ἄναξand βασιλεύςin Homer

Author(s): Naoko Yamagata

Source: The Classical Quarterly, New Series, Vol. 47, No. 1 (1997), pp. 1-14
Published by: Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Classical Association
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Classical Quarterly47 (i) 1-14 (1997) Printed in Great Britain 1

iva6 AND flauAEv's IN HOMER'

avae and fLuaaE•;s are the two most important titles applied to the top stratum of
Homeric aristocracy.2 ava6, usually translated as 'lord' or 'master', and gautAEtss,
usually translated as 'king', often apply to the same individuals, and can at times
appear to be very close in meaning, allowing translators to render avae as 'king' and
as 'lord'. There are, however, significant differences between the two. As
Laa•AEt•s
Lexikon desfriihgriechischenEpos (LfrgE) now conveniently summarizes for us, ava4
can be divine or human, can be a master of a state, of gods, of men, of animals, or
of his household, and can be used as an address in the vocative, whereas faartAE1s is
only applied to humans in Homer, often in a political context, and is never used in
the vocative.3 Many scholars are in favour of the view that the original meaning of
ava6 is 'helper/protector', but that this does not apply to flautAE~.4 Almost
unanimously scholars identify one of the main meanings of ava6 as 'master of the
house', but do not find this usage for facAEVgs.sM. I. Finley, however, appears to
deny even this distinction, considering the two virtually synonymous.6 Neither did

'
Specialthanks are due to Prof. HerwigMaehlerand Dr PaddyConsidineat University
CollegeLondonfor theirmost usefulcommentson two draftsof this article.Shortversionsof
this paperwere read at the Xth Congressof the InternationalFederationof the Societiesof
ClassicalStudies(FIEC)at l'Universit6Laval,Qu6bec,Canada,on 26 August1994,and at the
firstPostdoctoralFellowshipSymposiumat the BritishAcademyon 8 December1994.I would
like to thankthe membersof the audienceon each occasionfor theirusefulcommentsin and
afterthe session.I mustalsothankDr KarlaPollmann,whoreadandcommentedin detailon the
FIECversionof thepaper.I owethanksalsoto theeditorsandtherefereeof CQfortheirhelpful
commentsandsuggestions.It goes withoutsayingthatI aloneam responsibleforanyremaining
shortcomingsof the paper,as I often madeindependentdecisionsagainstthe wisdomof my
advisers.Thanks are also due to the generous support of the British Academy,whose
PostdoctoralResearchFellowshipsince 1992has enabledme to undertakethis researchproject
and whose OverseasConferenceGrant enabledme to attend the Congressof the FIEC in
Canada.
2 By 'aristocracy', I mean the people whom Homer calls dyaOot', a8Aot',or apLarot.
3 Cf. LfrgE avae B and /fauLAEVB.
4 Cf. M. Leumann,HomerischeWdrter(Basilea,1950),pp.42-4; J.Puhvel,'GreekANAE' in
ZVS 73 (1956), 202-22, esp. 203, n. 4; R Chantraine, Dictionnaire itymologique de la langue
grecque (Paris, 1968), alvae; H. Frisk, Griechischesetymologisches Wdrterbuch(Heidelberg, 1960),
avae. LfrgEdavaeB, however,rejectsthisviewon the groundthatthereis no evidenceto support
it otherthanthe explanationof the nameAa-rvivaeat II.6.403.
5 Cf. LfrgEon &vaeandfaatLAE'swiththe bibliographies. See alsoG. M. Calhoun,'Zeusthe
fatherin Homer',TAPA66(1935), 1-17 [Calhounhereafter], withwhoseviewof avae I amvery
muchin accordance.He arguesthattheprimarymeaningof davaeis 'masterof the house'andits
use as a kinglytitle 'lord,prince,chieftain,king'is an extension.He also arguesthatZeusis the
'father'and 'ava6', but never'3auLAEVs', becausehe is a patriarch,not a king.Thealva6section
of this papermay be regardedas a reinforcement of his claim that in a largeproportionof
instancesof aiva4,the meaning'masterof the house'seems'clearlyto havepromptedthe choice
of this particularword'(p.4).
6 The Worldof Odysseus2(London,1977),p. 84: 'Butthe oscillationbetweenbasileus as king
and basileusas chief-that is, as head of an aristocratichouseholdwith its servantsand
retainers-is duplicatedelsewherein the Homericpoems and by other early writers';ibid.,
'Homerand Mycenae:propertyand tenure',Historia6 (1957),132-59,at 141:'Bothanax and
basileusareveryfrequentin theIliadand Odysseyin the senseof "king","lord","master". They
are often interchangeablein the poems, but not always:in the more than one hundred
appearances of basileusthereis not one in thevocativecasein themasculine,or one appliedto the

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2 N. YAMAGATA

C. M. Bowra see any difference in meaning whatsoever between the two in his most
important article on this subject.7 Quite possibly under the continuing influence of
these authorities, some scholars are content to leave the distinction between the two
words obscure. For example, we read in recent literature such statements as 'It is
often difficult to decide which meaning of 6avac,"king" or "master"is involved'8 and
'facrL•iEV usually means "king" but is occasionally used in the older sense of
"lord"'.9This sort of open-ended approach may well be a healthy one, but in my view
has prevented us from asking why the poet chose to use one word rather than the
other in given contexts. Considering the vast amount of literature written on
Homeric kingship and aristocracy, relatively little attention has been given to the
significance of the poet's choice between the two. The aim of this paper is to
re-examine Homeric usage of the two terms in order to see if there is any coherent
pattern in the connection between the words and the contexts. This may allow us to
identify such connotations as peculiarly attributable to one or the other of the words,
thereby highlighting the most significant differences between them."1

METRICAL IMPLICATIONS
Before we begin to discuss the difference in meaning between the two words, it may
be prudent to consider the possibility that some cases of their occurrence have been
influenced by their metrical values. avae and gaacLAEVcnaturally fit different metrical
arrangements, and we cannot deny that the metrical difference is a factor in the
choice of one or the other in a given position in the line." The most evident example
is the necessity of avac in the whole-line formulae which introduce Agamemnon's
speech, i.e.:
aV'TE 7f E va cav~pov AyaZ•4Lvwv,
TOv
y
TOV 7/lEtLfET' 5Lva04 &vp6pv Ayap~4Lvwv,
•OUELt7TE•
E7TELTa

which cannot be replaced by any formula using faa•cAEs, because the poetic
convention calls for fixed formulae in such contexts. Apart from these very rigid
constructions, however, we have no reason to believe that the poet did not have
enough freedom to choose either of the two words. Homer uses avae in the
nominative singular in three different positions, i.e. [- 2], [- 3], and [- 4], and in the
nominative plural and oblique cases also in three different positions, i.e. [- 3 -], [- 4 -]
or [- 4 -], and [- 6x]. faa•AEh~ has similar mobility both in the nominative singular, i.e.

gods,whethermaleor female.'Apartfromthesetwodifferencesin application,he seemsto regard

the two terms as virtually synonymous. Cf. LfrgE fauaAEV' B 2.
7 'Homericwordsin Cyprus',JHS 54(1934),54-74, at 60:'InHomerthereis no distinctionat
all betweenthe two words';'. .. so faras meaningis concerned,theyareinterchangeable.'
8 I.. F.de Jong,'Studies in Homericdenomination', Mnemosyne 46 (1993),289-306,at 291,n.
10. The article as a whole is a valuableexaminationof literaryeffects createdby varying
denominationof Odysseusin the Odyssey,suchas a&va6, father,husband,andson.
9 J. Russo, in J. Russo, M. Fernindez-Galianoand A. Heubeck(edd.), A Commentary on
Homer's Odyssey Vol. III (Oxford, 1992) on 20.194.
10 By settingthe agendathis way,however,I do not assumethatthe poet'schoiceof wordsis
alwaysfullyconsciouslybasedon theiroriginalmeaningsandconnotations.All thatI assumeis
thatsomewherein the poet'smindmusthavebeensomeawarenessor recollectionof the original
connotationsof wordssuchas avae andfaauLAEVg, whichcouldhavepromptedthechoiceof one
ratherthanthe other.
" ava6: nom./voc. sg. [- -]; voc. sg. [- -]; dat. pl. [- - - -]; other [- -- ] or [- - -]; aaLAE6g:
nom.
sg. [- - -]; other [- - - - ]. For these and the following details of the metrical make-up and positions
of the two words,cf. LfgrEavae M andPaaut•~sM.

