the eponymous archon.

After 683 BC the offices were held for only a single year, and the year was named after the archon eponymous. The year ran from July to June.

One of the archons oversaw the procedure for ostracism after 487 BC.Fox The Classical World p. 122 An archon's court was in charge of the Epikleros.Lacey The Family in Ancient Greece p. 139-145 Other duties of the archons included supervising the Panathenaea and Dionysia festivals.Adkins Handbook to Life in Ancient Greece p. 35-36

By John Frost. [https://books.google.com/books?id=UksbAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA35 Pg 35]

By Pausanias. [https://books.google.com/books?id=LjNPAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA64 Pg 64]

• Eponymous archons
• Timeline of ancient Greece
• Regnal name
• Archon basileus
• Hierotheos the Thesmothete, reported first head of the Christians of Athens.
• Polemarch (replaced in 501 BC by ten strategos)
• Roman consul

• Adkins, Lesley and Roy A. Handbook to Life in Ancient Greece New York: Oxford University Press 1997
• Aristotle's Athenian Constitution
• Robert Develin (1989). 9780521328807, Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521328807
• Dinsmoor, William Bell The Archons of Athens in the Hellenistic Age. Cambridge, 1931 (1966 reprint)
• Dinsmoor, William Bell The Athenian Archon List in the Light of Recent Discoveries. Columbia University Press, 1939 (1974 reprint, )
• Fox, Robin Lane The Classical World: An Epic History from Homer to Hadrian New York: Basic Books 2006
• Debra Hamel Athenian Generals: Military Authority in the Classical Period. Koninklijke Brill NV, 1998.
• Graindor, Paul Chronologie des archontes athéniens sous l'Empire, Brussels, 1922 (Mémoires de l'Académie de Belgique, 4°, 1921),
• Lacey, W. K. The Family in Classical Greece Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press 1968
• Owens, Ron Justice and the Political Reforms of Solon, Eponymous Archon at Athens, 594–593 BC. Australian National University, 2000.
• Rostovtzeff, Michael. Greece. 2nd.ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1963.