Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon

A.“φράτρῃ” OGI483.87 (Pergam., ii B. C.), Ion. φρήτρη , Dor. πάτρα (q. v.), Delph. πατριά (q. v.), Att. φρατρία; also φατρία and φάτρα (v. infr.):—prop. brotherhood, but among the Greeks always in polit. sense, cf. Dicaearch.Hist.9:

I. in Hom., tribe, clan, κρῖν᾽ ἄνδρας . . κατὰ φρήτρας, ὡς φρήτρη φρήτρηφιν ἀρήγῃ choose men by clans, that clan may stand by clan, Il.2.362; of the Persian royal clan (the Achaemenids), Hdt.1.125.

II. later, political subdivision of the φυλή, Pl.Lg.746d, 785a, Isoc.8.88, Aeschin.2.147; “φρατρίαι καὶ φυλαί” Arist.Pol.1264a8, cf. 1300a25, 1309a12; freq. in Inscrr., “φυλῆς καὶ δήμου καὶ φρατρίας ὧν ἂν βούληται ἀπογραψάμενον” IG12.110.16; προσγραψαμένοις πρὸς φυλὴν καὶ φρατρίαν ἢν ἂν βούλωνται ib.12(5).819.21 (Tenos, ii B. C.); sub-division of a tribe, PHib. 1.28.10 (iii B. C.); of groups celebrating festivals, e.g. the Carnea at Sparta, Demetr.Sceps. ap. Ath.4.141f; or the Jewish Passover, J.AJ3.10.5, BJ6.9.3; perh. = σύνοδος 1.2, Pap. in Harvard Theological Review 29.40 (i B. C.).

2. used to translate Lat. curia, Plu. Publ.7; in form φράτρα , D.H.2.7, 6.89, al.

3. later, of any league or association, esp. in bad sense, conspiracy (in form φατρία ), Lib.Or.18.141; τῶν πονηρῶν τε καὶ ἀκολάστων φατρίαι ib.17.2. (The form φάτρα is found in Arcadia, IG5(2).510 (ii B. C.), and at Tenos, ib.12(5).798.23 (iii B. C.); φατρία is found at Chios, Michel 997.28 (iv B. C.); at Tenos, IG12(5).816.16 (iii B. C.); and freq. in codd., e.g. Aeschin. l.c., Arist.Pol. ll.cc., cf. Hdn.Gr.1.298, 2.598, Orusap.EM789.20; cf. φρήτρη, φρητρία.—