What is the exact spelling of the 10th century Byzantine encyclopedia known as Suda?
The transmitted title reads Suida, yet modern researchers often prefer Suda or Σούδα. Scholars have argued over the exact spelling for centuries.
Questions about Suda
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Who compiled the Suda encyclopedia and when did they live?
Little is known about the compiler of the Suda encyclopedia who probably lived in the second half of the 10th century. The work must have appeared by the 12th century at latest.
Which sources does the Suda encyclopedia draw from for its entries?
The lexicon copiously draws from scholia to classics like Homer, Aristophanes, Thucydides, and Sophocles. It also includes excerpts from John of Antioch, Hamartolus, Diogenes Laërtius, Athenaeus, and Philostratus.
How is the Suda encyclopedia arranged alphabetically?
The lexicon follows Greek alphabetical rules including homophonous digraphs treated differently under a system called antistoichia. Letters follow phonetically in order of sound according to tenth-century pronunciation which resembled that of Modern Greek closely.
What historical value does the Suda encyclopedia hold today?
Since many original texts are lost, the work serves as an invaluable repository for ancient commentaries that vanished. Scholars rely on these preserved fragments to reconstruct lost knowledge today.