Archegetes ( grc, Ἀρχηγέτης) is a Greek word that meant, effectively, "leader" or "founder". It could refer to a number of different things in

classical antiquity Classical antiquity (also the classical era, classical period or classical age) is the period of cultural history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD centred on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ...

General

Primarily, it was a title for Greek gods and heroes that typically indicated one who was an originator or ancestor, especially of new colonies or settlements. This could be seen most commonly with

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label= Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label ...

, but sometimes also with

Heracles Heracles ( ; grc-gre, Ἡρακλῆς, , glory/fame of Hera), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptiv ...

and the heroes of the

deme In Ancient Greece, a deme or ( grc, δῆμος, plural: demoi, δημοι) was a suburb or a subdivision of Athens and other city-states. Demes as simple subdivisions of land in the countryside seem to have existed in the 6th century BC and ear ...

s of

Attica Attica ( el, Αττική, Ancient Greek ''Attikḗ'' or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the city of Athens, the capital of Greece and its countryside. It is a peninsula projecting into the Aegean S ...

, and the

Thracian horseman The Thracian horseman (also "Thracian Rider" or "Thracian Heros") is a recurring motif depicted in reliefs of the Hellenistic and Roman periods in the Balkans—mainly Thrace, Macedonia, Thessaly and Moesia—roughly from the 3rd century BC to ...

Apollo

Archegetes was notably an epithet of the

Greek god The following is a list of gods, goddesses, and many other divine and semi-divine figures from ancient Greek mythology and ancient Greek religion. Immortals The Greeks created images of their deities for many purposes. A temple would house the ...

, under which he was worshipped in several places, as at

Naxos Naxos (; el, Νάξος, ) is a Greek island and the largest of the Cyclades. It was the centre of archaic Cycladic culture. The island is famous as a source of emery, a rock rich in corundum, which until modern times was one of the best ab ...

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

, where Archegetes was the most popular cult of Apollo, and at Megara. The name has reference either to Apollo as the leader and protector of colonies, or as the founder of towns in general, in which case the import of the name is nearly the same as Δεὸς πατρῷος. The altar of Apollo Archegetes at Naxos had particular importance as Naxos was the first Greek colony, founded in 734 BC. Though the altar was initially likely set up due to the maritime aspects of Apollo – most importantly the God of Happy Landing, έκβάσιος – the aspect of foundation, Archegetes, grew more important over time. As Archegetes was the aspect of Apollo relating to foundations and hence colonisation, the altar became a symbolic foundation and center of Sicilian Greek identity. Due to this symbolically central role, Greeks leaving Sicily would often visit the altar – Malkin describes it as a "ritualistic point of departure". Equally, it was a "symbol of arrival common to them all" when they came to Sicily. The pan-Sikeliote nature of Apollo Archegetes is also evident in

Timoleon Timoleon ( Greek: Τιμολέων), son of Timodemus, of Corinth (c. 411–337 BC) was a Greek statesman and general. As a brilliant general, a champion of Greece against Carthage, and a fighter against despotism, he is closely connected ...

's use of the god as the symbol of his ''symmachia'', or alliance. The Apollo Archegetes at Naxos was Pythian, rather than Delian, with regard to its identity – it was connected to the similarly pan-Hellenic Delphic oracle. Archegetes was also an epithet of the

Asclepius Asclepius (; grc-gre, Ἀσκληπιός ''Asklēpiós'' ; la, Aesculapius) is a hero and god of medicine in ancient Greek religion and mythology. He is the son of Apollo and Coronis, or Arsinoe, or of Apollo alone. Asclepius represe ...

, under which he was worshipped at

Tithorea Tithorea ( el, Τιθορέα), is an ancient place with more than 4,000 years of human history. A part of the municipality of Amfikleia-Elateia, in Phthiotis, Greece, it had a population of 630 in 2011, and is situated 156 km from Athens. ...

Phocis Phocis ( el, Φωκίδα ; grc, Φωκίς) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Central Greece. It stretches from the western mountainsides of Parnassus on the east to the mountain range of Var ...

Pausanias Pausanias ( el, Παυσανίας) may refer to: *Pausanias of Athens, lover of the poet Agathon and a character in Plato's ''Symposium'' *Pausanias the Regent, Spartan general and regent of the 5th century BC * Pausanias of Sicily, physician of t ...

, ''Description of Greece'' 10.32.8

Notes

{{DGRBM, author=LS, title=Archegetes , volume=1, page=260, url=http://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/moa/acl3129.0001.001/275 Epithets of Apollo Epithets of Asclepius