Literary notes about Ephor (AI summary)
In literature the term “ephor” consistently denotes a figure of significant authority, typically embodying the judicial and administrative functions of a governing body. It is used to refer both to those holding the office and to their characteristic roles, from delivering decisive appeals and posing pivotal questions to assemblies, as seen when an ephor asserts authority on the floor ([1], [2], [3]), to being cited in historical narratives that underscore the antiquity and origin of the office itself ([4], [5]). The word frequently appears in contexts that emphasize the blend of legal, political, and sometimes martial duties—ranging from invoking warlike appeals ([6], [7]) to participating actively in governance and public discourse ([8], [9]). This usage, embedded in classical texts and later historical writings, highlights the complex legacy of the ephor as both a symbol and an operative actor in the political life of ancient societies ([10], [11]).
- ‘You hear what these say,’ said the Ephor who had not spoken before.
— from Callias: A Tale of the Fall of Athens by Alfred John Church - " With these words he, as ephor, himself put the question to the assembly of the Lacedaemonians.
— from The History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides - " Then, in his capacity as Ephor, Sthenelaidas, without staying for further argument, forthwith put the question to the Spartan assembly.
— from Stories from Thucydides by Thucydides - From this remark three questions arise: first, what was the original nature of the office of ephor?
— from The History and Antiquities of the Doric Race, Vol. 2 of 2 by Karl Otfried Müller - § 1. Origin of the office of Ephor in the Spartan state.
— from The History and Antiquities of the Doric Race, Vol. 2 of 2 by Karl Otfried Müller - Short, but warlike appeal of the Ephor Stheneläidas. —
— from History of Greece, Volume 06 (of 12) by George Grote - Lastly, the brief, but eminently characteristic, address of the ephor Stheneläidas, on putting the question for decision.
— from History of Greece, Volume 06 (of 12) by George Grote - Agesilaus started, and, by the light of the moon, gazed full upon the face of the chief Ephor.
— from Pausanias, the Spartan; The Haunted and the Haunters An Unfinished Historical Romance by Lytton, Edward Bulwer Lytton, Baron - Upon this the same Ephor asked him whether he repented of what he had done.
— from Plutarch's Lives, Volume 4 (of 4) by Plutarch - — Plutarch’s story about the ephor Epitadeus. —
— from History of Greece, Volume 02 (of 12) by George Grote - And he was made first ephor in the year of the archonship of Euthydemus, as we are told by Sosicrates.
— from The Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers by Diogenes Laertius
