Corpus Fontium Historiae Byzantinae – Series Berolinensis

This comprehensive geographical encyclopaedia, compiled around 530 A.D., catalogues some 3,600 names of places, mountains, lakes, rivers, waters and peoples from the ancient world. Particular attention is paid to the etymology of names and the grammatical derivations of the Ethnika . For cultural historical information – here with the evidence of the attributed quotations – Stephanos is often the sole source. This new critical edition replaces A. Meineke’s long obsolete edition of 1849. The text of the directly recorded epitomes is accompanied by an apparatus of parallel terms which takes account of both the sources of the encyclopaedia and its later users. This first translation of the encyclopaedia in a modern language and the notes (particularly on language, onomastics and topography) open up the work to a wide circle of scholars engaged in studies of antiquity.

The critical edition of Dukas’s historical work is based on the codex unicus (Parisinus gr. 1310) – a codex that was probably written by the author. This edition takes the Italian translation by an unknown author from the fifteenth century into account as well as previous editions, and has prolegomena, an index graecitatis, as well as an index nominum and verborum.

The volume presents a critical edition and translation of the final part of the Byzantine text known as Theophanes Continuatus. Entitled 'Book VI' by previous editors, the text follows upon Books I-IV and the Vita Basilii which recount the reigns of the emperors from AD 813 to the death of Basil I in 886. 'Book VI' then brings the text down to the advent of Nicephorus II Phokas in 963. Tellingly, the first two parts are composed in a classicising style typical of the literary circle of the emperor Constantine VII; but this third part, undertaken after Constantine's death – presumably on the initiative of the high official Basil the parakoimomenos, an ally of Phokas – presents a strange mixture of stylistic and linguistic levels which points to a team of authors, apparently working in the imperial palace and assuming different roles in expanding and polishing the sources. Compiled in apparent haste, this third text is based on continuations of the Logothete Chronicle with various revisions, such as additional sections of text or glosses – often inserted in the wrong places – which were presumably taken over from marginal notes or leaves inserted in the prototype, providing examples of Middle Byzantine methods of textual re-writing.

A critical edition of the historical work of Leo the Deacon (latter half of the 10th – early 11th century), which covers the history of Byzantium from 959 to 976 and is in essence our only contemporary source for this period. The edition is accompanied by an introduction and indexes and replaces the first edition of the text by C.B. Hase (1819/1828), which has long been outdated.

Taking up where the the chronicle of the monk Theophanes leaves off , the compilation known as Theophanes Continuatus was originally commissioned by the emperor Constantine VII (912–959) and marked the revival, or reinvention, of the genre of history in Byzantium, which also included the less successful text of Genesios, who worked with the same dossier of sources. A principal source for the second period of Iconoclasm and the Amorian dynasty, the tendentious narrative of Books I–IV of Theophanes Continuatus was intended to justify the murderous accession of Basil I (867–886), grandfather of Constantine VII and founder of the Macedonian dynasty, by presenting the emperors who preceded Basil as cruel heretics (Leo V, Michael II, Theophilus) or profligates (Michael III). But the facts here recorded and the often playful use of Classical learning give proof to the careful reader that the revival of Byzantine military power and culture from the Dark Age of the seventh and eighth centuries gained momentum under these same emperors. The present critical edition of Books I–IV replaces that of 1838 by I. Bekker. Accompanied by the first complete English translation and grammatical and historical indexes, the work is intended for specialists, students, and scholars in related fields.

Theodoros, Bishop of Cyzicus in the 10th century, is one of the lesser-known figures of Byzantine literature. Little is known about his life, but his correspondence with Konstantinos VII. Porphyrogennetos bears witness to the close contact between the cleric and the emperor. M. Tziatzi-Papagiannis' new critical edition of the entire correspondence not only satisfies the need to bring together previously separate collections, it also offers present-day scholars up-to-date text critical approaches.

Much read in Byzantium, the historical work of John of Antioch is one of the most important, if as yet intangible, instances of the transmission of tradition in Late Antique historiography. Besides this “historiographical” relevance, the work is of particular significance as important testimony to the amalgamation of “pagan” and Christian concepts of time and history. An analysis of the achievements of the Late Antique and Early Byzantine chroniclers would be incomplete without an assessment of the role of John of Antioch.