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 avae AND faaLt•EA IN HOMER 3
1
[ 2], [- 3], and [- - 4], and in the nominative plural and oblique cases, i.e. [- - -],
- and - It is not that the was ever under
[4 4 ],[g -• [- 6 x]. likely poet any pressure
.],
to use one instead of the other word purely for metrical reasons. It is more likely that
the choice became limited primarily due to accompanying names or epithets, such as
in the cases of avac dvspc>v Ayap•'pvwv and 8toTrpEEOS /3acA•ALoS,which appear
only at the line end, and UaKrl7TTOrVXoOfLaa EVS, which always begins the line.
Although we must bear in mind the metrical difference as a factor, we need not
assume any comprehensive system in which avac and gaac•LAE1 compete as metrical
alternatives.

avae IN HOMER12
As mentioned above, one of the most prominentmeaningsof the word avac is
'master of the house'. This use of the word is particularlycommon in the
characterization of Odysseusin the Odyssey.13He is referredto as alvac in relationto
his wife Penelope(21.9, 56),14to Eumaeus(14.8, 36, 40, 67, 139, 170, 366, 15.557
[withTelemachus],17.201),Eurycleia(19.358,392, 475), Philoetius(20.216,21.83),
Melanthius(17.255),his otherservants(18.313,20.111),his dog Argus(17.318,296,
303), his bow (21.395), his arrows (22.119), and the island of Ithaca (13.194).15
Similarly,Telemachusis also alva6to Eumaeus (15.557 [with Odysseus], 16.14,
17.186).It is notablethatone can be an avae not only of people,but also of animals
and inanimate objects, whereas one can only be a faa3LAE, of a group of people or a
territory.16
This use of avae is by no means exclusive to Odysseus and his son. Others too can
be 6VaKTES to their servants (Eurystheus to his messenger Copreus, 15.639; an
/1.
owner of flocks to his shepherd, Od. 4.87;17 cf. /. 24.734, Od. 24.251), dogs (/R.23.173,
Patroclus; Od. 10.216; 17.310), horses (/R. 10.559, Rhesus; 15.453; 16.371, 507;
17.443-4, Peleus as 'mortal master'; 23.417, Antilochus; 23.446, 517, Menelaus),
palaces (Od. 3.388, 14.326 = 19.295),18 chariots (/R. 2.777), or armour (II. 4.420,
Diomedes).19 Even the solitary Cyclops is the ava6 of his sheep (Od. 9.440, 452). The
god Hades can be considered an extreme case of the 'master of the house'. He is the
'lord of the dead' (/R. 20.61 ava ~ VEI'pW; cf. 15.188), and his identity depends so

12 In the following discussion, who is ava6 or faaLcAEtV

to whom is established either from the
point of view (if the authordescribesa personas somebody's/something's
narrator's/focalizer's
&vae or facLAEl"s) or the character'spoint of view (if a characteraddressesor describes
somebody else as his/her/somebody else's avae//aauLAE)s). I am following the criterion illustrated
in de Jong,op. cit. [n. 8], 291-3.
" Cf. Calhoun
[n. 5],4-5. Cf.de Jong,op.cit. [n. 8], 291-7.
14 Or as the ownerof (21.9)andr6dov(21.56)respectively.Cf. Calhoun[n. 5],6-7 on
KELLp'1ALa
21.56.
15 The last example may be taken to overlap with his function as faatuAEh~,
but the context, his
arrivalhomeafter19yearsof wandering,emphasizeshis attachmentto his homelandratherthan
his power over its people. 16 Cf. LfrgE /3aat~A&e B.
17 This is my interpretation of 4.87-8: E'vOatv o•07E va E•7TiLEv7s o'V7E t
o-nToqVTv/'rvpoO
KaL
o0 8 yAacrK70S. Cf. Hooker, 2iva Antika29 (1979), 260. Similarly, I am
inclined to take, with
KpEL•OV, Calhoun [n. 5], 7, 'dvarKTrw 7TaFSE' in Od. 13.223 along the same line, i.e.
YA•KEpoto
the shepherd looking as elegant as landlords' sons-not necessarily looking like a royal prince.
18 Cf. also Od. 18.299-300, &K ' cpa HELtUVS poLOHoAvKrop7p ao aVaKTOS/L'0atLOVV'VELKEV
OEpai7wov,7rEptKaAAEs&yaApLa,where 'a&va6 Peisandros' is obviously presented as the master of
his household.
19 I interpret 420-1 (SEtvbv8' E'/paXE XaAKO 7Et EL •O7& EUtLVavarKOSIpvvU~pEVov)this way,
pace LfrgE avae B 3bf.

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4 N. YAMAGATA

heavily on the ownership of his house that he is hardly ever mentioned without
reference to it.20
Interestingly, the marriage bed of Hephaestus which Ares defiles with his affair
with Aphrodite is described as 'AE'XO. .. KaL Evvrqv 'Hcata'roto avaKTO' (Od.
8.269-70). 'Hephaestus ava(' here can be taken as the honorific 'Lord Hephaestus',
but given the irony of the context, it seems more appropriate to read it with the
connotation 'the rightful owner of the bed and the rightful husband of Aphrodite
Hephaestus'.21 The picture of a'vae here is again that of the master of the house,
SEaordor7s, whose prime concern is to protect everybody and everything in his
household and whose interests are house-bound and inward-looking.22
This private aspect of a&va6is well illustrated in a passage where Antinous and
Telemachus argue about the kingship of Ithaca (Od. 1.383-98):
T6v8' av'r' Avnr'voo 7rpoCE'Odq,
E•rdTENEOSvld"OS
'TrlpLax', 4qd'Aa 8U acE tSaLKOVULVOEOL0aotO
Vi'ayo'p-v 7r' •tEvatl '
Kal OapcaAEwSayopEvEtv" 385
-LqUEY' dEJ4Lap
cL 'IOLKV [3autA'a
KpovAwv
TOLj7ELEV,0 yEOEVE,
0rot q7a-rpiov EUTLr.
Tov 8' ai TqAlEpaxos n7rErvvpvo/
dvo r ov r'1v8a-
T77LKEVEMLCW,
'AVTlvo', EL7 Ep tLot Kal 7ydaUUELa
KaLKEVTOUT EOE•OLLtL LAt yE 8dV7rOS dpE-Oat. 390

