Pamphila of Epidaurus (Παμφίλη Ἐπιδαυρία) was a Greek historian active during the reign of Nero (54–68 CE) [1]. The 10th-century Byzantine encyclopedia, the Suda, records that she was the daughter of Soteridas, was educated by her husband and his circle, and devoted herself to scholarship [1]. Beyond this, few details of her personal life are known.

Her major work was the Historical Commentaries (Ἱστορικὰ Ὑπομνήματα), a miscellany in 33 books now preserved only in fragments [1]. It compiled historical anecdotes and biographical notes drawn from her reading and discussions within her learned domestic circle [1].

Pamphila is a significant, rare example of a female scholar from antiquity whose work received recognition. Later authors like Aulus Gellius and Diogenes Laërtius cited her Historical Commentaries as a source, with Gellius praising it and using it for details on Sophocles and Euripides [1, 2]. Her work demonstrates that women could contribute to antiquarian scholarship in the Roman Imperial period, albeit within a constrained domestic context.

Sources 1. Suda, "Pamphila" (Suda On Line): https://www.cs.uky.edu/~raphael/sol/sol-entries/pi/51 2. Aulus Gellius, Attic Nights, 15.23 (Perseus Digital Library): https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:2007.01.0078:book=15:chapter=23