Pheidippides
| Pheidippides | |
|---|---|
Statue of Pheidippides alongside the Marathon Road.
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| Born | circa 530 BC Athens |
| Died | circa 490 BC Athens |
Pheidippides (Greek: Φειδιππίδης, more correctly given as Philippides, by Herodotus and Plutarch, since Pheidippides, 'sparing a horse', is a jocular name for a character in a play by Aristophanes) is the central figure in a story that was the inspiration for a modern sporting event, the marathon race. Pheidippides is said to have run from Marathon to Athens to deliver news of a military victory against the Persians at the Battle of Marathon.
The first recorded account showing a courier running from Marathon to Athens to announce victory is from within Lucian's prose on the first use of the word "joy" as a greeting in A Slip of the Tongue in Greeting.
... Philippides, the one who acted as courier, is said to have used it first in our sense when he brought the news of victory from Marathon and addressed the magistrates in session when they were anxious how the battle had ended ; "Joy to you, we've won" he said, and there and then he died, breathing his last breath with the words "Joy to you". – Lucian translated by K.Kilburn.
... The modern use of the word dates back to Philippides the dispatch-runner. Bringing the news of the victory at Marathon, he found the archons seated, in suspense regarding the issue of the battle. 'Joy, we win!' he said, and died upon his message, breathing his last in the word Joy ... – Lucian Pro lapsu inter salutandum (translated by F.G. and H.W. Fowler, 1905)
The traditional story relates that Philippides (530 BC–490 BC), an Athenian herald or hemerodrome (translated as "day-runner" (Kyle 2007), "courier" (Larcher 1806), "professional-running courier" (Sears 2003) or "day-long runner" (Miller 2006)), was sent to Sparta to request help when the Persians landed at Marathon, Greece. He ran about 240 km (150 mi) in two days. He then ran the 40 km (25 mi) from the battlefield near Marathon to Athens to announce the Greek victory over Persia in the Battle of Marathon (490 BC) with the word (nikomen "We win!"), as stated by Lucian chairete, nikomen ("hail, we are the winners") and then collapsed and died.
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