Olympiodorus the Elder ( el, Ὀλυμπιόδωρος) was a 5th-century Neoplatonist who taught in

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...

, then part of the

Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinop ...

. He is most famous for being the teacher of the important Neoplatonist

Proclus Proclus Lycius (; 8 February 412 – 17 April 485), called Proclus the Successor ( grc-gre, Πρόκλος ὁ Διάδοχος, ''Próklos ho Diádokhos''), was a Greek Neoplatonist philosopher, one of the last major classical philosophe ...

(412–485), whom Olympiodorus wanted his own daughter to marry. He is not to be confused with

Olympiodorus the Deacon Olympiodoros or Olympiodorus ( gr, Ὀλυμπιόδωρος) can refer to: * Olympiodoros (military leader), son of Lampon, Athenian military commander at the Battle of Plataea in 479 BC * Olympiodorus of Athens, eponymous archon of Athens in 29 ...

, an Alexandrian writer of Bible commentaries. He lectured on

Aristotle Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of ...

with considerable success. Owing to the rapidity of his utterance and the difficulty of the subjects on which he treated, he was understood by very few. When his lectures were concluded, Proclus used to repeat the topics treated of in them for the benefit of those pupils who were slower in catching the meaning of their master. Olympiodorus had the reputation for being an eloquent man and a profound thinker. Nothing of his has come down to us in a written form. He is called "Olympiodorus the Elder" in contemporary references because there was a later (6th century) Neoplatonist philosopher also called Olympiodorus ( Olympiodorus the Younger) who also taught in Alexandria.

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References

* 5th-century philosophers Roman-era Peripatetic philosophers Roman-era philosophers in Alexandria {{greece-philosopher-stub Late-Roman-era pagans