The word pallake, "concubine" is of uncertain etymology. R. S. P. Beekes has suggested a Pre-Greek origin and a connection with Latinpaelex, "mistress," which is also a loanword from a non-Indo-European Mediterranean language.[3]
Status
The status of these women was that of slaves, usually captured in war and brought back to Greece, either for the use of their captor, or to be sold. These women were allowed to be bought or sold just as any other slave in the Greek world.
One such account of this appears with Cassandra in Aeschylus' play, where she is brought to Agamemnon's palace as a mistress. She is later killed by Clytemnestra, alongside Agamemnon.
Social acceptability
The pallakai were accepted as part of Greek society. In the speech "Against Neaera", it is said:
We have hetairai for pleasure, pallakai for the body's daily needs, and gynaekes for the bearing of legitimate children and for the guardianship of our houses.
Literature
There are many examples of pallakai in literature and drama.
The most lengthy is the "Against Neaera" speech, in which a woman called Neaera and her husband are prosecuted for claiming citizen rights falsely for her and the children she bore to her husband. This was considered a very serious crime, especially in Athens, where citizenship was restricted to those with a citizen mother and father. The case made against her alleges that she was a pallake in Corinth and other cities, before coming to Athens. The defense speech, however, does not survive, but one such possible defense may have been that she was a mistress rather than a prostitute, which was a normal social practice.
Another such example occurs in the text "Against the Stepmother for Poisoning", a speech by Antiphon. In this speech for the prosecution, it is alleged that a woman persuaded a pallake to poison her husband.
^Kaffarnik, Julia, ed. (2012). "Pallake". The Encyclopedia of Ancient History. Wiley. doi:10.1002/9781444338386.wbeah22216. ISBN9781444338386.
^Hartmann, Elke (2006). "Pallake". Brill's New Pauly.
^Beekes, R. S. P. (2009). Etymological Dictionary of Greek. Brill. p. 1147.
External links
Text of the Agamemnon
Text of the Oration Against Neaera in Greek and English Athenaze, Balme and Lawall, OUP Publishing, USA, 1995
January 06, 2023
pallake, pallakae, pallakai, ancient, greek, παλλακαί, singular, pallake, παλλακή, general, name, given, concubine, ancient, greece, contents, etymology, status, social, acceptability, literature, also, references, external, linksetymology, editthe, word, pall. Pallakae or pallakai Ancient Greek pallakai singular pallake pallakh was the general name given to a concubine in ancient Greece 1 2 Contents 1 Etymology 2 Status 3 Social acceptability 4 Literature 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksEtymology EditThe word pallake concubine is of uncertain etymology R S P Beekes has suggested a Pre Greek origin and a connection with Latin paelex mistress which is also a loanword from a non Indo European Mediterranean language 3 Status EditThe status of these women was that of slaves usually captured in war and brought back to Greece either for the use of their captor or to be sold These women were allowed to be bought or sold just as any other slave in the Greek world One such account of this appears with Cassandra in Aeschylus play where she is brought to Agamemnon s palace as a mistress She is later killed by Clytemnestra alongside Agamemnon Social acceptability EditThe pallakai were accepted as part of Greek society In the speech Against Neaera it is said We have hetairai for pleasure pallakai for the body s daily needs and gynaekes for the bearing of legitimate children and for the guardianship of our houses Literature EditThere are many examples of pallakai in literature and drama The most lengthy is the Against Neaera speech in which a woman called Neaera and her husband are prosecuted for claiming citizen rights falsely for her and the children she bore to her husband This was considered a very serious crime especially in Athens where citizenship was restricted to those with a citizen mother and father The case made against her alleges that she was a pallake in Corinth and other cities before coming to Athens The defense speech however does not survive but one such possible defense may have been that she was a mistress rather than a prostitute which was a normal social practice Another such example occurs in the text Against the Stepmother for Poisoning a speech by Antiphon In this speech for the prosecution it is alleged that a woman persuaded a pallake to poison her husband See also EditWomen in Classical AthensReferences Edit Kaffarnik Julia ed 2012 Pallake The Encyclopedia of Ancient History Wiley doi 10 1002 9781444338386 wbeah22216 ISBN 9781444338386 Hartmann Elke 2006 Pallake Brill s New Pauly Beekes R S P 2009 Etymological Dictionary of Greek Brill p 1147 External links EditText of the Agamemnon Text of the Oration Against Neaera in Greek and English Athenaze Balme and Lawall OUP Publishing USA 1995 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Pallake amp oldid 1078499373, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
