Apollonius Dyscolus

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Apollonius Dyscolus

Greek grammarian

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Greek:: “The Crabbed”

Flourished:: 2nd century ad

Flourished:: c.101 - c.200; Alexandria; Egypt

Notable Family Members:: son Herodian

Subjects Of Study:: Greek language; grammar; syntax

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Apollonius Dyscolus (flourished 2nd century ad) was a Greek grammarian who was reputedly the founder of the systematic study of grammar. His life was passed at Alexandria during the reigns of the Roman emperors Hadrian and Antoninus Pius. Priscian, the Latin grammarian, styled him grammaticorum princeps (“prince of grammarians”) and used his work as the basis for his own. Four of Apollonius’s works are extant: On Syntax and three smaller treatises, On Pronouns, On Conjunctions, and On Adverbs. His son was the grammarian Herodian, who wrote several works on accent rules.

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