Xeniades of Corinth (Ξενιάδης ὁ Κορίνθιος) was a Corinthian sophist of the 4th century BCE. The primary source for his life is Pseudo-Plutarch’s Lives of the Ten Orators, which records that he purchased the philosopher Diogenes the Cynic as a slave [1]. When Xeniades asserted his mastery, Diogenes argued that a master must obey reason. Impressed, Xeniades entrusted him with educating his sons and managing his household [1][2].

No writings by Xeniades are attested in ancient sources [1]. His classification as an orator likely stems from his description as a sophist, a term associated with rhetorical teaching.

Xeniades’s significance lies solely in his role within the biographical tradition of Diogenes. Their encounter is a paradigmatic anecdote illustrating the Cynic principle that wisdom and reason supersede conventional social hierarchies like that of master and slave [2].

Sources 1. Perseus Digital Library: Pseudo-Plutarch, Lives of the Ten Orators, 833a. http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2008.01.0239%3Asection%3D3 2. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Diogenes of Sinope. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/diogenes-sinope/