Sophocles - wikipedia Sophocles Jump to : navigation , search For the screenwriting software , see Sophocles ( software ) . For the ships , see SS Sophocles ( 1900 ) and SS Sophocles ( 1921 ) . Sophocles 497 / 496 BC Colonus , Attica 406 / 405 BC ( aged 90 - 92 ) Athens Occupation Tragedian Information Genre Tragedy Notable work ( s ) Ajax Antigone Oedipus Rex Electra Oedipus at Colonus Sophocles ( / ˈsɒfəkliːz / ; Greek : Σοφοκλῆς , Sophoklēs , Ancient Greek : ( so. pho. klɛ̂ːs ) ; c. 497 / 6 -- winter 406 / 5 BC ) is one of three ancient Greek tragedians whose plays have survived . His first plays were written later than those of Aeschylus , and earlier than or contemporary with those of Euripides . Sophocles wrote over 120 plays during the course of his life , but only seven have survived in a complete form : Ajax , Antigone , The Women of Trachis , Oedipus Rex , Electra , Philoctetes and Oedipus at Colonus . For almost 50 years , Sophocles was the most celebrated playwright in the dramatic competitions of the city - state of Athens that took place during the religious festivals of the Lenaea and the Dionysia . He competed in 30 competitions , won 24 , and was never judged lower than second place . Aeschylus won 13 competitions , and was sometimes defeated by Sophocles , while Euripides won 4 competitions . The most famous tragedies of Sophocles feature Oedipus and also Antigone : they are generally known as the Theban plays , although each play was actually a part of a different tetralogy , the other members of which are now lost . Sophocles influenced the development of drama , most importantly by adding a third actor , thereby reducing the importance of the chorus in the presentation of the plot . He also developed his characters to a greater extent than earlier playwrights such as Aeschylus . Contents ( hide ) 1 Life 2 Works and legacy 2.1 Theban plays 2.1. 1 Subjects 2.1. 2 Composition and inconsistencies 2.2 Other plays 2.3 Fragmentary plays 2.4 Sophocles ' view of his own work 3 See also 4 Notes 5 References 6 External links Life ( edit ) A marble relief of a poet , perhaps Sophocles Sophocles , the son of Sophilus , was a wealthy member of the rural deme ( small community ) of Hippeios Colonus in Attica , which was to become a setting for one of his plays , and he was probably born there . Sophocles was born a few years before the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC : the exact year is unclear , although 497 / 6 is the most likely . Sophocles was born into a wealthy family ( his father was an armour manufacturer ) and was highly educated . Sophocles ' first artistic triumph was in 468 BC , when he took first prize in the Dionysia theatre competition over the reigning master of Athenian drama , Aeschylus . According to Plutarch , the victory came under unusual circumstances . Instead of following the usual custom of choosing judges by lot , the archon asked Cimon and the other strategoi present to decide the victor of the contest . Plutarch further contends that following this loss Aeschylus soon left for Sicily . Although Plutarch says that this was Sophocles ' first production , it is now thought that his first production was probably in 470 BC . Triptolemus was probably one of the plays that Sophocles presented at this festival . In 480 BC Sophocles was chosen to lead the paean ( a choral chant to a god ) , celebrating the Greek victory over the Persians at the Battle of Salamis . Early in his career , the politician Cimon might have been one of his patrons , although if he was , there was no ill will borne by Pericles , Cimon 's rival , when Cimon was ostracized in 461 BC . In 443 / 2 he served as one of the Hellenotamiai , or treasurers of Athena , helping to manage the finances of the city during the political ascendancy of Pericles . According to the Vita Sophoclis , in 441 BC he was elected one of the ten generals , executive officials at Athens , as a junior colleague of Pericles , and he served in the Athenian campaign against Samos ; he was supposed to have been elected to this position as the result of his production of Antigone . In 420 BC , he welcomed and set up an altar for the image of Asclepius at his house , when the deity was introduced to Athens . For this , he was given the posthumous epithet Dexion ( receiver ) by the Athenians . He was also elected , in 413 BC , one of the commissioners ( probouloi ) who responded to the catastrophic destruction of the Athenian expeditionary force in Sicily during the Peloponnesian War . Sophocles died at the age of ninety or ninety - one in the winter of 406 / 5 BC , having seen within his lifetime both the Greek triumph in the Persian Wars and the bloodletting of the Peloponnesian War . As with many famous men in classical antiquity , his death inspired a number of apocryphal stories . The most famous is the suggestion that he died from the strain of trying to recite a long sentence from his Antigone without pausing to take a breath . Another account suggests he choked while eating grapes at the Anthesteria festival in Athens . A third holds that he died of happiness after winning his final victory at the City Dionysia . A few months later , a comic poet , in a play titled The Muses , wrote this eulogy : `` Blessed is Sophocles , who had a long life , was a man both happy and talented , and the writer of many good tragedies ; and he ended his life well without suffering any misfortune . '' According to some accounts , however , his own sons tried to have him declared incompetent near the end of his life ; he is said to have refuted their charge in court by reading from his as yet unproduced Oedipus at Colonus . One of his sons , Iophon , and a grandson , also called Sophocles , also became playwrights . Several ancient sources mention Sophocles ' homosexuality or bisexuality . Athenaios reported that Sophocles loved boys like Euripides loved women . The poet Ion of Chios relates an anecdote involving Sophocles seducing a serving boy at a symposium , and Athenaios one in which Sophocles is tricked by a hustler . Works and legacy ( edit ) Portrait of the Greek actor Euiaon in Sophocles ' Andromeda , c. 430 BC . Among Sophocles ' earliest innovations was the addition of a third actor , which further reduced the role of the chorus and created greater opportunity for character development and conflict between characters . Aeschylus , who dominated Athenian playwriting during Sophocles ' early career , followed suit and adopted the third character into his own work towards the end of his life . Aristotle credits Sophocles with the introduction of skenographia , or scenery - painting . It was not until after the death of the old master Aeschylus in 456 BC that Sophocles became the pre-eminent playwright in Athens . Thereafter , Sophocles emerged victorious in dramatic competitions at 18 Dionysia and 6 Lenaia festivals . In addition to innovations in dramatic structure , Sophocles ' work is also known for its deeper development of characters than earlier playwrights . His reputation was such that foreign rulers invited him to attend their courts , although unlike Aeschylus who died in Sicily , or Euripides who spent time in Macedon , Sophocles never accepted any of these invitations . Aristotle used Sophocles ' Oedipus Rex in his Poetics ( c. 335 BC ) as an example of the highest achievement in tragedy , which suggests the high esteem in which his work was held by later Greeks . Only two of the seven surviving plays can be dated securely : Philoctetes ( 409 BC ) and Oedipus at Colonus ( 401 BC , staged after Sophocles ' death by his grandson ) . Of the others , Electra shows stylistic similarities to these two plays , which suggests that it was probably written in the latter part of his career . Ajax , Antigone and The Trachiniae are generally thought to be among his early works , again based on stylistic elements , with Oedipus Rex coming in Sophocles ' middle period . Most of Sophocles ' plays show an undercurrent of early fatalism and the beginnings of Socratic logic as a mainstay for the long tradition of Greek tragedy . Theban plays ( edit ) The Theban plays consist of three plays : Oedipus Rex ( also called Oedipus Tyrannus or Oedipus the King ) , Oedipus at Colonus and Antigone . All three plays concern the fate