O /EV ydaprTL KaKOVg(3aLtAEIIgEv" a'Lt-TE

8Or•o
c
vEtLov
7rEAE7atl Kal Tt aTr'S.
'AA'' toLt aUL7ES AaLV •7ar7EpoS
ElULKa~L tAAoL
'
'v
-roAAot% ot*aAco '1aKI-dE, VE'ot8 rraAatoi, 395
'
r)V KE.V' tLS7X-LV,
S' E7ELOCV0E 8-OS O'8vU••S
avTap E)ycovOLKOLO va 7•7ETEpOLOto
At E•oo' .'
KaL 8d owv, OlS /IOL ''ar7o 8tos '08vooEa
In this passage, the three conditions, (1) to be the single faAEV1gs, (2) to be one of
numerous gacArtAEs, and (3) to be the Gva6 of one's own house, are clearly
20TheexceptionsareII.9.569,Od.10.534and 11.47,i.e. whenhe is coupledwithPersephone.
21Thephrase'Hoatoroto avaK-ro, whichoccurstwiceat thelineend(II. 15.214;18.137)and
onceat thebeginningof theline(hereat Od.8.270)in Homer,maybe regardedas a formula,and
as suchsomemayarguethatit maywellhaveslippedinto the slot withoutmuchrelevanceto the
immediatecontext.However,if we observethe exceptionally intenseandrelevantuse of epithets
of Hephaestusthroughoutthis episode, it is difficultto maintainthat the poet's choice of
avaKTrohereis accidental.As Hephaestusleaveshomeaftersettinghis trap,he is describedas
'renownedfor his craft'(KAVUTOT7XV7'V,8.286),and his houseis 'of highlyrenowned'Hephaestus
(7EptLKvUToI, 287),whichnot onlyechoesthe epithetbefore(and undoubtedly the houseitself is
one of his masterpiecesthat representhis renown),but also alludesto the contextin whichhis
famousstoryof cunningis beingrecountedby a singer.Oncethe trapis deployed,it is calledthe
bonds or devices of 'very clever' Hephaestus (voAv'opovog,297, 327). The poet's fully conscious
choice of adjectivesis most evidentin a god'sremarkat 329-32 that the slow Hephaestushas
caught the swift Ares by his artifice (7EXvgolt, 332), highlightingthe centrality of his
craftsmanship in this episode. It is this Hephaestus, 'renowned for his craft' (KAUroEpyodv,345),
that Poseidonpersuadesto let go of the trappedpair,and it is the 'mighty'Hephaestus(Pdvos
359) who undoes the tight bonds. The unusually high concentration of his epithets
'Hqalo-roto,
(sevenout of nineteeninstancesof his nameareaccompanied by epithetsin the Odyssey;of these
six appearin this episode)also makesit likelythatthe choiceof the epithetshereis inducedby
theirmeanings.
22 It is possibleto readthe sameconnotationin
II. 6.166,whereProetusis told of the alleged
adulterousambitionof Bellerophontowardshis wifeandthe wrathseizesthe 'dva6(=Proetus)',
the lord of both his wife and his retainer.However,he is also flatAUL'sat 6.163 in exactlythe
samecontext.Cf.n. 61 below.

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 AND IN HOMER 5
avat faLtAEtS
differentiated. While to be the faactAE61or one of faaclA?Es has to do with
one's standing vis-a-vis the community outside one's household, to be the avae
of one's own house is essentially a private matter. Telemachus is asserting here that as
the 6vae he will exercise his right to enjoy his possessions that come with the
household.
The picture of avac as head of the household may even extend to the formulaic
expression, 'avac so-and-so's son(s)', e.g. MqKLUtaTEO~v[lS Tahaaovt'ao aOvaKTro (II.
2.566; cf. /R. 2.624, 672, 679, 693; 7.8; 23.302, 678; Od. 16.395 = 18.413; 19.523;
24.305). This expression presents a hero in the implied context of his noble household
to which he has personal responsibilities. It may even convey a poignant tone at the
moment of the hero'sdeath (as in /. 2.693, 7.8; cf. Od. 19.523), evoking the loss of heir
to his father and his household.
Another interesting case is that of Zeus where atvae and 'father' alternate. As
the most powerful of the gods, he is prayed to by all human beings, but is called
upon as avac only by warriors. He is addressed as 'ZE1 &va' three times, by
Menelaus (II. 3.351), Achilles (II. 16.233), and Odysseus (Od. 17.354). Before his
duel with Hector, Ajax asks his comrades to pray to Adl Kpovtwvt lvaKTLon his
behalf (II. 7.194; cf. 200). However, in the subsequent prayer, the Achaeans call
upon the god as 'ZEv3 (202), which in fact is a much commoner address
rTaJEp'
to this god than ZEv6ava.23 Similarly, when Thetis beseeches 'Zeus ava6' for his
favour to her son, she addresses him as 'ZEvO ~7T7Ep'(II. 1.502-3).24On the other hand,
Zeus' son Heracles is described as the one dearest to 'Adl Kpovtowv LVlaKTL(Ii.
18.118), as if the god is envisaged more as his patron than as his father. Zeus is
vae again as he receives the sceptre of Agamemnon first from its maker and
Kpovtwov
his son Hephaestus (II. 2.102). In this context, Zeus &vac is both the patriarch of his
divine household and the patron of the royal household of Pelops. It is in this same
context that the only case of '&vac Hermes' occurs, just as he is handing the sceptre to
Pelops, acting as his patron on behalf of Zeus (2.104). The interchangeabilityof alva4
and 7rra-r-pis made even more explicit when a servant of Odysseus prays to Zeus at Od.
20.112: ZE6O WE KaLV V2U/aaEL'.25All these seem to
confirm the role of avac rG EOoUL
rr-Ep, VOpwoTfOLULV
as the head of the household, the patriarch, and suggest that
the rule of avac over his subjects has an analogous function to that of a father over his
family.26
Priam is another prominent father figure called avac. The city of Troy is regularly
referred to as 'avac Priam's city'.27This expression seems to reflect the patriarchal

23 ZE occurs 25 timesin the Iliadand 16 timesin the Odyssey. Cf. I.

7TaTdrEp 5.426,7raTrTp
avLpWv rTEOEv rTE;II. 8.245 and 17.648, 7rar-jp.
24
Cf. II. 1.529, where Zeus is again a&va6.
25 Cf. other instances of Zeus +
dvaaOELv:II. 2.669, 4.61, 12.242, 18.366, Od 9.552, 13.25.
26
Cf. Calhoun [n. 5], 5: '. . . the use of the word as a kingly title is an extension of
this originalmeaning[= master of the house]'. Incidentally,Aristotle says in his Politics I
1259b that the rule of the father over his children is of the same nature as that of the king
over his subjects. To illustrate this, he points out that Homer calls Zeus '7rarqp rE
OEbv rTE'as the king (3aaLAEUs) of all. Although he uses the word /aaU3cLAE to describe&v~pcov
the ruler
in this context, his description fits better with the use of avae, the patriarchal ruler, than
aa3uLE~sin Homer. Cf ibid. 1285b, where he compares absolute monarchy to
-
olKOVO/tJLK?
/aatLAELa,and E. Benveniste, Le vocabulaire des institutions indo-europdennesII (Paris, 1969),
p. 28.
27 IHpLpOLO lvaKToS II. 2.373, 4.18, 290;IIpLdAolo lvaKTro
7rTdOLS . .. TOAL~II. 12.11; d;aTv
tdya II. 7.296(in Hector'sspeech),17.160, 21.309, Od. 3.107.
1HpLdLoto &VLrKTog

