Leontius Pilatus

Leontius Pilatus
BornLeontius Pilatus (Leonzio Pilato)
Seminara, Reggio Calabria, Calabria.
Died1366
Gulf of Venice
OccupationGreek literature, Latin literature, Theology and Philosophy
Literary movementItalian Renaissance

Leontius Pilatus (Greek: Λεόντιος Πιλάτος, Leontios Pilatos, Italian: Leonzio Pilato; died 1366) was an Italian scholar from Calabria and was one of the earliest promoters of Greek studies in Western Europe. Leontius translated and commented upon works of Euripides, Aristotle and Homer[1] including the Odyssey and the Iliad[2] into Latin and was the first professor of Greek in western Europe.[3]

  1. ^ Larner, John (1971). Culture and society in Italy, 1290-1420. Scribner. p. 247. ISBN 0-684-12367-3. His pupil, Leonzio Pilato, another Calabrian Greek, was persuaded by Boccaccio to go to Florence between 1360 and 1362, and there in the university he translated and commented upon Homer, Euripides, and Aristotle.
  2. ^ Manguel, Alberto (2007). Homer's the Iliad and the Odyssey: Books That Shook the World. Allen & Unwin. p. 94. ISBN 978-1-74114-900-5. Leonzio Pilato, a Calabrian monk of Greek origin, translated the Odyssey and the Iliad into Latin
  3. ^ Highet, Gilbert (1985). The classical tradition: Greek and Roman influences on western literature. Oxford University Press US. p. 16. ISBN 0-19-500206-7. Leontius Pilatus, made the first professor of Greek in western Europe— at Florence, which long remained the centre of this activity.