Panyasis
（
Πανύασις, the quantity of the penult is doubtful) and
Panyassis. A Greek poet of Halicarnassus, uncle of Herodotus, the historian.
He was put to death by the tyrant Lygdamis about B.C. 454 for being the leader of the
aristocratic party. He composed a poem in fourteen books and 9000 verses, entitled
Heraclea (exploits of Heracles), which was reckoned by later writers among the
best epics. The few fragments preserved are in an elegant and graceful style. Another poem of
his, the
Ionica (
Ἰωνικά), contained 7000
lines, and relates the history of Neleus, Codrus, and the Ionian colonies. Panyasis was ranked
by the
Alexandrian School (q.v.) with the
great epic poets. The fragments of Panyasis are edited by Gaisford
(1823) and
Dübner
(1840). There was another person of the same name, possibly the
grandson of the poet, who wrote a work in two books on dreams ( Suid. s. v.).