The edition of the text is accompanied by an English translation, notes and indices.

This volume presents the first critical edition of the anonymous world chronicle titled Chronica which gives a condensed account of events from Adam up to the death of the Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos (ruled 1081–1118). The introduction includes a discussion of the relationship of the Chronica to the Synopsis chronike of Theodoros Skutariotes (13th century), and the Chronica is shown to be a preliminary by Theodoros to the Synopsis chronike.

In a detailed account, the archbishop and renowned scholar Eustathius of Thessalonica (probably 1115–1195) takes his monks severely to task, for in his eyes they fall far short of the ideals they professed in their monastic vows, particularly by engaging in business and being hostile to education and learning. With its Prolegomena, editorial work, and indexes, this new edition is a valuable source for Byzantinists. The volume also provides a German translation of the Greek text.

In addition to this text, a commentary is published within the series "Supplementa Byzantina." Both volumes are available as a set .

This is the first volume of a two-volume edition of the Chronicle by Symeon Logothetes (10^th cent.), one of the main sources for Middle Byzantine history. The text is presented here in a critical edition for the first time. In the introduction, all manuscripts are described, and the relationships between them analysed. Wahlgren’s findings differ in significant points from the (partial) analyses of earlier researchers. The edition has to be based mainly on the 11^th cent. manuscript because the Slav versions of the Chronicle are of only little value for the reconstruction of the original text. Navigation through the volume is facilitated by comprehensive indexes. A projected second volume will provide an edition of versions and continuations of the Chronicle.

This comprehensive geographical encyclopaedia, compiled around 530 A.D., catalogues some 3,600 names of places, mountains, lakes, rivers, waters and peoples from the ancient world. Particular attention is paid to the etymology of names and the grammatical derivations of the Ethnika . For cultural historical information – here with the evidence of the attributed quotations – Stephanos is often the sole source. This new critical edition replaces A. Meineke’s long obsolete edition of 1849. The text of the directly recorded epitomes is accompanied by an apparatus of parallel terms which takes account of both the sources of the encyclopaedia and its later users. This first translation of the encyclopaedia in a modern language and the notes (particularly on language, onomastics and topography) open up the work to a wide circle of scholars engaged in studies of antiquity.

This comprehensive geographical encyclopaedia, compiled around 530 A.D., catalogues some 3,600 names of places, mountains, lakes, rivers, waters and peoples from the ancient world. Particular attention is paid to the etymology of names and the grammatical derivations of the Ethnika . For cultural historical information – here with the evidence of the attributed quotations – Stephanos is often the sole source. This new critical edition replaces A. Meineke’s long obsolete edition of 1849. The text of the directly recorded epitomes is accompanied by an apparatus of parallel terms which takes account of both the sources of the encyclopaedia and its later users. This first translation of the encyclopaedia in a modern language and the notes (particularly on language, onomastics and topography) open up the work to a wide circle of scholars engaged in studies of antiquity.

This comprehensive geographical encyclopaedia, compiled around 530 A.D., catalogues some 3,600 names of places, mountains, lakes, rivers, waters and peoples from the ancient world. Particular attention is paid to the etymology of names and the grammatical derivations of the Ethnika . For cultural historical information – here with the evidence of the attributed quotations – Stephanos is often the sole source. This new critical edition replaces A. Meineke’s long obsolete edition of 1849. The text of the directly recorded epitomes is accompanied by an apparatus of parallel terms which takes account of both the sources of the encyclopaedia and its later users. This first translation of the encyclopaedia in a modern language and the notes (particularly on language, onomastics and topography) open up the work to a wide circle of scholars engaged in studies of antiquity.

Volume 2 (delta – kappa) is planned for publication in 2008, volumes 3 and 4 in 2012 and 2015 respectively.

