| Song of Armouris | |
|---|---|
| Original title | Ἄσμα τοῦ Ἀρμούρη |
| Written | 11th century |
| Country | Byzantine Empire |
| Language | Medieval Greek |
| Series | Acritic songs |
| Subject(s) | Arab-Byzantine conflict |
| Genre(s) | Heroic ballad |
The Song of Armouris or the Lay of Armouris (also Armoures; Greek: Ἄσμα τοῦ Ἀρμούρη)[a] is a medieval Greek heroic poem of the middle Byzantine period. Dating from the 11th century, it is probably one of the oldest surviving Acritic songs, narrative heroic songs or ballads celebrating the lives and exploits of the Byzantine Akritai. Written in vernacular medieval Greek, it is, along with the more famous Digenes Akritas, the earliest example of Byzantine folk poetry and Greek vernacular literature. Its plot is based on the Byzantine-Arab conflict (7th–12th centuries) and describes in political verse the efforts of a young Byzantine akrite warrior to rescue his father from captivity.
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