Teaching Classical Greek through the Lexica: Reshaping Atticist Lexicography in Byzantium

Since the Imperial age, Classical Attic formed the core of advanced Greek education. Under the influence of Atticism, rhetoricians and prose writers were expected to master this dialect—even when, like Galen, they chose not to use it. In Byzantium too, Attic remained central to rhetorical training within broader classicizing trends. Yet the spoken language had evolved into a distinct variety, so learning Classical (and especially Attic) Greek resembled acquiring a second language. How was this achieved? What were its aims, assumptions, and theoretical implications? Byzantine lexicography provides a key to these questions. This paper, based on the ERC project PURA, examines the role of Byzantine lexica—such as the Synagoge, Photius’ Lexicon, and the Suda—in linking Imperial scholarship to Byzantine education. PURA has shown that these works are not mechanical compilations but express a distinct view of language, mediating between the Classical (especially Attic) and scriptural traditions. Three research strands are discussed. First, using examples from PURA’s Digital Encyclopedia of Atticism, I analyze lemmas in Byzantine lexica derived from Atticist sources but adapted to medieval linguistic and cultural contexts. These reveal an effort to affirm continuity between Classical and Medieval Greek while acknowledging linguistic change. Second, the study of metalinguistic terminology—soon to appear in our Ancient Greek Purism 3: The Legacy of Atticism—sheds light on Byzantine conceptions of linguistic continuity and variation. Third, the reconfiguration of Atticist lexica through manuscript transmission, exemplified by a new collection of excerpts from Pollux’s Onomasticon, shows selective adaptation to Palaiologan pedagogical needs. Byzantine lexicography, thus, emerges as an active site of linguistic reflection and adaptation, offering valuable evidence for understanding how medieval scholars perceived, preserved, and transformed the Classical Greek heritage.