The life of Emperor Basil I (867–886), the founder of the Macedonian Dynasty, is the only extant secular biography in Byzantine literature; in its importance and as an instance of the genre it is comparable to Einhard’s Vita Caroli Magni. Composed in the circle of scholars around Basil’s grandson Constantine VII Prophyrogennitos and at his instigation as early as 957 and 959, the Vita Basilii is one of the main sources for the cultural and political history of Byzantium and its neighbours in the 9^th and 10^th centuries.

Previous editions (whether from the 17^th or 19^th centuries) were based on secondary manuscripts; they are not reliable, because of their arbitrary conjectures and a large number of unjustified additions from a parallel source. The present edition is based on Vaticanus gr. 167, the source of all extant manuscripts, and the insertions made by the earlier editors are removed.

In producing the new text, the editor also had access to the draft edition he rediscovered which the famous Byzantinist Karl de Boor prepared around 1903.

The corpus of letters by Michael Choniates (1138-1222), the learned Metropolitan of Athens, provides a reliable historical source for Athenian life in the 12th and 13th centuries. The 181 letters are models of Byzantine eloquence and rhetorical elegance; through this edition, complemented by prolegomena, regesta and indexes, the rhetorical skill and stylistic elegance of the correspondent present a complete picture of life (fiscal system, books, trade etc.) in the Byzantine province.

In her work, the historian Anna Komnene (1083 to approx. 1153), daughter of the Byzantine Emperor Alexios I, deals with the period of her father's reign from his first successes as a youthful army commander and his successful rebellion up to his death. She includes an account of the First Crusade from a Byzantine perspective and draws impressive portraits of the protagonists. Together with the works of Michael Psellos and Niketas Choniates, her account belongs to the most brilliant achievements of Byzantine historiography.

This new critical edition contains numerous textual improvements over earlier editions and presents for the first time a complete documentation of the epitomes together with comprehensive indexes giving access to the text.

The author, well-known as an outstanding Byzantine canonist, was Archbishop of Ohrid (approx. 1216–1236) and practically assumed the position of a Patriarch. The Corpus of the Pone-mata diaphora (personal and official letters, expert testimonies and verdicts and proceedings of the Ohrid Synodal Court) is his major work. It pro--vides complex source material of major importance in two ways: historically because of the detailed information on the political and ecclesiastical history of South-Eastern Europe at the time of radical change around 1204; legally because texts (let alone corpora) dealing with the practice of ecclesiastical jurisdiction in Byzantium are few and far between.

This new edition replaces the older, non-critical, edition by Cardinal Pitras from 1891.

The only manuscript preserving this collection of letters, in the British Library, is damaged at the beginning, thus depriving us of the author’s name. However, the letters of the Anonymous Professor, a scholar and headmaster of a private school in Constantinople in the mid tenth century, comprise an important source for our knowledge of education and intellectual life in Byzantium in this period. The present edition, which aims to fulfil the need expressed by many scholars for a new, fully annotated critical edition of the letters, attempts to reconstruct the main events in the life of the Professor, along with his educational and, more generally, intellectual pursuits. Full summaries of the letters are provided. Information about the Professor’s correspondents, many of whom belong to the milieu of the imperial court and the church, is presented and examined. The critical edition of the letters together with accompanying notes comprises the core of the book while detailed indices are supplied at the end.

This is the critical edition of the earliest extant Byzantine world chronicle, the Chronographia by Ioannes Malalas (Malalas' = Syrian for 'rhetor' or 'scholar'). Iohannes Malalas was born approximately in 490 in or near Antiochia and died approximately in 570/580. He wrote his chronicle in the contemporary colloquial Greek.

The edition comprises the Prolegomena which give information about the handwritten tradition of the Chronographia, the edition of the text with a rich apparatus fontium and a precise apparatus criticus as well as the indices planned in the CFHB. The edition replaces that one of Dindorf (1813 in the corpus of Bonn). It offers a more complete text in so far as it contains for the first time the first book and uses the translation of the Slavic Church in the 10/11th century for the textual construction.

A critical edition of the minor works of Eustathios Thessalonicensis, Archbishop of Salonica (a city in the Byzantine Empire), 12th century theologian and renowned Greek scholar. Original Greek texts without translations.