Ammonius of Athens (; ), sometimes called Ammonius the Peripatetic, was a

philosopher Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

who taught in

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 ...

in the 1st century AD. He was a teacher of

Plutarch Plutarch (; , ''Ploútarchos'', ; – 120s) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''Parallel Lives'', ...

, who praises his great learning, and introduces him discoursing on religion and sacred rites. Plutarch wrote a biography of him, which is no longer extant, and also mentioned Ammonius master in other works like the ''De E apud Delphos'' within the collection of treatises known as ''

Moralia The ''Moralia'' (Latin for "Morals", "Customs" or "Mores"; , ''Ethiká'') is a set of essays ascribed to the 1st-century scholar Plutarch of Chaeronea. The eclectic collection contains 78 essays and transcribed speeches. They provide insigh ...

''. From the information supplied by Plutarch, Ammonius was clearly an expert in the works of

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

, but he may have nevertheless been a

Platonist Platonism is the philosophy of Plato and philosophical systems closely derived from it, though contemporary Platonists do not necessarily accept all doctrines of Plato. Platonism has had a profound effect on Western thought. At the most fundam ...

philosopher rather than a

Peripatetic Peripatetic may refer to: *Peripatetic school, a school of philosophy in Ancient Greece *Peripatetic axiom, in philosophy *Peripatetic minority, a mobile population moving among settled populations offering a craft or trade. *Peripatetic Jats T ...

. He may be the Ammonius of Lamprae (in

Attica Attica (, ''Attikḗ'' (Ancient Greek) or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the entire Athens metropolitan area, which consists of the city of Athens, the capital city, capital of Greece and the core cit ...

) quoted by

Athenaeus Athenaeus of Naucratis (, or Nαυκράτιος, ''Athēnaios Naukratitēs'' or ''Naukratios''; ) was an ancient Greek rhetorician and Grammarian (Greco-Roman), grammarian, flourishing about the end of the 2nd and beginning of the 3rd century ...

as the author of a book on altars and sacrifices (). Athenaeus also mentions a work on Athenian courtesans () as written by an Ammonius.Athenaeus, ''Deipnosophists'', xiii.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ammonius of Athens 1st-century Greek philosophers Middle Platonists Roman-era Peripatetic philosophers Roman-era Athenian philosophers