of Thebes during and after the reign of King Oedipus . They have often been published under a single cover . Sophocles , however , wrote the three plays for separate festival competitions , many years apart . Not only are the Theban plays not a true trilogy ( three plays presented as a continuous narrative ) but they are not even an intentional series and contain some inconsistencies among them . He also wrote other plays having to do with Thebes , such as the Epigoni , of which only fragments have survived . Subjects ( edit ) Each of the plays relates to the tale of the mythological Oedipus , who killed his father and married his mother without knowledge that they were his parents . His family is fated to be doomed for three generations . In Oedipus Rex , Oedipus is the protagonist . Oedipus ' infanticide is planned by his parents , Laius and Jocasta , to avert him from fulfilling a prophecy ; in truth , the servant entrusted with the infanticide passes the infant on through a series of intermediaries to a childless couple , who adopt him not knowing his history . Oedipus eventually learns of the Delphic Oracle 's prophecy of him , that he would kill his father and marry his mother ; Oedipus attempts to flee his fate without harming those he knows as his parents ( at this point , he does not know that he is adopted ) . Oedipus meets a man at a crossroads accompanied by servants ; Oedipus and the man fight , and Oedipus kills the man ( who was his father , Laius , although neither knew at the time ) . He becomes the ruler of Thebes after solving the riddle of the sphinx and in the process , marries the widowed queen , his mother Jocasta . Thus the stage is set for horror . When the truth comes out , following from another true but confusing prophecy from Delphi , Jocasta commits suicide , Oedipus blinds himself and leaves Thebes . At the end of the play , order is restored . This restoration is seen when Creon , brother of Jocasta , becomes king , and also when Oedipus , before going off to exile , asks Creon to take care of his children . Oedipus 's children will always bear the weight of shame and humiliation because of their father 's actions . In Oedipus at Colonus , the banished Oedipus and his daughter Antigone arrive at the town of Colonus where they encounter Theseus , King of Athens . Oedipus dies and strife begins between his sons Polyneices and Eteocles . In Antigone , the protagonist is Oedipus ' daughter , Antigone . She is faced with the choice of allowing her brother Polyneices ' body to remain unburied , outside the city walls , exposed to the ravages of wild animals , or to bury him and face death . The king of the land , Creon , has forbidden the burial of Polyneices for he was a traitor to the city . Antigone decides to bury his body and face the consequences of her actions . Creon sentences her to death . Eventually , Creon is convinced to free Antigone from her punishment , but his decision comes too late and Antigone commits suicide . Her suicide triggers the suicide of two others close to King Creon : his son , Haemon , who was to wed Antigone , and his wife , Eurydice , who commits suicide after losing her only surviving son . Composition and inconsistencies ( edit ) Oedipus at Colonus by Jean - Antoine - Théodore Giroust ( 1788 ) , Dallas Museum of Art The plays were written across thirty - six years of Sophocles ' career and were not composed in chronological order , but instead were written in the order Antigone , Oedipus Rex , and Oedipus at Colonus . Nor were they composed as a trilogy -- a group of plays to be performed together , but are the remaining parts of three different groups of plays . As a result , there are some inconsistencies : notably , Creon is the undisputed king at the end of Oedipus Rex and , in consultation with Apollo , single - handedly makes the decision to expel Oedipus from Thebes . Creon is also instructed to look after Oedipus ' daughters Antigone and Ismene at the end of Oedipus Rex . By contrast , in the other plays there is some struggle with Oedipus ' sons Eteocles and Polynices in regard to the succession . In Oedipus at Colonus , Sophocles attempts to work these inconsistencies into a coherent whole : Ismene explains that , in light of their tainted family lineage , her brothers were at first willing to cede the throne to Creon . Nevertheless , they eventually decided to take charge of the monarchy , with each brother disputing the other 's right to succeed . In addition to being in a clearly more powerful position in Oedipus at Colonus , Eteocles and Polynices are also culpable : they consent ( l . 429 , Theodoridis , tr . ) to their father 's going to exile , which is one of his bitterest charges against them . Other plays ( edit ) In addition to the three Theban plays , there are four surviving plays by Sophocles : Ajax , The Women of Trachis , Electra , and Philoctetes , the last of which won first prize in 409 BC in which it competed . Ajax focuses on the proud hero of the Trojan War , Telamonian Ajax , who is driven to treachery and eventually suicide . Ajax becomes gravely upset when Achilles ' armor is presented to Odysseus instead of himself . Despite their enmity toward him , Odysseus persuades the kings Menelaus and Agamemnon to grant Ajax a proper burial . The Women of Trachis ( named for the Trachinian women who make up the chorus ) dramatizes Deianeira 's accidentally killing Heracles after he had completed his famous twelve labors . Tricked into thinking it is a love charm , Deianeira applies poison to an article of Heracles ' clothing ; this poisoned robe causes Heracles to die an excruciating death . Upon learning the truth , Deianeira commits suicide . Electra corresponds roughly to the plot of Aeschylus ' Libation Bearers . It details how Electra and Orestes ' avenge their father Agamemnon 's murder by Clytemnestra and Aegisthus . Philoctetes retells the story of Philoctetes , an archer who had been abandoned on Lemnos by the rest of the Greek fleet while on the way to Troy . After learning that they can not win the Trojan War without Philoctetes ' bow , the Greeks send Odysseus and Neoptolemus to retrieve him ; due to the Greeks ' earlier treachery , however , Philoctetes refuses to rejoin the army . It is only Heracles ' deus ex machina appearance that persuades Philoctetes to go to Troy . Fragmentary plays ( edit ) Although the list of over 120 titles of plays associated with Sophocles are known and presented below , little is known of the precise dating of most of them . Philoctetes is known to have been written in 409 BC , and Oedipus at Colonus is known to have only been performed in 401 BC , posthumously , at the initiation of Sophocles ' grandson . The convention on writing plays for the Greek festivals was to submit them in tetralogies of three tragedies along with one satyr play . Along with the unknown dating of the vast majority of over 120 play titles , it is also largely unknown how the plays were grouped . It is , however , known that the three plays referred to in the modern era as the `` Theban plays '' were never performed together in Sophocles ' own lifetime , and are therefore not a trilogy ( which they are sometimes erroneously seen as ) . Fragments of Ichneutae ( Tracking Satyrs ) were discovered in Egypt in 1907 . These amount to about half of the play , making it the best preserved satyr play after Euripides ' Cyclops , which survives in its entirety . Fragments of the Epigoni were discovered in April 2005 by classicists at Oxford University with the help of infrared technology previously used for satellite imaging . The tragedy tells the story of the second siege of Thebes . A number of other Sophoclean works have survived only in fragments , including : Aias Lokros ( Ajax the Locrian ) Aias Mastigophoros ( Ajax the Whip - Bearer ) Aigeus ( Aegeus ) Aigisthos ( Aegisthus ) Aikhmalôtides ( The Captive Women ) Aithiopes ( The Ethiopians ) , or Memnon Akhaiôn Syllogos ( The Gathering of the Achaeans ) Akhilleôs Erastai ( ( male ) Lovers of Achilles ) Akrisios Aleadae ( The Sons of Aleus ) Aletes Alexandros ( Alexander ) Alcmeôn Amphiaraus Amphitryôn Amycos Andromache Andromeda Antenoridai ( Sons of Antenor ) Athamas ( two versions produced ) Atreus , or Mykenaiai Camicoi Cassandra Cedaliôn Cerberus