Epicharmos - Epikarumos (English spelling)

Date of birth and death unknown. A Sicilian comic poet active from the late 6th century BC to the early 5th century BC. He is said to have been born in Syracuse or on the island of Cos. He wrote parodies of myths and legends in the Doric dialect, debate-style exchanges seen in later Greek comedy, and humorous tales based on everyday life, becoming a forerunner of Greek comedy. Only a few fragments and the titles of 37 stories, including "Cyclopes," "The Rape," and "Land and Sea," are known, but they feature characters such as the gluttonous Hercules, the cunning Odysseus, and drunkards and freeloaders from the common people. His terminology is as colorful and sophisticated as Greek comedy, and the rhythm is diverse. However, unlike Greek comedy, he did not have a chorus and the content was more free. On the other hand, since ancient times, he has been considered the author of a considerable number of philosophical and scientific works and a Pythagorean philosopher, but this is probably a misinterpretation.

[Kazuhiko Tange]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

生没年不詳。紀元前6世紀後半から前5世紀前半にかけて活躍したシチリアの喜劇詩人。生まれはシラクサ、またはコス島ともいわれる。ドーリス方言を用いて神話伝説のもじりや、後のギリシア古喜劇にみえる討論形式のやりとり、また日常茶飯事を素材とする滑稽譚(こっけいたん)を書き、ギリシア喜劇の先駆となった。わずかな断片と、『キクロペス』『略奪』『陸と海』など37編の表題が知られるのみであるが、そこでは大食漢のヘラクレス、狡猾(こうかつ)なオデュッセウス、また市井の庶民の飲んだくれや居候などが登場し活躍したらしい。その用語もギリシア古喜劇に劣らずカラフルで洗練されており、韻律も多彩である。ただ古喜劇と異なり、コロス（合唱隊）をもたず、内容もより自由であった。一方また彼は、古来、かなりの数の哲学および自然科学の著作の作者に擬せられ、ピタゴラス派の哲学者とも目されたが、これは誤伝であろう。

［丹下和彦］

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