Category: Glossary of Byzantine Terms

Confederation of Turkicspeaking peoples who dominated the Black Sea steppes from the glossary mid...

Eunuch: Castrated male who could occupy any position in the imperial system; some offi ces were r...

A Germanic people living in the northern Balkans and Pannonia, who migrated to Italy in the later...

Origenism:Attempt to fuse the fundamentals ofGreek philosophy with the Christian creed, interpret...

Scyths: Classical name for Iranian-speaking nomads of Black Sea steppes; used by Byzantines of se...

The name of several officials, the most important being the eparch of the City, the civil governo...

Nomisma: Lat. solidus, the gold coin introduced by Constantine I which remained the basis for the...

Dioiketes: Fiscal administrator responsible for the land-tax, usually in a single diocese, from t...

Normans: people from north-west France, originally of Scandinavian origin; in the eleventh centur...

Arians: followers of a heresy (named after its main proponent, the third century theologian Arius...

A type of annuity administered by monasteries which provided (elderly) laity with a regular allot...

Synodikon: An inventory in a church or monastery that registered items donated and the commemorat...

Hexagram: Silver coin introduced by Heraclius, lit. “six grams,” 12 to a nomisma. Although issued...

Despotes: High imperial title in the later Byzantine period, generally reserved for members of th...

Egyptian population who spoke the Coptic language; after Egypt’s mid-seventh-century conquest by ...

Exarchate: territorial and administrative unit commanded by an exarch; in modern usage, often the...

Rus: People of Scandinavian origin who formed a political structure in eastern Europe, between th...

Demesne: Western form of land tenure, referring to the lands retained by a lord for his own use (...

Alloy containing silver and gold in a Byzantine coin.

True Cross: wooden cross on which Christ was crucified, or fragments – relics – supposedly from it.