Nicolaus of Myra (Νικόλαος ὁ Μυρένσιος) Life Nicolaus of Myra was a Greek rhetorician and sophist from Lycia, active in the late 5th or 6th century CE [1]. He is known solely as the author of a surviving Progymnasmata, indicating he was a teacher of rhetoric within the educational tradition extending from the Second Sophistic into the Byzantine era. No further biographical details are recorded [1][2].

Works His sole attested work is the Progymnasmata (Προγυμνάσματα), a textbook of preliminary rhetorical exercises. It systematically covers standard forms including fable, narrative, chreia, encomium, invective, speech-in-character (ethopoeia), and description (ekphrasis) [1][2]. The manual survives as a complete treatise.

Significance Nicolaus’s Progymnasmata is a key source for understanding the continuity of rhetorical education from Hellenistic through late antique and into Byzantine practice [1][2]. It follows the tradition of earlier manuals by Theon, Hermogenes, and Aphthonius, providing insight into contemporary pedagogical methods and the enduring stylistic ideals of Atticizing technical prose [1].

Sources 1. Perseus Digital Library (Tufts University): https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0062:entry=nicolaus-harpers 2. ToposText (Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation): https://topostext.org/people/1200