Samia (play)

Samia
A scene from Act 3 of Menander's Samia on a mosaic (late 3rd or early 4th century AD)
Original titleΣαμία
Written byMenander
Characters
  • Moschion, young man, son of Demeas
  • Demeas, neighbor of Nikeratos, father of Moschion
  • Parmenon, demeas and Moschion servant
  • Chrysis, the Samian girl, Demeas's mistress
  • Nikeratos, young woman, daughter of Nikeratos
  • Chef, cooks for the wedding
Date premiered315/309 BC
Original languageAncient Greek
GenreNew Comedy

Samia (Greek: Σαμία), translated as The Girl From Samos, or The Marriage Connection, is an Ancient Greek comedy by Menander, who lived from c. 341/2 - 290 BC. It is the dramatist's second most extant play with up to 116 lines missing compared to Dyskolos’s 39. The date of its first performance is unknown, with 315 BC and 309 BC being two suggested dates.[1] The surviving text of Samia comes from the Cairo Codex found in 1907 and the Bodmer Papyri from 1952.

  1. ^ T.B.L. Webster offers 321-319 B.C. as the date for the performance of Samia based upon the evacuation of Samos as a potential inspiration for the plot and the mention of Chairephon and Androkles within the text. Arnott (p. 11) tentatively suggests 314 B.C.