Chryseis Clytemnestra Colchides Côphoi ( Mute Ones ) Creusa Crisis ( Judgement ) Daedalus Danae Dionysiacus Dolopes Epigoni ( The Progeny ) Eriphyle Eris Eumelus Euryalus Eurypylus Eurysaces Helenes Apaitesis ( Helen 's Demand ) Helenes Gamos ( Helen 's Marriage ) Herakles Epi Tainaro ( Hercules At Taenarum ) Hermione Hipponous Hybris Hydrophoroi ( Water - Bearers ) Inachos Iobates Iokles Iôn Iphigenia Ixiôn Lacaenae ( Lacaenian Women ) Laocoôn Larisaioi Lemniai ( Lemnian Women ) Manteis ( The Prophets ) or Polyidus Meleagros Minôs Momus Mousai ( Muses ) Mysoi ( Mysians ) Nauplios Katapleon ( Nauplius ' Arrival ) Nauplios Pyrkaeus ( Nauplius ' Fires ) Nausicaa , or Plyntriai Niobe Odysseus Acanthoplex ( Odysseus Scourged with Thorns ) Odysseus Mainomenos ( Odysseus Gone Mad ) Oeneus Oenomaus Palamedes Pandora , or Sphyrokopoi ( Hammer - Strikers ) Pelias Peleus Phaiakes Phaedra Philoctetes In Troy Phineus ( two versions ) Phoenix Phrixus Phryges ( Phrygians ) Phthiôtides Poimenes ( The Shepherds ) Polyxene Priam Procris Rhizotomoi ( The Root - Cutters ) Salmoneus Sinon Sisyphus Skyrioi ( Scyrians ) Skythai ( Scythians ) Syndeipnoi ( The Diners , or , The Banqueters ) Tantalus Telephus Tereus Teukros ( Teucer ) Thamyras Theseus Thyestes Troilus Triptolemos Tympanistai ( Drummers ) Tyndareos Tyro Keiromene ( Tyro Shorn ) Tyro Anagnorizomene ( Tyro Rediscovered ) . Xoanephoroi ( Image - Bearers ) Sophocles ' view of his own work ( edit ) There is a passage of Plutarch 's tract De Profectibus in Virtute 7 in which Sophocles discusses his own growth as a writer . A likely source of this material for Plutarch was the Epidemiae of Ion of Chios , a book that recorded many conversations of Sophocles . This book is a likely candidate to have contained Sophocles ' discourse on his own development because Ion was a friend of Sophocles , and the book is known to have been used by Plutarch . Though some interpretations of Plutarch 's words suggest that Sophocles says that he imitated Aeschylus , the translation does not fit grammatically , nor does the interpretation that Sophocles said that he was making fun of Aeschylus ' works . C.M. Bowra argues for the following translation of the line : `` After practising to the full the bigness of Aeschylus , then the painful ingenuity of my own invention , now in the third stage I am changing to the kind of diction which is most expressive of character and best . '' Here Sophocles says that he has completed a stage of Aeschylus ' work , meaning that he went through a phase of imitating Aeschylus ' style but is finished with that . Sophocles ' opinion of Aeschylus was mixed . He certainly respected him enough to imitate his work early on in his career , but he had reservations about Aeschylus ' style , and thus did not keep his imitation up . Sophocles ' first stage , in which he imitated Aeschylus , is marked by `` Aeschylean pomp in the language '' . Sophocles ' second stage was entirely his own . He introduced new ways of evoking feeling out of an audience , as in his Ajax , when Ajax is mocked by Athene , then the stage is emptied so that he may commit suicide alone . Sophocles mentions a third stage , distinct from the other two , in his discussion of his development . The third stage pays more heed to diction . His characters spoke in a way that was more natural to them and more expressive of their individual character feelings . See also ( edit ) Theatre of ancient Greece Notes ( edit ) Jump up ^ Jones , Daniel ; Roach , Peter , James Hartman and Jane Setter , eds . Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary . 17th edition . Cambridge UP , 2006 . ^ Jump up to : Sommerstein ( 2002 ) , p. 41 . Jump up ^ The exact number is unknown , the Suda says he wrote 123 , another ancient source says 130 , but no exact number `` is possible '' , see Lloyd - Jones 2003 , p. 3 . Jump up ^ Suda ( ed . Finkel et al . ) : s.v. Σοφοκλῆς . Jump up ^ Sophocles at Encyclopædia Britannica ^ Jump up to : Freeman , p. 247 . ^ Jump up to : Sommerstein ( 2007 ) , p. xi . Jump up ^ Lloyd - Jones 1994 , p. 7 . Jump up ^ Freeman , p. 246 . Jump up ^ Life of Cimon 8 . Plutarch is mistaken about Aeschylus ' death during this trip ; he went on to produce dramas in Athens for another decade . Jump up ^ McGraw - Hill Encyclopedia of World Drama : An International Reference Work in 5 Volumes , Volume 1 , `` Sophocles '' . Jump up ^ Beer 2004 , p. 69 . Jump up ^ Clinton , Kevin `` The Epidauria and the Arrival of Asclepius in Athens '' , in Ancient Greek Cult Practice from the Epigraphical Evidence , edited by R. Hägg , Stockholm , 1994 . Jump up ^ Lloyd - Jones 1994 , pp. 12 -- 13 . Jump up ^ Schultz 1835 , pp. 150 -- 1 . Jump up ^ Lucas 1964 , p. 128 . Jump up ^ Cicero recounts this story in his De Senectute 7.22 . Jump up ^ Sommerstein ( 2002 ) , pp. 41 -- 42 . Jump up ^ Aristotle . Ars Poetica . Jump up ^ The first printed edition of the seven plays is by Aldus Manutius in Venice 1502 : Sophoclis tragaediae ( sic ) septem cum commentariis . Despite the addition ' cum commentariis ' in the title , the Aldine edition did not include the ancient scholia to Sophocles . These had to wait until 1518 when Janus Lascaris brought out the relevant edition in Rome . Jump up ^ Lloyd - Jones 1994 , pp. 8 - 9 . Jump up ^ Scullion , pp. 85 -- 86 , rejects attempts to date Antigone to shortly before 441 / 0 based on an anecdote that the play led to Sophocles ' election as general . On other grounds , he cautiously suggests c. 450 BC . ^ Jump up to : Sophocles , ed Grene and Lattimore , pp. 1 -- 2 . Jump up ^ See for example : `` Sophocles : The Theban Plays '' , Penguin Books , 1947 ; Sophocles I : Oedipus the King , Oedipus at Colonus , Antigone , University of Chicago , 1991 ; Sophocles : The Theban Plays : Antigone / King Oidipous / Oidipous at Colonus , Focus Publishing / R. Pullins Company , 2002 ; Sophocles , The Oedipus Cycle : Oedipus Rex , Oedipus at Colonus , Antigone , Harvest Books , 2002 ; Sophocles , Works , Loeb Classical Library , Vol I. London , W. Heinemann ; New York , Macmillan , 1912 ( often reprinted ) - the 1994 Loeb , however , prints Sophocles in chronological order . ^ Jump up to : Murray , Matthew , `` Newly Readable Oxyrhynchus Papyri Reveal Works by Sophocles , Lucian , and Others '' , Theatermania , 18 April 2005 . Retrieved 9 July 2007 . Jump up ^ Sophocles . Oedipus the King . The Norton Anthology of Western Literature . Gen. ed . Peter Simon . 8th ed . Vol. 1 . New York : Norton , 1984 . 648 -- 52 . Print . ISBN 0 - 393 - 92572 - 2 Jump up ^ Freeman , pp. 247 -- 248 . Jump up ^ Lloyd - Jones 2003 , pp. 3 -- 9 . ^ Jump up to : Seaford , p. 1361 . Jump up ^ Bowra , p. 386 . Jump up ^ Bowra , p. 401 . Jump up ^ Bowra , p. 389 . Jump up ^ Bowra , p. 392 . Jump up ^ Bowra , p. 396 . Jump up ^ Bowra , pp. 385 -- 401 . Library resources about Sophocles Online books Resources in your library Resources in other libraries By Sophocles Online books Resources in your library Resources in other libraries References ( edit ) Beer , Josh ( 2004 ) . Sophocles and the Tragedy of Athenian Democracy . Greenwood Publishing . ISBN 0 - 313 - 28946 - 8 Bowra , C.M. ( 1940 ) . `` Sophocles on His Own Development '' . American Journal of Philology . The Johns Hopkins University Press . 61 ( 4 ) : 385 -- 401 . doi : 10.2307 / 291377 . JSTOR 291377 . ( Subscription required ( help ) ) . Finkel , Raphael . `` Adler number : sigma , 815 '' . Suda on Line : Byzantine Lexicography . Retrieved 2007 - 03 - 14 . Freeman , Charles . ( 1999 ) . The Greek Achievement : The Foundation of the Western World . New York : Viking Press . ISBN 0 - 670 - 88515 - 0 Hubbard , Thomas K. ( 2003 ) . Homosexuality in Greece and Rome : A Sourcebook of Basic Documents . Johnson , Marguerite & Terry Ryan ( 2005 ) . Sexuality in Greek and Roman Society and Literature : A Sourcebook . Routledge . ISBN 0 - 415 - 17331 - 0 , ISBN 978 - 0 - 415 - 17331 - 5 Lloyd - Jones , Hugh ( ed . ) ( 1994 ) . Sophocles . Ajax . Electra . Oedipus Tyrannus . Harvard University Press . Lloyd - Jones , Hugh ( ed . ) ( 2003 ) . Sophocles . Fragments , Edited and translated by Hugh Lloyd - Jones , Loeb Classical Library No. 483 . Cambridge , MA : Harvard University Press , 2003 . ISBN 978 - 0 - 674 - 99532 - 1 . Online version at Harvard University Press . Lucas , Donald William ( 1964 ) . The Greek Tragic Poets . W.W. Norton & Co . Minghella , Anthony ( 1987 ) . First episode of BBC 's Inspector Morse mentioned Sophocles as the `` murderer . '' Plato . Plato in Twelve Volumes , Vols. 5 & 6 translated by Paul Shorey . Cambridge , MA , Harvard University Press ; London , William Heinemann Ltd. 1969 . Schultz , Ferdinand ( 1835 ) . De vita Sophoclis poetae commentatio . Phil . Diss. , Berlin . Scullion , Scott ( 2002 ) . Tragic dates , Classical Quarterly , new sequence 52 , pp. 81 -- 101 . Seaford , Richard A.S. ( 2003 ) . `` Satyric drama '' . In Simon Hornblower and Antony Spawforth . The Oxford Classical Dictionary ( revised 3rd ed . ) . Oxford : Oxford University Press . p. 1361 . ISBN 0 - 19 - 860641 - 9 . Smith , Philip ( 1867 ) . `` Sophocles '' . In William Smith . Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. 3 . Boston : Little , Brown , and Company . pp. 865 -- 873 . Archived from the original on 2 February 2007 . Retrieved 2007 - 02 - 19 . Sommerstein , Alan Herbert ( 2002 ) . Greek Drama and Dramatists . Routledge . ISBN 0 - 415 - 26027 - 2 Sommerstein , Alan Herbert ( 2007 ) . `` General Introduction '' pp. xi - xxix in Sommerstein , A.H. , Fitzpatrick , D. and Tallboy , T. Sophocles : Selected Fragmentary Plays : Volume 1 . Aris and Phillips . ISBN 0 - 85668 - 766 - 9 Sophocles . Sophocles I : Oedipus the King , Oedipus at Colonus , Antigone . 2nd ed . Grene , David and Lattimore , Richard , eds . Chicago : University of Chicago , 1991 . Encyclopædia Britannica , Inc . `` Macropaedia Knowledge In Depth . '' The New Encyclopædia Britannica Volume 20 . Chicago : Encyclopædia Britannica , Inc. , 2005 . 344 - 346 . External links ( edit ) Wikiquote has quotations related to : Sophocles Wikisource has original works written by or about : Sophocles Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sophocles . 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Question: who wrote antigone and what are the dates of his birth and death


Acts of the Apostles - wikipedia Acts of the Apostles Jump to : navigation , search This article is about the book in the Christian New Testament . For the literature genre , see Acts of the Apostles ( genre ) . For the acronym , see ACTS ( disambiguation ) . `` Acts '' redirects here . For uses of Act , see Act . Books of the New Testament Gospels Matthew Mark Luke John Acts Acts of the Apostles Epistles Romans 1 Corinthians 2 Corinthians Galatians Ephesians Philippians Colossians 1 Thessalonians 2 Thessalonians 1 Timothy 2 Timothy Titus Philemon Hebrews James 1 Peter 2 Peter 1 John 2 John 3 John Jude Apocalypse Revelation New Testament manuscripts Acts of the Apostles ( Ancient Greek : Πράξεις τῶν Ἀποστόλων , Práxeis tôn Apostólōn ; Latin : Actūs Apostolōrum ) , often referred to simply as Acts , is the fifth book of the New Testament ; it tells of the founding of the Christian church and the spread of its message to the Roman Empire . Acts and the Gospel of Luke make up a two - part work , Luke -- Acts , by the same anonymous author , usually dated to around 80 -- 90 AD . The first part , the Gospel of Luke , tells how God fulfilled his plan for the world 's salvation through the life , death , and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth , the promised Messiah . Acts continues the story of Christianity in the 1st century , beginning with Jesus 's Ascension to Heaven . The early chapters , set in Jerusalem , describe the Day of Pentecost ( the coming of the Holy Spirit ) and the growth of the church in Jerusalem . Initially , the Jews are receptive to the Christian message , but soon they turn against the followers of Jesus . Rejected by the Jews , under the guidance of the Apostle Peter the message is taken to the Gentiles . The later chapters tell of Paul 's conversion , his mission in Asia Minor and the Aegean , and finally his imprisonment in Rome , where , as the book ends , he awaits trial . Luke -- Acts is an attempt to answer a theological problem , namely how the Messiah of the Jews came to have an overwhelmingly non-Jewish church ; the answer it provides , and its central theme , is that the message of Christ was sent to the Gentiles because the Jews rejected it . Luke -- Acts can be also seen as a defense of ( or `` apology '' for ) the Jesus movement addressed to the Jews : the bulk of the speeches and sermons in Acts are addressed to Jewish audiences , with the Romans serving as external arbiters on disputes concerning Jewish customs and law . On the one hand Luke portrays the Christians as a sect of the Jews , and therefore entitled to legal protection as a recognised religion ; on the other , Luke seems unclear as to the future God intends for Jews and Christians , celebrating the Jewishness of Jesus and his immediate followers while also stressing how the Jews had rejected God 's promised Messiah . Contents ( hide ) 1 Composition and setting 1.1 Title , unity of Luke -- Acts , authorship and date 1.2 Genre , sources and historicity of Acts 1.3 Audience and authorial intent 1.4 Manuscripts 2 Structure and content 2.1 Structure 2.2 Outline 2.3 Content 3 Theology 4 Comparison with other writings 4.1 Gospel of Luke 4.2 Pauline epistles 5 See also 6 References 7 Bibliography 8 External links Composition and setting ( edit ) Main article : Authorship of Luke -- Acts Ministry of the Apostles : Russian icon by Fyodor Zubov , 1660 Title , Unity of Luke -- Acts , authorship and date ( edit ) The title `` Acts of the Apostles '' ( Greek Πράξεις ἀποστόλων Praxeis Apostolon ) was first used by Irenaeus in the late 2nd century . It is not known whether this was an existing title or one invented by Irenaeus ; it does seem clear , however , that it was not given by the author . The Gospel of Luke and Acts make up a two - volume work which scholars call Luke -- Acts . Together they account for 27.5 % of the New Testament , the largest contribution attributed to a single author , providing the framework for both the Church 's liturgical calendar and the historical outline into which later generations have fitted their idea of the story of Jesus and the early church . The author is not named in either volume . According to Church tradition dating from the 2nd century , he was the `` Luke '' named as a companion of the apostle Paul in three of the letters attributed to Paul himself ; this view is still sometimes advanced , but `` a critical consensus emphasizes the countless contradictions between the account in Acts and the authentic Pauline letters . '' ) ( An example can be seen by comparing Acts 's accounts of Paul 's conversion ( Acts 9 : 1 -- 31 , 22 : 6 -- 21 , and 26 : 9 -- 23 ) with Paul 's own statement that he remained unknown to Christians in Judea after that event ( Galatians 1 : 17 -- 24 ) . ) He admired Paul , but his theology was significantly different from Paul 's on key points and he does not ( in Acts ) represent Paul 's views accurately . He was educated , a man of means , probably urban , and someone who respected manual work , although not a worker himself ; this is significant , because more high - brow writers of the time looked down on the artisans and small business people who made up the early church of Paul and were presumably Luke 's audience . The earliest possible date for the composition of Acts is set by the events with which it ends , Paul 's imprisonment in Rome c. 63 AD , but an early date is now rarely put forward . The last possible date would be set by its first definite citation by another author , but there is no unanimity on this -- some scholars find echoes of Acts in a work from c. 95 AD called I Clement , while others see no indisputable citation until the middle of the 2nd century . The majority of scholars date Luke -- Acts to 80 -- 90 AD , on the grounds that it uses Mark as a source and looks back on the destruction of Jerusalem , and does not show any awareness of the letters of Paul ( which began circulating late in the century ) ; if , however , it does show awareness of Paul and also of Josephus , then a date early in the 2nd century is more likely . In either case , there is evidence that it was still being substantially revised well into the 2nd century . Genre , sources and historicity of Acts ( edit ) Luke ( or