Nicocles of Salamis (Νικοκλῆς ὁ Σαλαμίνιος) was a 4th-century BCE king of Salamis on Cyprus, succeeding his father Evagoras I around 374/373 BCE. A client ruler under Persia, he is known principally through the Athenian orator Isocrates, who addressed two treatises (To Nicocles and Nicocles) to him, presenting Nicocles as a model of virtuous kingship [1][2]. He continued his father’s philhellenic policies and was assassinated around 353/352 BCE [3].

He is credited with authoring a History of Cyprus (Κυπριακά), a lost local history surviving only in fragments. Cited by later authors like Athenaeus, it represents an early example of Greek horography focused on a single region [4][5].

Nicocles is significant both as a historical figure embodying the blend of Persian political control and Greek cultural influence in Cyprus and as an author. His lost work provided an early non-mainland perspective on Cypriot mythology and antiquities, contributing to the development of regional history writing [4][5].

Sources 1. Encyclopædia Britannica: Isocrates: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Isocrates 2. Perseus Digital Library, Isocrates, To Nicocles: http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0144:speech=2:section=1 3. World History Encyclopedia: Evagoras I: https://www.worldhistory.org/Evagoras_I/ 4. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Classics: Local History, Greek (Horography): https://oxfordre.com/classics/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199381135.001.0001/acrefore-9780199381135-e-3752 5. ToposText: Nicocles of Salamis (author): https://topostext.org/people/1410