hom he took a pleasure in contradicting upon all occasions, right or wrong. Thus one day he reproved Favorinus, with an air of great superiority, for using a certain word;
, an ancient philosopher and orator, was
born at Aries in Gaul, flourished under the emperor Adrian,
in the second century, and taught both at Athens and
Home with high reputation. Adrian had no kindness for
him; for such was the nature and temper of this emperor,
that, not content with being the first in dignity and power,
he would needs be the first in every thing else. This pedantic affectation led him, as Spartian relates, to deride, to
contemn, to trample upon the professors of all arts and
sciences, whom he took a pleasure in contradicting upon
all occasions, right or wrong. Thus one day he reproved
Favorinus, with an air of great superiority, for using a
certain word; which, however, was a good word, and frequently used by the best authors. Favorinus submitted
patiently to the emperor, without making any reply, though
he knew himself to be perfectly right: which when his
friends objected to, “Shall not I easily suffer him,
” says
he, “to be the most learned of all men, who has thirty
legions at his command
” This philosopher is said to
have wondered at three things first, that being a Gaul he
should speak Greek so well; secondly, that being an
eunuch he should be accused of adultery; and thirdly,
that being envied and hated by the emperor he should be
permitted to live. Many works are attributed to him;
among the rest a Greek work of “Miscellaneous History,
”
often quoted by Diogenes Lærtius, but none of them are
now extant.
, or as some say is the proper form, Favorinus (Varinus), who flourished in the 16th century, was born at Favera,
, or as some say is the proper form, Favorinus (Varinus), who flourished in the 16th century, was born at Favera, near Camerino, a ducal town of Umbria, from which he is said to have taken his name. His real name was Guarino, which he changed to Varinus. He was a favourite disciple of the celebrated Angelo Politian, and John Lascaris, at Florence, and was patronized by Lorenzo the Magnificent. Having determined on an ecclesiastical life, he undertook the care of a congregation, and was appointed preceptor to John de Medici, afterwards pope Leo X. Favorinus was appointed keeper of the Medicean library in the year 1512, and in 1514 bishop of Nocera. He died in 1537. It was in 1523 that he published his Greek lexicon at Rome, one of the earliest modern lexicons of that language, and compiled, from Suidas, the Etymologicum Magnum, Phrynicus, Hesychius, Harpocration, and other ancient lexicons, published and unpublished and from the notes of Eustathius, and the scholiasts. It is written entirely in Greek, and is now superseded by other works of more popular use; though it may still be serviceable, in supplying various readings of Suidas and others, of which Favorinus probably consulted very ancient manuscripts. The best edition is that of Bartoli, Venice, 1712, folio.