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6 N. YAMAGATA

nature of his rule. Troy is his city, he is the owner and master of his people.28This is
confirmed in his son Hector's words referring to his father as '&vacPriam' (II. 6.451)
and the Trojans as 'Priam's people' (449). While Priam's usual fatherly kindness is
acknowledged by his daughter-in-law Helen (II. 24.770), in his moment of grief and
rage after the death of Hector he treats his courtiers and his sons in much the same
harsh manner (II. 24.237-48 and 248-65). It looks as if he can wield patriarchal
authority over the whole population of Troy.29
avae as patriarch is the master or owner, and therefore naturally the protector, of
his own things and his own people.30This definition of avac, '(fatherly) protector' (in
some cases 'patron'), seems to fit many other instances of the word. It is only natural
that Phoenix calls Peleus '&vac'(RI.9.480) as he relates how Peleus welcomed him into
his household, and loved him like his only son (480-3). The ghost of Elpenor, one of
Odysseus' companions, addresses Odysseus as &vvac, as he reminds him of his duty to
give due burial to his body (Od. 11.71-8).31Under normal circumstances,burial would
be given by the family of the dead, but away from home, the duty falls onto his
commander as his 'surrogate' patriarch, so to speak. We can expect other heroes
described as LvaKTES in relation to their attendants and followers to be under the same
obligation.32 It is also interesting to note that Achilles' 'hut', e.g. his temporary ot'KOS,
is described as 'the hut which the Myrmidons built for (their) &vac'(Il. 24.449). We
may detect here the domestic association of &vac, identifying Achilles' role as the
Myrmidons' surrogate patriarch. His obligation to protect them is particularly
highlighted when he laments his failure to protect Patroclus as well as other
companions (Il. 18.98-103; cf. 128-9). Even if Patroclus happened not to be his
dearest friend, Achilles would still have had the responsibility to protect him as his
OEpadrrwv (II. 17.388). Now that he is dead, Achilles has the obligation to avenge his
death (18.90-3).33
The most quoted and most explicit example of avac as protector is undoubtedly the
explanation of the nickname Astyanax,34the &va4of the city, given to Hector's son by
the Trojans at Il. 6. 402-3: otog~yap pvE-ro"IAtov"EK-rwp. If this effectively is an
acknowledgement of Hector's status as heir apparent to the kingship of Troy, it is
perfectly in keeping with the use of the title avac for Priam. Priam himself must have
once been physically the protector of the city.35The grief that the people of Troy show
28 Cf.Il. 24.202 (Hecubatalkingto Priam).He is alsocalledfaaULAEU twice;at
otaY avdaaUELS
II.24.680,whenvisitingAchilles'hut,andat 24.803,whenhostingthefuneraryfeastin honourof
Hector,that is to say,whenperforminga publicfunctionspecificallyassociatedwith paaLhAE1s
ratherthanava6. Seebelowforthe examinationof connotationsof faaLAEhs.
29 He is the onlypersonwhoseoathbindstheTrojans as a whole.Hencetheoathat II.3.105-10
is to be takenby him.Cf.Calhoun[n. 5], 16.
30 For& vae as protector,seeLeumann,op.cit [n.4], pp.42-4; Puhvel,op.cit. [n.4], 202-22.Cf.
C. J. Ruijgh,L'Ellmentacheendans la langueepique(Assen, 1957),pp. 112-13:'. . . chez le
roi-pretredes peuplesprimitifs,la protectionet la dominationne sont que deux aspectsde la
memepuissancemagique,gracea laquelletout le paysprospere;parconsequent,il n' est guere
possiblede dissocierces deuxaspectsde Edvae.'
31 Cf. Od.3.163whereOdysseus,thoughimplicitly,is the 5vae of his followers.
32 II. 11.322,Thymbraeus for Molion;Il. 12.413-14,Sarpedonas 'govA rl- pov.....vaKKra
(414)forthe Lycians;Il. 16.464,SarpedonforThrasymedes.
33Cf. R. J. Bonnerand G. Smith, TheAdministration of Justicefrom Homerto AristotleI
(Chicago,1930),p. 4: 'Thechief also had the duty of avengingthose of his followerswho were
slainin battle.In thiscasehe stoodin the positionof a relativeto his followers.'
34G. S. Kirk,TheIliad:A Commentary, vol.II: Books5-8 (Cambridge, 1990),ad loc., proposes
thatScamandrius, ratherthanAstyanax,is morelikelyto be his nickname.
35 Cf His reminiscence of a militaryexpeditionat Il. 3.184-90.

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 cavae AND IN HOMER
aautLAEuV' 7
at the deathof Hectorrevealsnot only theirdependenceon his valourbut also their
affectiontowardshim, as if towardstheirkinsman(II. 24.704-8). Hectorwas on his
wayto succeedPriamas theirfather-figure as wellas theirprotector.
It must be said, however,that there are some instancesof avac which do not
particularlyunderlinethe domesticconnotation,'patriarch'.When Nestor is called
'&vacof sandy Pylus' (II. 2.77) as he reprehendsthe cowardlybehaviourof the
Achaeans,the expressionseemsno more than an honorifictitle indicatingthat he is
the rulerof the city,thoughhe is verymucha father-figurefor otherwarriorsin the
entire Homeric corpus. When a 'historical' Lycian king who kindly received
Bellerophonis called'&vacof wide Lycia'(II. 6.173),againthis seemsonly a title of
the ruler,though he happensto be the father-in-lawof Proetuswho is the avac of
Bellerophon,andalso the futurefather-in-law of Bellerophonhimselfin the episode.36
It is also hard to take the formula '&vac as anythingother than an
honorifictitle, especiallywhen it is appliedby advSpoJv'
god to Agamemnon(II. 1.506).37It
emphasizesthe hero'spowerand prestige,not obviouslyhis 'fatherly'obligations.In
some cases, however,he does play the role of the 'surrogate'patriarchfor the
Achaeans,by performingsacrificeson the army'sbehalf(II.2.402,7.314),38organizing
others to preparePatroclus'funeralpyre (II. 23.49-50), and sending the envoy to
propitiateApollo (II. 1. 442).39Here,his functionas 'J'vac approachesthat of
whichwe will see later.40 avipdov'
f'aauLtA•S,
As we havealreadyseen in the cases of Zeus and Hephaestus,the gods, too, are
often to humans.Thepassagein whichthe shipwrecked Odysseuspraysto an
vaLKTES-
anonymousrivergod for protection,addressinghim as ava4 (Od. 5.445,450), is the
best illustrationof divine-humanrelationship-the god is the helperand the human
his dependant.41 By addressingthe god as his avac, Odysseussubmitshimselfto the
powerof the god, andin returnclaimstheprotectionthatcomeswiththe relationship.
It seemsnaturalto assumethat the titlesavac and avacca were givento gods and
goddessesrespectivelyin actualreligiouspracticebeforethey everenteredinto poetic
36
Cf.otherexamplesof &vaeapparentlysimplyas rulerof people:Il. 5.546Orsilochus;13.452
Idomeneus;20.230 Tros; other honorific/formulaicuses of ava4: II. 2.405, 10.112, 15.301
Idomeneus;2.725Philoctetes(thoughthe contextimpliesthatthe Achaeanswill soon needhim
as theirhelper);5.794Diomedes;7.137Areithous;9.164 (thoughhereAchillesis viewedas the
only man who can save the Achaeans),23.35 Achilles; 12.139 Asius; 13.582,758, 770, 781
Helenus;14.489Peneleus;23.859Teucer.
37 •va v•pcJv is appliedalso to Anchises(II.5.268),Aeneas(II.5.311),Eumelus(II.23.288),
the formidableking of Elis calledAugeias(II. 11.701),and Euphetes,the king of Ephyra(II.
15.532).It is not necessarilya titleof a king,let alonea greatking.
38 Cf. Bonnerand Smith,op. cit. [n. 33],p. 4.
39 On thisoccasion,of course,Agamemnon is personallyresponsibleforthegod'sanger,butas
the headof the communitywhichhe (temporarily) represents,thisrolewouldhavebeenhis even
if someone else in his camp were responsiblefor the offence.His status as the &vaeof the
Achaeanarmyis also clear from the fact that the whole armyis punishedby the god for his
mistake.
40 The clearest case of a&vaeas
faaLAEVsis Minos in the Underworld,who holds a golden
sceptre (the emblem of the fl9auLEVg) and settles disputes among the dead (Od. 11.569-70). Cf.
also a beggar (in fact, ironically, the disguised Odysseus) looking like 'faauLAEvhl5va' in his
cowherd's eye (Od. 20.194). Whatever the phrase's superficial meaning might be (e.g. Russo, op.
cit. [n. 9], ad loc.: 'lordly king'; Calhoun [n. 5], 7-8: '... the appearance not merely of an ava6,
master of a household, but of an a&va6who is faauLAEV' B as well'), the ironical subtext that the
poet is hinting at must be 'he looks just like my master, the king'. After all, it is likely that he is
thinkingof Odysseuswhenhe talksaboutmisfortunesthatcan befalleven'faauLAEs'
in thenext
two lines, 195-6.
41 Cf. Leumann,
op. cit. [n. 4], p. 42.

