Olympiodorus the Elder ( el, Ὀλυμπιόδωρος) was a 5th-century
Neoplatonist
Neoplatonism is a strand of Platonic philosophy that emerged in the 3rd century AD against the background of Hellenistic philosophy and religion. The term does not encapsulate a set of ideas as much as a chain of thinkers. But there are some ide ...
who taught in
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
, then part of the
Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
. He is most famous for being the teacher of the important Neoplatonist
Proclus
Proclus Lycius (; 8 February 412 – 17 April 485), called Proclus the Successor ( grc-gre, Πρόκλος ὁ Διάδοχος, ''Próklos ho Diádokhos''), was a Greek Neoplatonist philosopher, one of the last major classical philosophers ...
(412–485), whom Olympiodorus wanted his own daughter to marry. He is not to be confused with
Olympiodorus the Deacon Olympiodoros or Olympiodorus ( gr, Ὀλυμπιόδωρος) can refer to:
* Olympiodoros (military leader), son of Lampon, Athenian military commander at the Battle of Plataea in 479 BC
* Olympiodorus of Athens, eponymous archon of Athens in ...
, an Alexandrian writer of Bible commentaries.
He lectured on
Aristotle
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 phil ...
with considerable success.
Owing to the rapidity of his utterance and the difficulty of the subjects on which he treated, he was understood by very few. When his lectures were concluded, Proclus used to repeat the topics treated of in them for the benefit of those pupils who were slower in catching the meaning of their master. Olympiodorus had the reputation for being an eloquent man and a profound thinker. Nothing of his has come down to us in a written form.
He is called "Olympiodorus the Elder" in contemporary references because there was a later (6th century) Neoplatonist philosopher also called Olympiodorus (
Olympiodorus the Younger
Olympiodorus the Younger ( el, Ὀλυμπιόδωρος ὁ Νεώτερος; c. 495 – 570) was a Neoplatonist philosopher, astrologer and teacher who lived in the early years of the Byzantine Empire, after Justinian's Decree of 529 AD which c ...
) who also taught in Alexandria.
Notes
References
*
5th-century philosophers
Roman-era Peripatetic philosophers
Roman-era philosophers in Alexandria
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Late-Roman-era pagans