ancient Greece Ancient Greece () was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity (), that comprised a loose collection of culturally and linguistically r ...

, an ''agonothetes'' (, plural '; ἀγωνοθέται) were the persons who decided the disputes and awarded the prizes in the

Panhellenic Games Panhellenic Games is the collective term for four separate religious festivals held in ancient Greece that became especially well known for the athletic competitions they included. The four festivals were: the Ancient Olympic Games, Olympic Games, ...

.Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities (1898), Agonothĕtae
/ref> Alternative names for the same role included ''athlothĕtae'' (ἀθλοθέται), particularly in Athens. At first the person who instituted the games and defrayed the expenses was the ''agonothetes''; but in the great public games, such as the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

and

Pythian Games The Pythian Games () were one of the four Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece. Founded circa the 6th century BCE, the festival was held in honor of the god Apollo and took place at his sanctuary in Delphi to commemorate the mytho-historic slayin ...

, these presidents were the representatives of different states, or were chosen from the people in whose country the games were celebrated; thus at the

Panathenaic Games The Panathenaic Games () were held every four years in Athens in Ancient Greece from 566 BC to the 3rd century AD. These Games incorporated religious festival, ceremony (including prize-giving), athletic competitions, and cultural events hosted ...

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

ten ' were elected for four years to superintend the various contests. In English, by confusion with the native ''-s'' plural form, the singular ''agonothete'' and plural ''agonothetes'' are sometimes encountered.

Bibliography

* Begass, Christoph (2024). "’Großzügig’, ‘gerecht’ und ‘vielfach geehrt’? Zur Selbstdarstellung der Agonotheten in Hellenismus und Kaiserzeit" ��Generous’, ‘just’ and ‘often honoured’? On the self-presentation of agonothetes in the Hellenistic and Imperial periods In: Begass, Christoph; Mann, Christian; Tentori Montalto, Marco (eds.). ''Money and honor in ancient athletics.'' Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag, . * Sarrazanas, Clément (2021). ''La cité des spectacles permanents: organisation et organisateurs des concours civiques dans l'Athènes hellénistique et impériale'' he city of permanent spectacles: organisation and organisers of civic competitions in Hellenistic and Imperial Athens 2 vol., Bordeaux: Ausonius Editions, .

References

{{EB1911 article with no significant updates Ancient Greek titles Panhellenic Games