Archinus () was an
Athenian
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 ...
democratic politician who wielded substantial influence between the restoration of democracy in 403 BC and the beginning of the
Corinthian War
The Corinthian War (395–387 BC) was a conflict in ancient Greece which pitted Sparta against a coalition of city-states comprising Thebes, Greece, Thebes, Classical Athens, Athens, Ancient Corinth, Corinth and Argos, Peloponnese, Argos, backe ...
in 395 BC.
In the early days of the restored democracy, he acted to weaken the
oligarchic exiles at
Eleusis
Elefsina () or Eleusis ( ; ) is a suburban city and Communities and Municipalities of Greece, municipality in Athens metropolitan area. It belongs to West Attica regional unit of Greece. It is located in the Thriasio Plain, at the northernmost ...
by ending the period during which citizens could register to emigrate to Eleusis before its announced ending date. He seems to have advocated a moderate democratic policy, opposing motions to expand the
franchise and restore the levels of pay for
civil service
The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...
that had typified the golden days of
Periclean democracy in Athens in the mid-5th century BC.
Archinus is also said to have encouraged the official adoption by Athens of the 24-letter
Ionic alphabet
The history of the Greek alphabet starts with the adoption of Phoenician letter forms in the 9th–8th centuries BC during early Archaic Greece and continues to the present day. The Greek alphabet was developed during the Iron Age, centuries ...
in 403–2 (
Suda
The ''Suda'' or ''Souda'' (; ; ) is a large 10th-century Byzantine Empire, Byzantine encyclopedia of the History of the Mediterranean region, ancient Mediterranean world, formerly attributed to an author called Soudas () or Souidas (). It is an ...
, ), alongside the archon
Eucleides
Eucleides () was eponymous archon of Athens for the year running from July/August 403 BC until June/July 402 BC. His year in office was marked by Athens' official adoption of the Ionic alphabet. There is some evidence that he may have been perso ...
.
References
*Buck, Robert J. ''Thrasybulus and the Athenian Democracy: The Life of an Athenian Statesman''. Franz Steiner Verlag, 1998.
*Fine, John V. A. ''The Ancient Greeks: A critical history''. Harvard University Press, 1983.
*D’ Angour, A.J. "Archinus, Eucleides and the reform of the Athenian alphabet". ''Bulletin of the Institute of Classical Studies'' 43 (1999) 109-130
5th-century BC Athenians
4th-century BC Athenians
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