Nicias of Miletus (Νικίας ὁ Μιλήσιος) was a Greek poet and physician active in the late 4th and early 3rd centuries BCE. The primary source for his life is the 10th-century Byzantine encyclopedia, the Suda, which identifies him as a contemporary of the philosopher Theophrastus and the comic poet Menander, with whom he was a friend [1]. This association places him within the intellectual circles of early Hellenistic Athens. He originated from the Ionian city of Miletus in Asia Minor.

According to the Suda, his works, now lost, included Epigrams (Ἐπιγράμματα), Hymns (Ὕμνοι), a prose Aetolian History (Αἰτωλικὰ Ἱστορίαι), and treatises On the Poets of Comedy (Περὶ Κωμῳδοποιῶν) and On Sacrifices (Περὶ Θυσιῶν) [1]. His most notable composition was the didactic hexameter poem Cures of Love (Ἔρωτος Ἰάματα).

Nicias is a minor but illustrative figure due to his dual identity as a physician and poet, exemplifying the Hellenistic combination of scientific and literary pursuits. His friendship with Menander links him to a significant cultural milieu. His didactic poem on love places him within a tradition exploring passion and remedy, and his work is occasionally cited by later grammarians like Athenaeus for linguistic or historical details [1, 2].

Sources 1. Suda, entry "Nikias" (Suda On Line): https://www.cs.uky.edu/~raphael/sol/sol-entries/nu/407 2. Perseus Digital Library, Search for "Nicias of Miletus" (Tufts University): https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/searchresults?q=Nicias+of+Miletus