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8 N. YAMAGATA

language as divine epithets. As such, just as in the case of human counterparts, some
instances of ava4 (or avacaa) appear to be purely honorific or formulaic and have
little relevance to the immediate contexts.42But in the majority of instances in which
gods are depicted as helpers, the image of avac as protector is very much alive.
For example, when his priesthood has been insulted by Agamemnon, Chryses prays
to &vae Apollo, his master and protector (1i. 1.36). The god 'protects' Chryse and
mightily 'rules' (dvuaacELv)Cilla and Tenedos (1.37-8), and therefore is the alvac of
Chryse (1.390).43Elsewhere in the Iliad, the god is often referredto as alva4 to Trojan
warriors and their allies such as Hector (15.253), Glaucus (16.514, 523), Aeneas
(20.103), and Pandarus (5.105). When Athena comes down from Mt Olympus to assist
the Achaeans, and Apollo stirs from 'his seat on Pergamus' to counter her (Ii.
7.17-21), his speeches are introduced by whole-line formulae ending in &cva dtLs v[IoS
A7~rhAAwv (II. 7.23, 37). Given the metrical constraint of the lines, and particularly
because avac is not used on its own, some may argue against taking avac to be
particularly meaningful here, but the context-the god negotiating a deal on behalf of
the Trojans opposite Athena-does seem to make the epithet relevant, portraying the
god as the avac of Troy (we are even reminded of his special seat there) and its people.
The same formula is also relevantly used when the god gives assistance to Aeneas (II.
20.103) and when he turns the tide of the battle in Troy'sfavour by delivering the fatal
blow to Patroclus (II. 16.804). Even if the specific connotation of &va6is not presented
in the foreground, one can argue that it may have triggered the use of the formula in
these contexts.
Another whole-line speech-opening formula ending in &va4 EKdAEPYo47ro'6AAWv is
also used in comparable contexts, i.e. when the god is assisting Hector (15.253) and
when he is confronting Poseidon in the Theomachy (II. 21.461). He is a&vacfor archers
(Pandarus rI. 5.105; Idas rI. 9.559; Teucer II. 23.863; cf. 865) and prophets (Calchas II.
1.75). It may be also significant that he is called alvac in a song of Demodocus (Od.
8.323, 334).
Equally notable are the passages in which Poseidon is &va4. He is ctvaenaturally at
his own festival in Pylos (Od. 3.43, 54) and at his altar in Helice (II. 20.404). It is to
'dva6 Poseidon' that Odysseus must make special offerings in order to seek deliverance
from further wanderings at sea, the god's domain (Od. 11.130, 23.277). Poseidon is
also a&vacto his son Polyphemus (Od. 9.412), the Phaeacians who are his descendants
and special proteg6s (Od. 13.185), sea creatures (Il. 13.28), and his horses (II. 13.38).
Rather like Apollo, who has a tendency to be called dvac just as he is acting on behalf
of the Trojans, Poseidon is called alva4 when acting on behalf of the Achaeans, as at
15.8 where he fights for the Achaeans, at 15.57 and 158 where Zeus sends Iris to stop
him helping them, and at Il. 20.67 where he stands against Apollo at the beginning of
the Theomachy. Incidentally, Athena, the other powerful helper of Achaean warriors,
is addressed as a&vaccaby Nestor in his prayer (Od. 3.380).
42 E.g. II. 14.326 A1q71r/L7pOS-
KaAALTrAoKd/OLO Jvacaarls in Zeus' catalogueof his former
consorts; Od. 8.339 ava~ ' A7TroAAov
in Hermes' light-hearted response to the god;
12.175-6 tkEydA L"S/'HEALov Kar•qdOA' and Od. 12.290 BOEhv.. vcKTOWV,
7r ay• Y7rptovdlaolSvarKTos
both of whichreflecthumanobservationof divinepower.Cf. Calhoun[n. 5], 7, who .atakesthe
gods as varKTErof the winds at 12.290.
43 The case at
II. 1.390, however, is ambiguous. Apollo may well be envisaged as the 'lord' of
Achaeans (including the speaker Achilles himself) as well as the lord of Chryse, now that more
than ever they find themselves under the power of the god as the deity of plague and healing. This
ambiguity is present also at II. 1.444 where Odysseus delivers Agamemnon's message to the priest
Chryses. In this passage, Apollo may equally be the alva6 of Chryses or of the Achaeans or both.

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 avae AND fautAEVt IN HOMER 9

