Aspasius

This article is about the 2nd-century philosopher. For the 3rd-century Roman rhetorician, see Aspasius of Rome. For the 6th-century Christian saint, see Aspasius of Auch.

Aspasius (/æˈspeɪʒiəs, æˈspeɪziəs, æˈspeɪʒəs/; Greek: Ἀσπάσιος; c. 80 – c. 150 AD) was a Peripatetic philosopher. Boethius, who frequently refers to his works, says that Aspasius wrote commentaries on most of the works of Aristotle. The following commentaries are expressly mentioned: on De Interpretatione, the Physica, Metaphysica, Categoriae, and the Nicomachean Ethics. A portion of the commentary on the Nicomachean Ethics (books 1, 2, 4, 7, and 8) is extant. The Greek text of this commentary has been published as Commentaria in Aristotelem Graeca (CAG) vol. 19.1, and David Konstan has published an English translation. It is notable as the earliest extant commentary on any of Aristotle's works. From Porphyry, who also states that Aspasius wrote commentaries on Plato, we learn that his commentaries on Aristotle were used in the school of Plotinus.

Albert the Great, in his commentary on Aristotle's Politics also refers to a monograph on natural affections (Libellus de naturalibus passionibus), as written by Aspasius.

References

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Smith, William, ed. (1870). "Aspasius (2)". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.

Further reading

• Antonina Alberti and Robert W. Sharples, eds., Aspasius: The Earliest Extant Commentary on Aristotle's Ethics (de Gruyter, 1999) ISBN 3-11-016081-1