Arignotus Explained

Arignotus (Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: Ἀρίγνωτος) was a Pythagorean in the time of Lucian—that is, the 2nd century CE—who was renowned for his wisdom, and had the surname of ἱερός ("the holy").^[1] He is described as telling a story of a time he exorcised a demon that was haunting a home.

Arignotus is described as shabby and dirty, wearing his hair long and having a grave expression. Modern scholars have suggested that there was not a historical person with this name, but that "Arignotus" represents a popularly known type of the time, and is essentially a stand-in for Pythagoras himself.^[2] Other scholars disagree with this hypothesis.^[3]

There is an unrelated, otherwise unknown Arignotus mentioned in Aeschines's speech Against Timarchus.^[4]

Notes and References

1. [Lucian]
2. Book: Dickie , Matthew . Magic and Magicians in the Greco-Roman World . . 2003 . 196, 204, 208 . English . 9780415311298 . 2018-10-19.
3. Book: Ogden , Daniel . Morgan . John Robert . Jones . Meriel . Philosophical Presences in the Ancient Novel . The Love of Wisdom and the Love of Lies: The Philosophers and Philosophical Voices of Lucian's Philopseudes . . Ancient narrative . 10 . 2007 . 196 . English . 9789077922378 . 1574-5066 . 2018-10-19.
4. Book: Aeschines . Aeschines

   . Aeschines . Wolpert . Andrew . Kapparis . Konstantinos . Legal Speeches of Democratic Athens: Sources for Athenian History . . 2011 . 257 . English . 9781603846066 . 2018-10-19.