''Dioikētēs'' (), often Latinized as ''dioecetes'', is a term applied to a variety of administrative officials.

Origin and history in antiquity

The term derives from διοίκησις (''dioikēsis''), literally "housekeeping", which already in

Classical Antiquity Classical antiquity, also known as the classical era, classical period, classical age, or simply antiquity, is the period of cultural History of Europe, European history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD comprising the inter ...

came to mean "administration", especially connected with finances, both public and sacred (connected to the temples). Officials in charge of administration were thus designated (''ho epi tē dioikēsei''). The title of ''dioikētēs'' is mostly attested in

Ptolemaic Egypt Ptolemaic is the adjective formed from the name Ptolemy, and may refer to: Pertaining to the Ptolemaic dynasty * Ptolemaic dynasty, the Macedonian Greek dynasty that ruled Egypt founded in 305 BC by Ptolemy I Soter *Ptolemaic Kingdom Pertaining ...

, where it was held by the head of the kingdom's financial administration, headquartered in the capital

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

. In addition, provincial ''dioikētai'' existed, possibly one for every province (

nome Nome may refer to: Country subdivision * Nome (Egypt), an administrative division within ancient Egypt * Nome (Greece), the administrative division immediately below the ''peripheries of Greece'' (, pl. ) Places United States * Nome, Alaska ...

). The office survived Egypt's annexation into the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

, and is well attested, with Roman occupants, throughout the

Roman period The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

. Outside Egypt, the title is less frequently used, being attested in some

Syrian Syrians () are the majority inhabitants of Syria, indigenous to the Levant, most of whom have Arabic, especially its Levantine and Mesopotamian dialects, as a mother tongue. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend ...

cities, as well as in

Corfu Corfu ( , ) or Kerkyra (, ) is a Greece, Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands; including its Greek islands, small satellite islands, it forms the margin of Greece's northwestern frontier. The island is part of the Corfu (regio ...

; in some places ''dioiketai'' are attested for smaller bodies (e.g., the '' ephēboi'' of

Cyzicus Cyzicus ( ; ; ) was an ancient Greek town in Mysia in Anatolia in the current Balıkesir Province of Turkey. It was located on the shoreward side of the present Kapıdağ Peninsula (the classical Arctonnesus), a tombolo which is said to have or ...

), or even in private households.

Byzantine Empire

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

times, the term was employed more widely for a type of tax collector, being first attested in 680, in the acts of the

Third Council of Constantinople The Third Council of Constantinople, counted as the Sixth Ecumenical Council by the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches, and by certain other Western Churches, met in 680–681 and condemned monoenergism and monothelitism as heretical a ...

. The ''dioikētai'' of this period were subordinate officials of the ''

logothetēs tou genikou The (, often called or simply (, 'the general ogothete), and usually rendered in English language, English as the General Logothete, was in charge of the 'general financial ministry', the of the middle Byzantine Empire.. History and functi ...

'', the head of the "general" (''genikon'') fiscal department, and detailed to provincial duties. From their surviving seals, both the older Late Roman civil provinces as well as the newer

theme Theme or themes may refer to: * Theme (Byzantine district), an administrative district in the Byzantine Empire governed by a Strategos * Theme (computing), a custom graphical appearance for certain software. * Theme (linguistics), topic * Theme ( ...

are attested, but most of the ''dioikētai'' were sent to individual islands or—mostly coastal—cities. The last seal for a ''dioikētēs'' of this kind dates to the early 10th century, while holders from then on were assigned to specific themes. Modern scholarship suggests that the ''dioikētai'' were rewarded by the practice known as '' synētheia'', a fee representing a fixed portion of the taxes they raised. In addition to the ''dioikētai'' of the ''genikon'', ''dioikētai'' of the '' mētata'' () are also attested as subaltern officials of the '' logothetēs tōn agelōn'', the minister responsible for the state-run horse and mule farms (''mētata''). In the fiscal administration, the ''dioikētēs'' was replaced after 1109 by the '' praktōr''. A variant of the title survived into the

Palaiologan period The Byzantine Empire, officially known as the Roman Empire, was ruled by the Palaiologos dynasty in the period between 1261 and 1453, from the restoration of Byzantine rule to Constantinople by the usurper Michael VIII Palaiologos following its r ...

as the '' megas dioikētēs''. In

Modern Greek Modern Greek (, or , ), generally referred to by speakers simply as Greek (, ), refers collectively to the dialects of the Greek language spoken in the modern era, including the official standardized form of the language sometimes referred to ...

usage, the term means simply "administrator, commander".

References

Sources

* * * {{Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium, ref={{harvid, ODB *Hagedorn, Dieter, Zum Amt des "dioiketes" im römischen Ägypten, Yale Classical Studies 28 (1985) pp. 167–210. Byzantine fiscal offices Government of the Ptolemaic Kingdom Greek words and phrases Finance ministers Roman Egypt

Origin and history in antiquity

Byzantine Empire

See also

References

Sources