Procopius of Gaza

Prokopios (Latin Procopius; * by 465, † 528 ) was a late ancient sophist and rhetorician.

Prokopios spent most of his life in his home town of Gaza, without contributing to the theological discussions of his time. Instead, he wrote rhetorical writings, including a panegyric on the Emperor Anastasius I, a description of the Hagia Sophia and a lawsuit over their partially destroyed in an earthquake.

His 162 letters to mostly high- ranking personalities give an insight into his time and in his own character. The ascribed polemic against the Neoplatonist Proclus probably originates in truth by Nikolaos, the Archbishop of Methoni (12th century).

He also wrote comments on books of the Old Testament, which are among the earliest examples of the so-called African kate comments.

The most important source for the life of Prokopios is his pupil Choricius of Gaza.

Text output

• Eugenio Amato ( Eds.): Procopius Gazaeus. Opuscula rhetorica et oratoria. Berlin and New York 2009
• Eugenio Amato (Eds. ): Rose di Gaza. Gli scritti retorico - sofistici e le Epistole di Procopio di Gaza. Alessandria 2010 ( Hellenica 35)
• Eugenio Amato ( Eds.): Un discorso inedito di Procopio di Gaza: In Meletis et Antoninae nuptias. In: Revue des études antiques tardo - 1, 2011-2012, pp. 15-69
• Aldo Corcella (ed.): Tre nuovi testi di Procopio di Gaza: una dialexis inedita e due monodie già attribuite a Coricio. In: Revue des études antiques tardo - 1, 2011-2012, pp. 1-14.