more accurately the anonymous author of Luke -- Acts ) aligned his work , Luke -- Acts , to the `` narratives '' ( διήγησις , diēgēsis ) which many others had written , and described his own work as an `` orderly account '' ( ἀκριβῶς καθεξῆς ) . Acts , the second part , is widely thought of as a history , but it lacks exact analogies in Hellenistic or Jewish literature . The title `` Acts of the Apostles '' ( Praxeis Apostolon ) would seem to identify it with the genre telling of the deeds and achievements of great men ( praxeis ) , but it was not the title given by the author . Luke seems to have taken as his model the works of two respected Classical authors , Dionysius of Halicarnassus , who wrote a well - known history of Rome , and the Jewish historian Josephus , author of a history of the Jews . Like them , he anchors his history by dating the birth of the founder ( Romulus for Dionysius , Moses for Josephus , Jesus for Luke ) and like them he tells how the founder is born from God , taught authoritatively , and appeared to witnesses after death before ascending to heaven . By and large the sources for Acts can only be guessed at , but Luke would have had access to the Septuagint ( a Greek translation of the Jewish scriptures ) , the gospel of Mark and the collection of `` sayings of Jesus '' called the Q source . He transposed a few incidents from Mark 's gospel to the time of the Apostles -- for example , the material about `` clean '' and `` unclean '' foods in Mark 7 is used in Acts 10 , and Mark 's account of the accusation that Jesus has attacked the Temple ( Mark 14 : 58 ) is used in a story about Stephen ( Acts 6 : 14 ) . ) There are also points of contacts ( meaning suggestive parallels but something less than clear evidence ) with 1 Peter , the Letter to the Hebrews , and 1 Clement . Other sources can only be inferred from internal evidence -- the traditional explanation of the three `` we '' passages , for example , is that they represent eye - witness accounts . The search for such inferred sources was popular in the 19th century , but by the mid-20th it had largely been abandoned . Acts was read as a reliable history of the early church well into the post-Reformation era . By the 17th century , however , biblical scholars began to notice that it was incomplete and tendentious -- its picture of a harmonious church is quite at odds with that given by Paul 's letters , and it omits important events such as the deaths of both Peter and Paul . The mid-19th - century scholar Ferdinand Baur suggested that Luke had re-written history to present a united Peter and Paul and advance a single orthodoxy against the Marcionites . ( Marcion was a 2nd - century heretic who wished to cut Christianity off entirely from the Jews ) . Baur continues to have enormous influence , but today there is less interest in determining Luke 's historical accuracy ( although this has never died out ) than in understanding his theological program . Audience and authorial intent ( edit ) Luke was written to be read aloud to a group of Jesus - followers gathered in a house to share the Lord 's supper . The author assumes an educated Greek - speaking audience , but directs his attention to specifically Christian concerns rather than to the Greco - Roman world at large . He begins his gospel with a preface addressed to Theophilus , informing him of his intention to provide an `` ordered account '' of events which will lead his reader to `` certainty '' . He did not write in order to provide Theophilus with historical justification -- `` did it happen ? '' -- but to encourage faith -- `` what happened , and what does it all mean ? '' Acts ( or Luke -- Acts ) is intended as a work of `` edification . '' Edification means `` the empirical demonstration that virtue is superior to vice , '' but is not all of Luke 's purpose . He also engages with the question of a Christian 's proper relationship with the Roman Empire , the civil power of the day : could a Christian obey God and also Caesar ? The answer is ambiguous . The Romans never move against Jesus or his followers unless provoked by the Jews , in the trial scenes the Christian missionaries are always cleared of charges of violating Roman laws , and Acts ends with Paul in Rome proclaiming the Christian message under Roman protection ; at the same time , Luke makes clear that the Romans , like all earthly rulers , receive their authority from Satan , while Christ is ruler of the kingdom of God . Manuscripts ( edit ) There are two major textual variants of Acts , the Western text - type and the Alexandrian . The oldest complete Alexandrian manuscripts date from the 4th century and the oldest Western ones from the 6th , with fragments and citations going back to the 3rd . Western texts of Acts are 6.2 -- 8.4 % longer than Alexandrian texts , the additions tending to enhance the Jewish rejection of the Messiah and the role of the Holy Spirit , in ways that are stylistically different from the rest of Acts . These conflicts suggest that Acts was still being substantially revised well into the 2nd century . The majority of scholars prefer the Alexandrian ( shorter ) text - type over the Western as the more authentic , but this same argument would favour the Western over the Alexandrian for the gospel of Luke , as in that case the , Western version is the shorter . The debate therefore continues . Structure and content ( edit ) Acts 1 : 1 -- 2a from the 14th century Minuscule 223 Structure ( edit ) Acts has two key structural principles . The first is the geographic movement from Jerusalem , centre of God 's Covenantal people , the Jews , to Rome , centre of the Gentile world . This structure reaches back to the author 's preceding work , the Gospel of Luke , and is signaled by parallel scenes such as Paul 's utterance in Acts 19 : 21 , which echoes Jesus 's words 9 : 51 ( Paul has Rome as his destination , as Jesus had Jerusalem ) . The second key element is the roles of Peter and Paul , the first representing the Jewish Christian church , the second the mission to the Gentiles . Transition : reprise of the preface addressed to Theophilus and the closing events of the gospel ( Acts 1 -- 1 : 26 ) Petrine Christianity : the Jewish church from Jerusalem to Antioch ( Acts 2 : 1 -- 12 : 25 ) 2 : 1 -- 8 : 1 -- beginnings in Jerusalem 8 : 2 -- 40 -- the church expands to Samaria and beyond 9 : 1 -- 31 -- conversion of Paul 9 : 32 -- 12 : 25 -- the conversion of Cornelius , and the formation of the Antioch church Pauline Christianity : the Gentile mission from Antioch to Rome ( Acts 13 : 1 -- 28 : 21 ) 13 : 1 -- 14 : 28 -- the Gentile mission is promoted from Antioch 15 : 1 -- 35 -- the Gentile mission is confirmed in Jerusalem 15 : 36 -- 28 : 31 -- the Gentile mission , climaxing in Paul 's passion story in Rome ( 21 : 17 -- 28 : 31 ) Outline ( edit ) Dedication to Theophilus ( 1 : 1 -- 2 ) Resurrection appearances ( 1 : 3 ) Great Commission ( 1 : 4 -- 8 ) Ascension ( 1 : 9 ) Second Coming Prophecy ( 1 : 10 -- 11 ) Matthias replaced Judas ( 1 : 12 -- 26 ) the Upper Room ( 1 : 13 ) Holy Spirit came at Pentecost ( 2 ) , see also Paraclete Peter healed a crippled beggar ( 3 : 1 -- 10 ) Peter 's speech at the Temple ( 3 : 11 -- 26 ) Peter and John before the Sanhedrin ( 4 : 1 -- 22 ) Resurrection of the dead ( 4 : 2 ) Believers ' Prayer ( 4 : 23 -- 31 ) Everything is shared ( 4 : 32 -- 37 ) Ananias and Sapphira ( 5 : 1 -- 11 ) Signs and Wonders ( 5 : 12 -- 16 ) Apostles before the Sanhedrin ( 5 : 17 -- 42 ) Seven Deacons appointed ( 6 : 1 -- 7 ) Stephen before the Sanhedrin ( 6 : 8 -- 7 : 60 ) The `` Cave of the Patriarchs '' was located in Shechem ( 7 : 16 ) `` Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians '' ( 7 : 22 ) First mentioning of Saul ( Paul the Apostle ) in the Bible ( 7 : 58 ) Paul the Apostle confesses his part in the martyrdom of Stephen ( 7 : 58 -- 60 ) Saul persecuted the Church of Jerusalem ( 8 : 1 -- 3 ) Philip the Evangelist ( 8 : 4 -- 40 ) Simon Magus ( 8 : 9 -- 24 ) Ethiopian eunuch ( 8 : 26 -- 39 ) Conversion of Paul the Apostle ( 9 : 1 -- 31 , 22 : 1 -- 22 , 26 : 9 -- 24 ) Paul the Apostle confesses his active part in the martyrdom of Stephen ( 22 : 20 ) Peter healed Aeneas and raised Tabitha from the dead ( 9 : 32 -- 43 ) Conversion of Cornelius ( 10 : 1 -- 8 , 24 -- 48 ) Peter 's vision of a sheet with animals ( 10 : 9 -- 23 , 11 : 1 -- 18 ) Church of Antioch founded ( 11 : 19 -- 30 ) term `` Christian '' first used ( 11 : 26 ) James the Great executed ( 12 : 1 -- 2 ) Peter 's rescue from prison ( 12 : 3 -- 19 ) Death of Herod Agrippa I ( in 44 ) ( 12 : 20 -- 25 ) `` the voice of a god '' ( 12 : 22 ) Mission of Barnabas and Saul ( 13 -- 14 ) `` Saul , who was also known as Paul '' ( 13 : 9 ) called `` gods ... in human form '' ( 14 : 11 ) Council of Jerusalem ( 15 : 1 -- 35 ) Paul separated from Barnabas ( 15 : 36 -- 41 ) 2nd and 3rd missions ( 16 -- 20 ) Areopagus sermon ( 17 : 16 -- 34 ) `` God ... has set a day '' ( 17 : 30 -- 31 ) Trial before Gallio c. 51 -- 52 ( 18 : 12 -- 17 ) Trip to Jerusalem ( 21 ) Before the people and the Sanhedrin ( 22 -- 23 ) Before Felix -- Festus -- Herod Agrippa II ( 24 -- 26 ) Trip to Rome ( 27 -- 28 ) called a god on Malta ( 28 : 6 ) Content ( edit ) See also : Early Christianity and Jewish Christians The Gospel of Luke began with a prologue addressed to Theophilus ; Acts likewise opens with an address to Theophilus and refers to `` my earlier book '' , almost certainly the gospel . The apostles and other followers of Jesus meet and elect Matthias to replace Judas as a member of The Twelve . On Pentecost , the Holy Spirit descends and confers God 's power on them , and Peter , along with John , preaches to many in Jerusalem , and performs Christ - like healings , casting out of evil spirits , and raising of the dead . The first believers share all property in common , ate in each other 's homes , and worshipped together . At first many Jews follow Christ and are baptized , but the Christians begin to be increasingly persecuted by the Jews . Stephen is arrested for blasphemy , and after a trial , is found guilty and stoned by the Jews . Stephen 's death marks a major turning point : the Jews have rejected the message , and henceforth it will be taken to the Gentiles . The message is taken to the Samaritans , a people rejected by Jews , and to the Gentiles . Saul of Tarsus , one of the Jews who persecuted the Christians , is converted by a vision to become a follower of Christ ( an event which Luke regards as so important that he relates it three times ) . Peter , directed by a series of visions , preaches to Cornelius the Centurion , a Gentile God - fearer , who becomes a follower of Christ . The Holy Spirit descends on Peter and Cornelius , thus confirming that the message of eternal life in Christ is for all mankind . The Gentile church is established in Antioch ( north - western Syria , the third - largest city of the empire ) , and here Christ 's followers are first called Christians . The mission to the Gentiles is promoted from Antioch and confirmed at meeting in Jerusalem between Paul and the leadership of the Jerusalem church . Paul spends the next few years traveling through western Asia Minor and the Aegean , preaching , converting Gentiles , and founding new churches . On a visit to Jerusalem he is set on by a Jewish mob . Saved by the Roman commander , he is accused by the Jews of being a revolutionary , the `` ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes '' , and imprisoned . Paul asserts his right as a Roman citizen , to be tried in Rome and is sent by sea to Rome , where he spends another two years under house arrest , proclaiming the Kingdom of God and teaching the `` Lord Jesus Christ '' . Acts ends abruptly without recording the outcome of Paul 's legal troubles . Theology ( edit ) Paul 's conversion , from Livre d'Heures d'Étienne Chevalier ( c. 1450 -- 1460 ) , Jean Fouquet , in the Château de Chantilly . Prior to the 1950s , Luke -- Acts was seen as a historical work , written to defend Christianity before the Romans or Paul against his detractors ; since then , however , the tendency has been to see the work as primarily theological . Luke 's theology is expressed primarily through his overarching plot , the way scenes , themes and characters combine to construct his specific worldview . His `` salvation history '' stretches from the Creation to the present time of his readers , in three ages : first , the time of `` the Law and the Prophets '' ( Luke 16 : 16 ) , the period beginning with Genesis and ending with the appearance of John the Baptist ( Luke 1 : 5 -- 3 : 1 ) ; second , the epoch of Jesus , in which the Kingdom of God was preached ( Luke 3 : 2 -- 24 : 51 ) ; and finally the period of the Church , which began when the risen Christ was taken into Heaven , and would end with his second coming . Luke -- Acts is an attempt to answer a theological problem , namely how the Messiah promised to the Jews came to have an overwhelmingly non-Jewish church ; the answer it provides , and its central theme , is that the message of Christ was sent to the Gentiles because the Jews rejected it . This theme is introduced at the opening of the gospel of Luke , when Jesus , rejected in Nazareth , recalls that the prophets were rejected by Israel and accepted by Gentiles ; at the end of the gospel he commands his disciples to preach his message to all nations , `` beginning from Jerusalem . '' He repeats the command in Acts , telling them to preach `` in Jerusalem , in all Judea and Samaria , and to the end of the Earth . '' They then proceed to do so , in the order outlined : first Jerusalem , then Judea , then Samaria , then the entire ( Roman ) world . For Luke , the Holy Spirit is the driving force behind the spread of the Christian message , and he places more emphasis on it than do any of the other evangelists . The Spirit is `` poured out '' at Pentecost , on the first Samaritan and Gentile believers , and on disciples who had been baptised only by John the Baptist , each time as a sign of God 's approval . The Holy Spirit represents God 's power ( At his ascension , Jesus tells his followers , `` You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you '' ) : through it the disciples are given speech to convert thousands in Jerusalem , forming the first church ( the term is used for the first time in Acts 5 ) . One issue debated by scholars is Luke 's political vision regarding the relationship between the early church and the Roman Empire . On the one hand , Luke generally does not portray this interaction as one of direct conflict . Rather , there are ways in which each may have considered having a relationship with the other rather advantageous to its own cause . For example , early Christians may have appreciated hearing about the protection Paul received from Roman officials against Gentile rioters in Philippi ( Acts 16 : 16 - 40 ) and Ephesus ( Acts 19 : 23 - 41 ) , and against Jewish rioters on two occasions ( Acts 17 : 1 - 17 ; Acts 18 : 12 - 17 ) . Meanwhile , Roman readers may have approved of Paul 's censure of the illegal practice of magic ( Acts 19 : 17 - 19 ) as well as the amicability of his rapport with Roman officials such as Sergius Paulus ( Acts 13 : 6 - 12 ) and Festus ( Acts 26 : 30 - 32 ) . Furthermore , Acts does not include any account of a struggle between Christians and the Roman government as a result of the latter 's imperial cult . Thus Paul is depicted as a moderating presence between the church and the Roman Empire . On the other hand , events such as the imprisonment of Paul at the hands of the empire ( Acts 22 - 28 ) as well as several encounters that reflect negatively on Roman officials ( for instance , Felix 's desire for a bribe from Paul in Acts 24 : 26 ) function as concrete points of conflict between Rome and the early church . Perhaps the most significant point of tension between Roman imperial ideology and Luke 's political vision is reflected in Peter 's speech to the Roman centurion , Cornelius ( Acts 10 : 36 ) . Peter states that `` this one '' ( οὗτος ) , i.e. Jesus , `` is lord ( κύριος ) of all . '' The title , κύριος , was often ascribed to the Roman emperor in antiquity , rendering its use by Luke as an appellation for Jesus an unsubtle challenge to the emperor 's authority . Thus , while the overt relationship between Christianity and empire in the book of Acts can generally be characterized as irenic , Luke insinuates the inevitability of conflict between the two over the issue of ultimate allegiance . Comparison with