Richard Lawrence Hunter, FBA (born 30 October 1953Academy of Athens membership
) is an Australian

classical scholar Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

. From 2001 to 2021, he was the 37th Regius Professor of Greek at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

Early life and education

Hunter was born was born on 30 October 1953. He grew up in Australia, and was educated at Cranbrook School, an independent school in Sydney. He studied at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public university, public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one o ...

, graduating with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

(BA Hons) degree in 1974.University of Sydney News, 2 December 2005
/ref> He then moved to England, where he studied for a

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

(PhD) degree at the

; he was a member of Pembroke College, Cambridge. His

doctoral thesis A thesis ( : theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144 ...

was titled "A commentary on Euboulos", and his PhD was awarded in 1979.

Academic career

After completing his PhD, Hunter became a lecturer at the University of Cambridge and a

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

of Pembroke College, Cambridge. In 2001 he was appointed as the Regius Professor of Greek at Cambridge in succession to P. E. Easterling and became a Fellow of

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

. He retired as Regius Professor in October 2021, giving his valedictory lecture on 27 September 2021. Hunter is a member of the Academy of Athens, an Honorary Fellow of the University of Sydney and has an

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad ho ...

from the

Aristotle University of Thessaloniki 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 phi ...

. He serves on the advisory board of the periodical '' Materiali e discussioni per l'analisi dei testi classici''. Since 2013 he is president of the council of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.University World News, 26 January 2013
/ref> In 2013 Richard Hunter was elected a

Fellow of the British Academy Fellowship of the British Academy (FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are: # Fellows – scholars resident in the United Kingdom # C ...

.British Academy fellowship record
Accessed 17 April 2014

Publications

* '' Eubulus: The Fragments'' (Cambridge, 1983) * ''A Study of Daphnis & Chloe'' (Cambridge, 1983) * ''The New Comedy of Greece and Rome'' (Cambridge, 1985) * ''

Apollonius of Rhodes Apollonius of Rhodes ( grc, Ἀπολλώνιος Ῥόδιος ''Apollṓnios Rhódios''; la, Apollonius Rhodius; fl. first half of 3rd century BC) was an ancient Greek author, best known for the ''Argonautica'', an epic poem about Jason and t ...

Argonautica The ''Argonautica'' ( el, Ἀργοναυτικά , translit=Argonautika) is a Greek epic poem written by Apollonius Rhodius in the 3rd century BC. The only surviving Hellenistic epic, the ''Argonautica'' tells the myth of the voyage of Jas ...

Book III (Cambridge, 1989) * ''The 'Argonautica' of Apollonius: literary studies'' (Cambridge, 1993) * ''Theocritus and the Archaeology of Greek Poetry'' (Cambridge, 1996) * ''Studies in Heliodorus'' (Cambridge, 1998) * ''

Theocritus Theocritus (; grc-gre, Θεόκριτος, ''Theokritos''; born c. 300 BC, died after 260 BC) was a Greek poet from Sicily and the creator of Ancient Greek pastoral poetry. Life Little is known of Theocritus beyond what can be inferred from h ...

. A Selection'' (Cambridge, 1999) * ''Theocritus: Encomium of

Ptolemy Philadelphus ; egy, Userkanaenre Meryamun Clayton (2006) p. 208 , predecessor = Ptolemy I , successor = Ptolemy III , horus = ''ḥwnw-ḳni'Khunuqeni''The brave youth , nebty = ''wr-pḥtj'Urpekhti''Great of strength , gold ...

'' (Berkeley, 2003) * ''

Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institutio ...

Symposium In ancient Greece, the symposium ( grc-gre, συμπόσιον ''symposion'' or ''symposio'', from συμπίνειν ''sympinein'', "to drink together") was a part of a banquet that took place after the meal, when drinking for pleasure was acc ...

'' (Oxford, 2004) * ''Tradition and Innovation in Hellenistic Poetry'' (with M. Fantuzzi) (Cambridge, 2004) * ''The Hesiodic Catalogue of Women: Constructions and Reconstructions'' (Cambridge, 2005) * ''The Shadow of

Callimachus Callimachus (; ) was an ancient Greek poet, scholar and librarian who was active in Alexandria during the 3rd century BC. A representative of Ancient Greek literature of the Hellenistic period, he wrote over 800 literary works in a wide variet ...

'' (Cambridge, 2006) * ''On Coming After: Studies in Post-Classical Greek Literature and its Reception'' (Berlin, 2008) * ''Wandering Poets in Ancient Greek Culture'' (with I. Rutherford) (Cambridge, 2009) * ''Critical Moments in Classical Literature'' (Cambridge, 2009) * ''

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ...

, How to study poetry'' (with D. Russell) (Cambridge, 2011) * ''Plato and the Traditions of Ancient Literature: the silent stream'' (Cambridge, 2012) * ''Hesiodic Voices. Studies in the Ancient Reception of Hesiod's

Works and Days ''Works and Days'' ( grc, Ἔργα καὶ Ἡμέραι, Érga kaì Hēmérai)The ''Works and Days'' is sometimes called by the Latin translation of the title, ''Opera et Dies''. Common abbreviations are ''WD'' and ''Op''. for ''Opera''. is a ...

'' (Cambridge 2014) * ''

Dionysius of Halicarnassus Dionysius of Halicarnassus ( grc, Διονύσιος Ἀλεξάνδρου Ἁλικαρνασσεύς, ; – after 7 BC) was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Emperor Augustus. His literary style ...

and Augustan Rome'' (ed.; with Casper C. de Jonge) (Cambridge 2018)

References

External links

''On Coming After''
Inaugural lecture as Regius Professor of Greek, 17 October 2001
''The Silence Of The Sirens: readings of Homer then and now''
Lecture given at the ceremonies' hall of the University of Athens, March 2006 {{DEFAULTSORT:Hunter, Richard 1953 births Australian classical scholars University of Sydney alumni Fellows of Pembroke College, Cambridge Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge Living people Members of the University of Cambridge faculty of classics Regius Professors of Greek (Cambridge) Fellows of the British Academy People educated at Cranbrook School, Sydney Foreign Members of the Academy of Athens (modern)