Discussion Pages

Pronouncements on Christ’s nature of Patriarch Cyril of Alexandria, endorsed by the council of Ch...

Ekklesiarches: The sacristan of a church, responsible for preparing for services by setting out t...

Theotokos ‘god-bearing’ (from theos ‘god’ and tokos ‘bringing forth’): description of the Virgin ...

Chrysotriklinos: ‘golden hall’, from ‘gold’ (chrysos) and ‘hall’ (triklinos): large reception hal...

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

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

Strategos: A general; in Byzantine times usually the governor of a military district or thema, an...

Praetorian Prefecture: The largest administrative unit of the empire from the time of Constantine...

Gastald: Lombard royal official in Italy in charge of a gastaldate, with civil and military power...

Typikon: Document setting out the rules and regulations for the administration of a monastic comm...

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

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

Genikon Logothesion: The general treasury and main fiscal department of government after the seve...

Kommerkiarioi: Fiscal officials responsible for state-supervised commerce and the taxes thereon. ...

Zealots: strongly iconophile monks in the late eighth to tenth century; midfourteenth century gro...

Berbers: name given to several ethnic groups indigenous to north-west Africa; known in Arab sourc...

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

Turkic-speaking nomadic warriors who appeared in the north Black Sea steppe in the sixth century,...

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

Stratiotes: A soldier; by derivation from the 10th century a holder of “military” land, subject t...