WehavealreadyseenHephaestusas the masterof his houseabove(Od.8.270).He

is also the ava6 of his golden 'robots'(II. 18.417,421), and is referredto as 'dvae
Hephaestus'by Thetis as a prospectivemakerof Achilles'new armour(IL.18.137).
The lattercan be a case of an honorificuse of the title, but we cannot ignorethe
connotationof avae as helperin this context.Again at II. 15.214,"the exampleof
'HaiulroLoavaoK70s does seempurelyformulaic,but it may be significantthat he is
mentionedhere by Poseidonamong the gods who are backingthe Achaeansin the
war,ratherlikesomeof the 'formulaic'or 'honorific'usesof the titleforPoseidonand
Apollo whichseemto 'coincide'with the meaningrequiredby the context.
One of the most strikingdifferencesbetweenavae andPfla•AESis that the former
can be used in an address(in the vocative)while the latterneveris in Homer.And
nowhereis thenatureof &va6moreclearlyillustratedthanin its usein thevocative.We
havealreadymentionedseveralcasesof humansseekingdivinehelpby addressingthe
god as ava6 (e.g. 11.16.514,523, Glaucuscallingupon Apollo and Od. 5.445, 450,
Odysseus'supplicating' an anonymousrivergod). The addressplacesthe addresserin
the handsof the god, who in returntakeson the responsibilityof the protector.This
mechanism seems to work even when the person addressedas ava6 cannot be
regardedas the 'master'of the addresser.Forexample,Hera,supposedlythe No. 2 in
rankamongthe Olympiangods (cf.IR.4.59-61, 14.213,243), addressesthe god Sleep
as 'ava 7rrvwrowv rE OEWV7rav-rwvr 7' av~pWo'rwv' (II. 14.233),concedinghis power
overothersand herself,just as she needsto enlistthatpoweron herside.
The addressseemsto be used in muchthe samewayamonghumans.Naturally,in
some cases the one calledavac is intrinsicallysuperiorin rankto the addresser.For
example,the Achaeansurge their often hesitantleaderAgamemnonto action by
addressinghim as avac, therebyremindinghim of his responsibility(II. 2.284, 360,
9.33).45Elpenor'sghost does the same by addressingOdysseusas avac (Od. 11.71).
Antilochusappeasesthe angeredMenelausby handinghimselfoverto his mercy,with
the address'Jvac' (II.23.588).Buttherearea fewcasesin whichthe personaddressed
as &va4is clearlynot the 'master'of the addresser.Themost notablecaseis Odysseus'
addressto Achillesas &vacwhen urginghim to returnto battlein orderto savethe
Achaeans(II.9.276;cf. 19.177).Justas in the case of Heraand Sleep,Odysseuscould
even claim seniority over Achilles (as he does at II. 19.218-19), but here his tact
choosesto placeAchillesabovehimself,evidentlyon the groundof his valour,the one
crucialcapacityneededat thatmoment.In the Odyssey,he addressesTeiresiasin the
underworldas avac whenseekingthe prophet'sadvice(11.144),againplacinghimself
in the hands of the potentialhelper.46 The case may be extendedto the plea of the
shipwreckedOdysseus to Nausicaa when he seeksher helpwith the address'cwvaca'
(Od. 6.149, 175). Commentatorsexplainthat he is flatteringher by using the title
otherwisereservedfor a goddess,47but in view of the exampleswe havejust seen, it
" Aristarchusathetizes212-17,butnot 214 in isolation,andthereforeI feel less uneasyabout
the linein its immediatecontext.
reading 45 Cf. Calhoun[n. 5], 5.
46 His address 'Yava' to the ghost of Ajax at Od. 11.561, which implicitly admits Ajax's
superiority and reversesthe result of the fatal contest between them, is another demonstration of
Odysseus' tact.
47 E.g. Scholia H and Q, G.
Dindorfius (ed.), Scholia Graeca in Homeri Odysseam (Oxford,
1855); W B. Stanford, The Odyssey of Homer2,Books I-XII (London, 1959), on 6.149. Cf. J. B.
Hainsworth, in A. Heubeck and J. B. Hainsworth (edd.), A Commentaryon Homer's Odysseyvol.
I (Oxford, 1988), ad loc. Other instances of 5vacca are found in Od. 3.380 (Nestor to Athena);
Hymn to Demeter 75 (Helius to Demeter), 492 (the poet to Demeter); Hymn to Selene 17 (the poet
to Selene); Hymn to Aphrodite92 (Anchises to Aphrodite).

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10 N. YAMAGATA

seems possible that what we find here is the same humbling gesture inherent in the
address 'ava6' or 'dvaaaa'48which can be applied to any potential protector or helper,
divine or human.
Another aspect to note here is the private nature of the relationship between the
addresser and the addressee. Hera's rank may be higher than that of Sleep, but that
fact has nothing to do with the present business between the two. Odysseus does not
yet know that Nausicaa is a princess, nor does she know that he is a king. All that they
know is that he needs her help. The cvac-dependantrelationship, as we have already
seen in the case of the master of the house and his dependants, is a private matter.49
The individuals' respective social standings in the outside world need not affect the
relationship of dependence between them.50

/actLAEVsIN HOMER
In clear contrast to this is the public nature of flaauLAEs. The status of a lcaalEV"g is
objectively determined by certain privileges, mostly the gifts from others, and
corresponding duties.51There are different ranks even among flaULAgES,hence the
expressions '3aaLAv'-Epog' and 'PlatAEVra'ros', on the ground of birth and
hereditary prestige.52Those born into the class of flauLA~Es are even supposed to
have noble looks distinguishable from others with or without princely attire (II.
3.170; Od. 4.63-4; 17.416; 20.194; 24.253).53Their rank is a result of the patronage of
Zeus, suggested in the epithets, Sto-rpEfs, and OEgos,and summarized
at II. 2.197: LrL7 8' S 7Ert, UrrKr9oo70iOos,
S' ZE Sg.54We are told how
3 EK EtAEF JE T 7LE7Tra
dLO•
Agamemnon is superior to Achilles, because he has a uaK77rpovhanded down from
Zeus through his ancestors (Il. 2.100-8) which entitles him to rule over 'many islands
and the whole of Argos' (108). Therefore Nestor tries to calm down Achilles in his
quarrel with Agamemnon by pointing out the special patronage of Zeus that the
king enjoys (Il. 1.277-9):
/.T)E aUV, J h7 -q, EEA pLSEVCLL /3cLULA
o 7TO
cV-rtL/3LV, EITEl O) JrLo P otEq/LopE Trt.L7-s
w ZE1S KVoS-
aKrlV7oxoVSLaaLAEvs, rE E8oWKEV.
48 Cf. A. Fanta, Der Staat in der Ilias und Odyssee(Innsbruck, 1882),
pp. 28-9: 'Der Anredende
stellt sich dadurch gleichsam in ein untergeordnetesVerhdiltnisszum Angeredeten'.
49 Cf. Calhoun[n. 5], 5-6: 'the effect of the unusualmode of addressis a tone of marked
personaldeference';'to addressanothersimplyasalva6is to speakas one of the householdto the
master,to expressa deferencethat is absoluteand unqualified'.In my opinion, this unified
definitionmakesa bettersensethanthe commonapproach,e.g. S. Deger,Herrschaftsformen bei
Homer(Wien,1970),pp. 54-5, whichseparatesthe Iliadicuse of a&vae as an honorifictitle from
the Odysseanconnotationof the 'masterof thehouse'.
50 However, ratheras in theuse of 'lord'in old-fashionedEnglish,a&vaeis not likelyto be used
to addressa personof an obviouslylow status.
5' Cf.
II. 6.193 (TrL[S gactAO7rLAorS), 9.154-6, 12.310-21, Od. 1.392-3; Finley, The Worldof
Odysseus2, pp. 95-7.
52
gaaLuLE'TEpog: II. 9.160, 392; 10.239; Od. 15.533; /aat•LAEraTros: II. 9.69. Cf. Fanta, op. cit.
[n. 48], pp. 23-4; Deger, op. cit. [n. 49], p. 58. It may be significant that Erichthonius, who became
the richest of all mortals, is called /aULAELh ~, while Dardanus before him, who lived in a more
modest condition of early days of Troy,is not (II. 20.215-20).
53 Cf. K. Stegmann von Pritzwald, Zur Geschichteder Herrscherbezeichnungen von Homer bis
Plato (Leipzig, 1930), p. 36.
S&to-rpE qk: II. 1.176, 2.98, 196, 445, 4.338, 5.464, 14.27, 24.803, Od. 3.480, 4.44, 63 (with
UK7qTTro6XoS 64), 7.49; UaK7Trro7oXo:II. 1.279, 2.86, Od 2.231, 4.64 (with &torpEOW7? 63), 5.9, 8.41,
cf. II. 18.556-7 laaLAE'. .. aUKqOrrTpOv wv where the king is supervising a harvest in his
rTE[Evo0;OEor: Od. 4.621, 691, 16.335. Cf King Minos as 'A t~L LEydAoV dapLtr-q9'(Od 19.179).