other writings ( edit ) Saint Paul Writing His Epistles , ascribed to Valentin de Boulogne , 17th century Gospel of Luke ( edit ) As the second part of the two - part work Luke -- Acts , Acts has significant links to the Gospel of Luke . Major turning points in the structure of Acts , for example , find parallels in Luke : the presentation of the child Jesus in the Temple parallels the opening of Acts in the Temple , Jesus 's forty days of testing in the wilderness prior to his mission parallel the forty days prior to his Ascension in Acts , the mission of Jesus in Samaria and the Decapolis ( the lands of the Samaritans and Gentiles ) parallels the missions of the Apostles in Samaria and the Gentile lands , and so on ( see Gospel of Luke ) . These parallels continue through both books . There are also differences between Luke and Acts , amounting at times to outright contradiction . For example , the gospel seems to place the Ascension on Easter Sunday , immediately after the Resurrection , while Acts 1 puts it forty days later . There are similar conflicts over the theology . While not seriously questioning the single authorship of Luke -- Acts , these differences do suggest the need for caution in seeking too much consistency in books written in essence as popular literature . Pauline epistles ( edit ) Acts agrees with Paul 's letters on the major outline of Paul 's career : as Saul he is converted and becomes Paul the Christian missionary and apostle , establishing new churches in Asia Minor and the Aegean and struggling to free Gentile Christians from the Jewish Law . There are also agreements on many incidents , such as Paul 's escape from Damascus , where he is lowered down the walls in a basket . But details of these same incidents are frequently contradictory : for example , according to Paul it was a pagan king who was trying to arrest him in Damascus , but according to Luke it was , characteristically , the Jews ( 2 Corinthians 11 : 33 and Acts 9 : 24 ) . Many of the disagreements are not so immediately obvious : Acts speaks of `` Christians '' and `` disciples '' , but Paul never uses either term , and it is striking that Acts never brings Paul into conflict with the Jerusalem church and places Paul under the authority of the Jerusalem church and its leaders , especially James and Peter ( Acts 15 vs. Galatians 2 ) . Acts omits much from the letters , notably Paul 's problems with his congregations ( internal difficulties are said to be the fault of the Jews instead ) , and his apparent final rejection by the church leaders in Jerusalem ( Acts has Paul and Barnabas deliver an offering that is accepted , a trip that has no mention in the letters ) . There are also major differences between Acts and Paul on Christology ( the understanding of Christ 's nature ) , eschatology ( understanding of the `` last things '' ) , and apostleship . See also ( edit ) Book : Acts of the Apostles Bible portal Acts of the Apostles ( genre ) List of Gospels List of omitted Bible verses The Lost Chapter of the Acts of the Apostles , also known as the Sonnini Manuscript Textual variants in the Acts of the Apostles Holy Spirit in the Acts of the Apostles References ( edit ) ^ Jump up to : Burkett 2002 , p. 263 . Jump up ^ Charlesworth 2008 , p. no page numbers . ^ Jump up to : Burkett 2002 , p. 195 . ^ Jump up to : Pickett 2011 , pp. 6 -- 7 . Jump up ^ Boring 2012 , p. 563 . ^ Jump up to : Matthews 2011 , p. 12 . Jump up ^ Boring 2012 , p. 556 . Jump up ^ Burkett 2002 , p. 196 . ^ Jump up to : Theissen & Merz 1998 , p. 32 . Jump up ^ Perkins 1998 , p. 253 . Jump up ^ Boring 2012 , p. 590 . ^ Jump up to : Green 1997 , p. 35 . ^ Jump up to : Boring 2012 , p. 587 . ^ Jump up to : Perkins 2009 , pp. 250 -- 53 . Jump up ^ Luke 1 : 1 , 3 Jump up ^ Aune 1988 , p. 77 . ^ Jump up to : Balch 2003 , p. 1104 . Jump up ^ Bruce 1990 , p. 40 . Jump up ^ Boring 2012 , p. 577 . Jump up ^ Witherington 1998 , p. 8 . Jump up ^ Boring 2012 , p. 578 . Jump up ^ Bruce 1990 , pp. 40 -- 41 . Jump up ^ Boring 2012 , p. 579 . Jump up ^ Holladay 2011 , p. no page numbers . Jump up ^ Green 1995 , pp. 16 -- 17 . Jump up ^ Green 1997 , p. 36 . Jump up ^ Fitzmyer 1998 , pp. 55 -- 65 . Jump up ^ Aune 1988 , p. 80 . Jump up ^ Boring 2012 , p. 562 . ^ Jump up to : Thompson 2010 , p. 332 . Jump up ^ Boring 2012 , pp. 569 -- 70 . Jump up ^ `` Bruderhof - Fellowship for Intentional Community '' . Fellowship for Intentional Community . Retrieved 2017 - 12 - 28 . Jump up ^ Burkett 2002 , p. 265 . Jump up ^ Burkett 2002 , p. 266 . Jump up ^ Buckwalter 1996 , p. 6 . Jump up ^ Allen 2009 , p. 326 . Jump up ^ Evans 2011 , p. no page numbers . Jump up ^ Burkett 2002 , p. 264 . Jump up ^ Burkett 2002 , pp. 268 -- 70 . Jump up ^ Phillips 2009 , pp. 119 . Jump up ^ Phillips 2009 , pp. 119 - 21 . Jump up ^ Rowe 2005 , pp. 291 - 8 . Jump up ^ Zwiep 2010 , p. 39 . Jump up ^ Parsons 1993 , pp. 17 -- 18 . Jump up ^ Phillips , Thomas E. ( January 1 , 2010 ) . Paul , His Letters , and Acts . Grand Rapids , Mich. : Baker Academic . p. 196 . ISBN 978 - 1 - 4412 - 5793 - 2 . Jump up ^ Boring 2012 , pp. 581 , 588 -- 90 . Bibliography ( edit ) Allen , O. Wesley , Jr. ( 2009 ) . `` Luke '' . In Petersen , David L. ; O'Day , Gail R. Theological Bible Commentary . Westminster John Knox Press . Aune , David E. ( 1988 ) . The New Testament in its literary environment . Westminster John Knox Press . Balch , David L. ( 2003 ) . `` Luke '' . In Dunn , James D.G. ; Rogerson , John William . Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible . Eerdmans . Boring , M. Eugene ( 2012 ) . An Introduction to the New Testament : History , Literature , Theology . Westminster John Knox Press . Bruce , F.F. ( 1990 ) . The Acts of the Apostles : The Greek Text with Introduction and Commentary . Eerdmans . ISBN 978 - 0802809667 . Buckwalter , Douglas ( 1996 ) . The Character and Purpose of Luke 's Christology . Cambridge University Press . Burkett , Delbert ( 2002 ) . An introduction to the New Testament and the origins of Christianity . Cambridge University Press . ISBN 978 - 0 - 521 - 00720 - 7 . Charlesworth , James H. ( 2008 ) . The Historical Jesus : An Essential Guide . Abingdon Press . Evans , Craig A. ( 2011 ) . Luke . Baker Books . Fitzmyer , Joseph A. ( 1998 ) . The Anchor Bible : The Acts of the Apostles - A new Translation with Introduction and Commentary . Doubleday . ISBN 978 - 0385490207 . Gooding , David ( 2013 ) . True to the Faith : The Acts of the Apostles : Defining and Defending the Gospel . Myrtlefield House . Green , Joel ( 1995 ) . The Theology of the Gospel of Luke . Cambridge University Press . Green , Joel ( 1997 ) . The Gospel of Luke . Eerdmans . Holladay , Carl R. ( 2011 ) . A Critical Introduction to the New Testament : Interpreting the Message and Meaning of Jesus Christ . Abingdon Press . Matthews , Christopher R. ( 2011 ) . `` Acts of the Apostles '' . In Coogan , Michael D . The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Books of the Bible . Oxford University Press . Parsons , Mikeal C. ( 1993 ) . Rethinking the Unity of Luke and Acts . Fortress Press . Perkins , Pheme ( 1998 ) . `` The Synoptic Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles : Telling the Christian Story '' . In Barton , John . The Cambridge companion to biblical interpretation . Westminster John Knox Press . ISBN 978 - 0 - 521 - 48593 - 7 . Perkins , Pheme ( 2009 ) . Introduction to the Synoptic Gospels . Eerdmans . ISBN 978 - 0 - 8028 - 6553 - 3 . Phillips , Thomas E. ( 2009 ) . Paul , His Letters , and Acts . Baker Academic . Pickett , Raymond ( 2011 ) . `` Luke and Empire : An Introduction '' . In Rhoads , David ; Esterline , David ; Lee , Jae Won . Luke - Acts and Empire : Essays in Honor of Robert L. Brawley . Wipf and Stock Publishers . Rowe , C. Kavin ( 2005 ) . `` Luke - Acts and the Imperial Cult : A Way through the Conundrum ? '' . Journal for the Study of the New Testament . 