Sannyrion

Sannyrion (Greek: Σαννυρίων) was an Athenian comic poet of the late 5th century BC, and a contemporary of Diocles and Philyllius, according to the Suda. He belonged to the later years of Old Comedy and the start of the Middle Comedy. He ridiculed the pronunciation of Hegelochus, the actor in Euripides' Orestes, which came out in 408 BC. In line 279 of the play, instead of "after the storm I see a calm sea" (galen' horo), Hegelochus recited "after the storm I see a cat" (galen horo). (In the nominative, "calm sea" is galena and "cat" is gale, and "horoo" can either be constructed with an accusative of with a dative. The accusative of "gale" is galen and the dative of "galena" is "galenai", which results in "galen' horoo" after apocope.). His leaness was ridculed by Strattis in his Kinesias (Κινησίας) and Psychastae (Ψυχασταί) and also by Aristophanes in his Gerytades, where he and Meletus and Cinesias are chosen as ambassadors from the poets to the shades below. Curiously, Sannyrion himself ridiculed Meletus on the same ground in his Τέλως Telōs.

Titles of Sannyrion's works:

  • Τέλως Telōs (Finally)
  • Δανάη Danae
  • Ιώ Io
  • Σαρδανάπαλλος Sardanapalus (The title could have been mistaken by Suda; reading a passage of Athenaeus strongly suggests that Suda mistaken it for the play by Strattis mentioned above, Psychastae (Ψυχασταί))