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 avae AND faaut•Eug IN HOMER 11

What the sceptre symbolizes above all is the duty to administer BlKrq, i.e. to make an
appropriate decision when a dispute arises within his community, and uphold
law
OELtaUrES, and customs, as Achilles describes its function at Il. 1.237-9:55
vv av-rEitL vtEs AXaLLwv
#OPEovUL&KcLaMOL, TE E/LLTOaS
Ev 7ra4 OL0
7rpog d toS
EPVparatA
In the Iliad, Agamemnon is referred to as fauAEvh's more often than any other
individual, naturally as the greatest of all PaaUAqEs,but other leaders of the Achaean
army, too, are regularly described as faaluAEs, most often as members of
Agamemnon's council.56In the Odyssey, as we have seen in 1.383-98, Odysseus (and
his successor) is the king, but there are other PaautAqEsuch as Antinous and
Eurymachus (18.64-5) who are dominant speakers at the assembly of the Ithacans
(2.84-256). In Phaeacia, Alcinous undoubtedly is the PaaLuAEis,but there are also
twelve other faau•LAES(Od. 8.390-1) who are joint leaders (dpxot') of the community
and take part in the flovA~(6.54-5). Whether they are great kings or minor princes,
are distinguishable by their public function as decision-makers. The quality
faaULAE
of the king's rule naturally affects not only his household but the whole community
(Od. 19.109-14). There are evidently occasional problems arising from unfair
decisions by faauLAEs (Od. 4.690-1) or from multiple leadership (II. 2.204-6).
can be 'as kind as a father', but such cases appear not to be very common
/aaLA7ES
(Od. 2.47; cf. Od. 2.230-4 = 5.8-12).
Other functions of faa•LAEV'are aptly identified by Finley to be 'in the area we label
foreign affairs'.57His most important function is the military leadership on which the
survival of his community depends. It is in this context that Sarpedon talks about the
privileges and duties of faautAES (II. 12.310-21), and leading heroes are often referred
to as faaluAEs when acting as military commanders (II. 2.188, 445; 9.334, 346; 13.643;
14.27, 379; 16.660; 24.404). A more peaceful face of the Paa•AEV;scan be seen in his
role as the host to foreign visitors, i.e. people from outside his community. The word
is used in the context of kingly hospitality, actual or potential, to foreigners
Paa•LAEV•
in as many as twenty-three instances, twenty-two of which occur in the Odyssey.58In
fact, everybody is obliged to offer hospitality to foreign visitors in Homeric society,
" Fora detaileddiscussionof what and Ol"4L mean in Homer,cf N. Yamagata,Homeric
&8Krq
Morality (Leiden, 1994), pp. 61-79.
56 Agamemnon: II. 1.9, 80, 231, 277, 279, 340, 410, 3.170(of his king-likeappearance),179,
4.402 (to Diomedes),7.180(of Mycenae),8.236, 11.23,46 (of Mycenae),136,262, 283, 19.182,
256;Achaeanleaders(as membersof Agamemnon's council):IR.1.176,2.86, 98, 196,214, 247,
250, 277, 3.270 (sealingthe peacetreaty),7.106, 344, 9.59, 710, 10.166,195, 19.309,23.36;(as
militaryleaders):Il. 2.445,9.334,346, 14.27,379,24.404.
57 TheWorldof Odysseus2, p. 96, cf. alsopp.96-7: 'Theeffective,powerfulkinggaveprotection
and defence,by his dealingswith kings abroad,by his organizationof such activitiesas the
buildingof walls,andby his personalleadershipin battle'.
58 In the sole example in the Iliad (11.23), it is the recipient of ELw•4iov (Agamemnon), rather
than the giver (Cinyras), who is called facLAEgs,though this is undoubtedly a case of a gift from
one to another. Cf. the king of Sidon: Od. 4.618, 15.118; Alcinous: 7.46, 55 (his
flaa,•LElexplainedto a visitor),141;8.157,257, 469; 13.62(cf.
background cLaau Lafor Areteat 13.59);
the Laistrygonian king: 10.110 (visitors' question as to who the king is); a potential host: 13.205,
20.222; an Egyptian king protects a suppliant as his 6Egvos: 14.278; the Thesprotian king: 14.316,
19.287; King Acastos: 14.336; Antinous: 17.415-6 (his kingly appearance); Echetus as a
notorious 'host': 18.85, 116; 21.308. We may add to this list the example of Amarynceus, who is
the viewpoint of the guests at his funeral (Il. 23.631), and a more general reference
fLaatLAEfrom
to a king's funeral at Od. 24.88. See also LfrgE flauLAEls,B 41.63-4.

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12 N. YAMAGATA

but especially the flaLAE'1S (Od. 17.416). Alcinous appears to entertain the other
Phaeacian kings in his palace regularly (Od 7.49-50), but prepares an evidently
exceptional feast for Odysseus to which he invites the other kings so that they can
share the burden as well as the pleasure of hospitality (8.38-43, 390-3). Priam seems
to entertain Trojanand allied princes at his palace, as his son Lycaon is used to hearing
Aeneas' boasts among other flaLAtEs while drinking (II. 20.83-4).59 Hector's funeral
feast also takes place 8CLacavE'v v ptcdzoto, 8tLOTrpOE OSg gautA?7oS(II. 24.803). The
venue is natural enough, but the use of the title here, just as Priam is performing one
of the duties of the king, must be significant, considering that this is one of the only
two examples of flauLAtlh applied to him.60
Agamemnon in Troy has no palace to which to invite other Achaean kings, but still
performs the duty of providing them with feasts as the payment for their service (e.g.
II. 4.338-48). In this connection, it is interesting to note that at II. 9.69-73, Nestor
urges Agamemnon to organize a meal, saying, 'avbydp flpautAEVdrard0 E•ct'. It is
significant that he does not say 'since you are our Agamemnon is avSpcwv,
a.vae'. , he remains flag.vae
the lord of the host, but in relation to other fpactAE~ AEhVswhose
duty lies in his diplomatic and official functions. Similarly,Achilles is flagLAE's, rather
than to the heralds of Agamemnon when they come to collect Briseis, because
there is.vae,
no personal patronage between them, Achilles being a foreign prince from the
heralds' point of view (II. 1.331).
While deals with the welfare of the people within his household and those
under his&.va4
direct influence, flauLAE'Eis often found entertaining or protecting people
from outside his community. This contrast is clear in the case of Rhesus, who comes
in aid of the Trojans. He is referred to as flag AEVXs from a Trojan point of view (II.
10.435; cf. 494), but is naturally referred to as in relation to his famous horses
(10.559). a.vae
To sum up, avae and facLAEv~s represent the aristocracy's private and public faces
respectively. As ava( an aristocrat looks after his household, and as paULAEV~E he
performs his duties outside his household.61 vae stands for patronage formed on a
personal basis, while stands for a social status, objectively defined by birth
fa•tAE'1S

59 ThispassageimpliesthatLycaonis countedamongthe /faulAdEsr, likehis brothers(Parisat

II. 4.96; cf. 5.463 vdr . .. IpLdptoto 8&toTpEfEECrLr).
6 The other example at II. 24.680, too, is significant, since Priam is on a 'diplomatic mission' at
Achilles' residence, having ransomed Hector's body and negotiated a truce necessary for his
funeral.
61 The two functions can, naturally,overlap at times. For
example, the use of the title fartAaEV's
of Proetus in relation to his wife Anteia and his retainer Bellerophon (II. 6.163) or of Polypoetes
in relation to his companions (II. 23.849) might well have been replaced by ava(. The use of
acrh'AcEa,the feminine equivalent of is even less clear-cut. Penelope is naturally
paruAAtis,
fgac'AEca to visitors from abroad and from outside her household (Od. 4.770, 16.332, 337, 17.468
= 18.351 = 21.275, 18.314, 23.149), but even her servant Melanthius refers to her as
facAlhta
(17.370), and Medon (4.697) and Eumaeus (17.513, 583), her other servants, even address her as
a, as if which we may expect here from the analogy of is not suitable for
this purpose. Arete
/a•atcAlh is faatAe~a to both Odysseus and the Phaeacians alva•,
&ava•cc, (Od. 11.345). Odysseus
addresses her, his hostess, as facrAEEta (7.241, 13.59) while he merely refers to Alcinous, his host,
as (13.62). He addresses the king as 'A•AKIVo(E)'(7.208),'.pwsr' (7.303), or 'AAK"lVOE
fartA•Ae's
KpELOV'(8.382, 9.2, 11.355, 378, 13.38). KpELovappears to be a more suitable title than fpauLEt;sr
for addressing a king. The use of facn'AEta for a royal hostess is fully expected, but its use in the
vocative-or rather the absence of its masculine counterpart-is striking. Nausicaa, in the
narrator's/Athena'seyes before her first encounter with Odysseus, is also f3aurAEta (Od. 6.115),
which no doubt is the word Odysseus himself could have used to address the princess had he
known her status, instead of avacra, at 6.149 and 175. A peculiar title facriAea is
yvva<LKCV

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 &vae AND /3atuA•Vs IN HOMER 13

and wealth. This broad distinction, I believe, can help explain many aspects of
Homeric society as well as interpret individual occurrences of the words.

EPILOGUE: MYCENAEAN WA-NA-KA AND QA-SI-RE-U

Today, no discussion of Homeric words can be considered complete without a
reference to Mycenaean counterparts whenever available.The discussion of &va4and
has been ever more vigorous since the decipherment of the Linear B script
flaLAEh~t
yielded their predecessors, wa-na-ka (wanax) and qa-si-re-u (gwasileus), both
suggesting persons of some status within Mycenaean society.62Wanax seems to refer
to the king,63or at times even to a god, while gwasileus seems to refer merely to a local
official of some sort. For example, in PY Un 2, wanax in line 1 appears to be
associated with an impressive list of items, including an ox, 26 rams, six ewes, two
he-goats, two she-goats, one hog, and six sows. On the other hand, in PY Jo 438,
gwasileus called 'a-ke-ro' in line 20 is contributing a relatively small amount of gold
(P3 = estimated 60 g) among other officials, some of whom are contributing much
more, e.g. Ml (estimated 1 kg) from 'te- ...' in line 2 and N2 (estimated 500 g) from
'po-ro-ko-re-[-te' in line 4,64 and in PY Jn 845 gwasileuscalled 'e-ri-ko-wo' seems to be
a chief among the bronzesmiths.
What is particularly interesting is the fact that in all of its nine occurrences in the
extant documents, wanax is never accompanied by his personal name, whereas in all its
four instances in the Pylos tablets, gwasileus appears to be named (or otherwise
qualified), with a different name (or some other qualifier) each time.65This difference
surely is significant. This may be a wild speculation, but I am inclined to think that
wanax is never named, not because there is only one wanax in the whole of the
Mycenaean world, which is very unlikely, but as a result of the singularity inherent in
the word itself-there can be only one 'lord' or 'master' in a given context, whether in
a temple or a palace. If we see the title not as a term of function but as a term of
relationship between him and the author of the document, it makes sense that 'our
lord' is just 'our lord', just as your father is just Father to you. On the other hand,
g"asileus is merely a job description. It has nothing to do with the relationship
between the author of the tablet and the person so entitled. Clearly the title alone is
not enough to identify the person.
The Mycenaean situation seems to be echoed in Homer to some extent. The
formula lva4 dJvSp6wv AyaftE'vwv is the most formal title of the greatest king and the
supreme commander among the Greeks,just as the Mycenaean state has the wanax on
applied to Tyro at Od. 11.258, which evidently is a variation of 8ia yvvaLKciv, which in turn is a
mortal equivalent of 8ia 6EOdwv.This may well be an element from a somewhat different school
of oral tradition.
62 Cf. M. Ventris and J. Chadwick, Documents in Mycenaean Greek2(Cambridge, 1973), pp.
120-2 (with notes on pp. 408-9). The most up-to-date and helpful discussion of the Mycenaean
wanax and gwasileus can be found in T. G. Palaima, 'The nature of the Mycenaean wanax:
non-Indo-European origins and priestly functions', Aegaeum 11 (1995), 119-39.
63 But see the reservations
expressed by J. T. Hooker, 'The Wanax in Linear B texts', Kadmos 18
(1979), 100-11; ibid., 'A note on alva6', Antika 29 (1979), 260. Cf. P. Chantraine,
'Consequences du d6chiffrement du myc6nien ,ivapour la philologie homerique', Athenaeum 36
(1958), 314-27, at 327 (Risch's comment).
64 Cf. E. L. Bennett, Jr and J.-P.Olivier, The Pylos TabletsTranscribedPart 1 (Roma, 1973), ad
loc.; Ventris and Chadwick, op. cit. [n. 62], p. 221, pp. 358-9.
65 Jn 431, Jn 601, Jn 845, and Jo 438. Qa-si-re-u appears also on KN B779, which is an isolated

fragment.

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14 N. YAMAGATA

top. On the other hand, there are many flaLA•AlESin Ithaca or in Phaeacia, just as there
are many gwasileesin Pylos. In Homer the title &va4is for both the gods and men but
flaLAE•s only for men, which seems to be the case also in Linear B.66Finally, in both
Homer and in Linear B, vac appears to imply a relationship and flaLAEgs a function.
If so, this situation may even foreshadow the post-Homeric development of these
words, e.g. the almost exclusive use of as a divine title, which refers to the
&.va4 and on the other hand the survival
relationship between the god and the worshipper,
of facLtAEVLin democratic Athens as a title of an official with a particular function to
fulfil. 67

Universityof Wales,Lampeter NAOKO YAMAGATA

66 However, since we know so little about the structure of Mycenaean society in which these
terms were used, we cannot be certain of any conclusion that we may draw.Cf. Finley's warnings
in Historia 6 (1957), 132-59, esp. 159. We must also remember that there is a marked difference
between Homer, where no god is called gautAel)s, and Cyclic epics, Homeric Hymns, and Hesiod,
where Zeus can be flaurAEcds (Cf. Calhoun [n. 5], 14-5; LfrgE fatAEi~srB 4).
67 Cf. LSJ ad loc.

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