27 ( 3 ) : 279 -- 300 . Theissen , Gerd ; Merz , Annette ( 1998 ) . The historical Jesus : a comprehensive guide . Eerdmans . Thompson , Richard P. ( 2010 ) . `` Luke - Acts : The Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles '' . In Aune , David E. The Blackwell Companion to The New Testament . Wiley -- Blackwell . Witherington , Ben ( 1998 ) . The Acts of the Apostles : A Socio - rhetorical Commentary . Eerdmans . Zwiep , Arie W. ( 2010 ) . Christ , the Spirit and the Community of God : Essays on the Acts of the Apostles . Mohr Siebeck . External links ( edit ) Wikimedia Commons has media related to Acts of the Apostles . Wikisource has original text related to this article : Acts Wikiversity has learning resources about Biblical Studies ( NT ) # Acts : The Birth and Growth of the Early Church Wikiquote has quotations related to : Acts of the Apostles A Brief Introduction to Luke -- Acts is available online . Book of Acts at Bible Gateway ( NIV & KJV ) Tertullian.org : The Western Text of the Acts of the Apostles ( 1923 ) J.M. WILSON , D.D. Texts on Wikisource : Breen , Andrew Edward ( 1913 ) . `` Acts of the Apostles '' . Catholic Encyclopedia . Aherene , C. ( 1913 ) . `` Gospel of Saint Luke '' . Catholic Encyclopedia . See Section VI : Saint Luke 's Accuracy `` Acts of the Apostles '' . New International Encyclopedia . 1905 . `` Acts of the Apostles '' . The American Cyclopædia. 1879 . Bible : Acts public domain audiobook at LibriVox Various versions Acts of the Apostles Acts of the Apostles Preceded by Gospel of John New Testament Books of the Bible Succeeded by Paul 's Epistle to the Romans Acts of the Apostles Bible Acts 1 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Places Achaea Alexandria Amphipolis Antioch of Pisidia Antioch of Syria Asia Assos Atalia Athens Berea Bithynia Caesarea Cenchrea Chios Cilicia Corinth Cos Creta Cyprus Derbe Ephesus Forum Appii Galatia Iconium Italy Jerusalem Lycaonia Lystra Macedonia Malta Mytilene Miletus Mysia Neapolis Paphos Pamphilia Patara Perga Philippi Phrygia Pisidia Pontus Ptolemais Puteoli Regium Rodos Rome Salamis Samos Samothrace Seleucia Syracuse Syria Thessalonica Thyatira Tyre Three Taverns Troas People Aeneas Agabus Agrippa Agrippa II Ananias ( Judaea ) Ananias ( Damascus ) Ananias ben Nebedeus Apollos Aquila Aristarchus Bar - jesus Barnabas Berenice Blastus Cornelius Demetrius Dionysius Dorcas Drusilla Ethiopian eunuch Eutychus Felix Festus Gallio Gamaliel James the Just Jason Joseph Barsabbas Judas Barsabbas Judas of Galilee Lucius Luke Lydia Lysias Manaen ( John ) Mark Mary mother of John Mark Matthias Nicanor Nicholas Parmenas Paul Paullus Peter Philip Priscilla Prochorus Publius Rhoda Sapphira Sceva Seven Deacons Silas / Silvanus Simeon Niger Simon the Sorcerer Sopater Stephen Theudas Timothy Titus Trophimus Tychicus Other Events Ascension Pentecost Conversion of Paul Peter 's vision Peter 's liberation Council of Jerusalem Areopagus sermon Book burning at Ephesus Sources Greek Text Latin Vulgate Wycliffe Version King James Version American Standard Version World English Version ← Gospel of John ( chapter 21 ) Epistle to the Romans ( chapter 1 ) → Books of the Bible Principal divisions Hebrew Bible / Old Testament Protocanon Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy Joshua Judges Ruth 1 -- 2 Samuel 1 -- 2 Kings 1 -- 2 Chronicles Ezra Nehemiah Esther Job Psalms Proverbs Ecclesiastes Song Isaiah Jeremiah Lamentations Ezekiel Daniel Hosea Joel Amos Obadiah Jonah Micah Nahum Habakkuk Zephaniah Haggai Zechariah Malachi Deuterocanon and Apocrypha Catholic Orthodox Tobit Judith Additions to Esther 1 Maccabees 2 Maccabees Wisdom Sirach Baruch / Letter of Jeremiah Additions to Daniel Susanna Song of the Three Children Bel and the Dragon ) Orthodox only 1 Esdras 2 Esdras Prayer of Manasseh Psalm 151 3 Maccabees 4 Maccabees Odes Tewahedo Orthodox Enoch Jubilees 1 , 2 , and 3 Meqabyan Paralipomena of Baruch Broader canon Syriac Letter of Baruch 2 Baruch Psalms 152 -- 155 New Testament Matthew Mark Luke John Acts Romans 1 Corinthians 2 Corinthians Galatians Ephesians Philippians Colossians 1 Thessalonians 2 Thessalonians 1 Timothy 2 Timothy Titus Philemon Hebrews James 1 Peter 2 Peter 1 John 2 John 3 John Jude Revelation Subdivisions Chapters and verses Pentateuch Wisdom Major prophets / Minor prophets Gospels Synoptic Epistles Pauline Johannine Pastoral Catholic Apocalyptic literature Development Old Testament canon New Testament canon Antilegomena Jewish canon Christian canon Manuscripts Dead Sea Scrolls Samaritan Pentateuch Septuagint Targum Diatessaron Muratorian fragment Peshitta Vetus Latina Masoretic Text New Testament manuscript categories New Testament papyri New Testament uncials See also Biblical canon Luther 's canon Authorship English Bible translations Other books referenced in the Bible Pseudepigrapha list New Testament apocrypha Studies Synod of Hippo Textual criticism Portal WikiProject Book New Testament people Jesus Christ In Christianity Historical Life in the New Testament Gospels Individuals Alphaeus Anna the Prophetess Annas Barabbas Bartimaeus Blind man ( Bethsaida ) Caiaphas Man born blind ( `` Celidonius '' ) Cleopas Clopas Devil Penitent thief ( `` Dismas '' ) Elizabeth Gabriel Impenitent thief ( `` Gestas '' ) Jairus ' daughter Joanna John the Baptist Joseph Joseph of Arimathea Joses Jude Lazarus Legion Luke Lysanias Malchus Martha Mary , mother of Jesus Mary Magdalene Mary , mother of James Mary of Bethany Mary of Clopas Naked fugitive Son of Nain 's widow Nathanael Nicodemus ( Nicodemus ben Gurion ) Salome Samaritan woman Satan Simeon Simon , brother of Jesus Simon of Cyrene Simon the Leper Simon the Pharisee Susanna Syrophoenician woman Theophilus Zacchaeus Zebedee Zechariah Groups Angels Jesus 's brothers Demons Disciples Evangelists Female disciples of Jesus God - fearers Herodians Magi Myrrhbearers Nameless Pharisees Proselytes Sadducees Samaritans Sanhedrin Scribes Seventy disciples Shepherds Zealots Apostles Andrew Bartholomew James of Alphaeus ( James the Less ) James of Zebedee John Evangelist Patmos `` Disciple whom Jesus loved '' Judas Iscariot Jude Thaddeus Matthew Philip Simon Peter Simon the Zealot Thomas Acts Aeneas Agabus Ananias ( Damascus ) Ananias ( Judaea ) Ananias son of Nedebeus Apollos Aquila Aristarchus Barnabas Blastus Cornelius Demetrius Dionysius Dorcas Elymas Egyptian Ethiopian eunuch Eutychus Gamaliel James , brother of Jesus Jason Joseph Barsabbas Judas Barsabbas Judas of Galilee Lucius Luke Lydia Manaen ( John ) Mark Evangelist cousin of Barnabas Mary , mother of ( John ) Mark Matthias Mnason Nicanor Nicholas Parmenas Paul Philip Priscilla Prochorus Publius Rhoda Sapphira Sceva Seven Deacons Silas / Silvanus Simeon Niger Simon Magus Sopater Sosthenes Stephen Theudas Timothy Titus Trophimus Tychicus Zenas Romans Herod 's family Gospels Antipas Archelaus Herod the Great Herodias Longinus Philip Pilate Pilate 's wife Quirinius Salome Tiberius Acts Agrippa Agrippa II Berenice Cornelius Drusilla Felix Festus Gallio Lysias Paullus Epistles Achaicus Alexander Andronicus Archippus Aretas IV Carpus Claudia Crescens Demas Diotrephes Epaphras Epaphroditus Erastus Eunice Euodia and Syntyche Herodion Hymenaeus Jesus Justus John the Presbyter Junia Lois Mary Michael Nymphas Olympas Onesimus Onesiphorus Pudens Philemon Philetus Phoebe Quartus Sosipater Tertius Revelation Antipas Four Horsemen Apollyon Two witnesses Woman Beast Three Angels Whore of Babylon Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Acts_of_the_Apostles&oldid=817443532 '' Categories : New Testament books 1st - 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Question: who is the book of acts written to


Gómez - wikipedia Gómez Jump to : navigation , search For other uses , see Gómez ( disambiguation ) . Gómez is a common Spanish surname . The Portuguese and Old Galician version is Gomes , while the Catalan form is Gomis . The name is usually spelled without the accent in the United States . It is derived from the given name Gomes which is a loanword of the Visigothic word guma `` man '' . It is itself related to the Common Germanic word guma ( Old English guma `` man '' , Middle English gome ) / gomo ( High Old German gomo `` man '' , Middle High German gome ) related to Latin homo `` man '' . People ( edit ) Notable people with the surname include : Arthur Gómez ( born 1984 ) , Gambian footballer Begoña Gómez Martín ( born 1964 ) , Olympic judoka Bolívar Gómez ( born 1977 ) , Ecuadorian footballer Camilo Gómez ( born 1984 ) , Colombian road cyclist Camilo Gomez ( born 1960 ) , American physician Carlos Gómez ( born 1985 ) , Dominican baseball player Emmanuel Gómez ( born 1990 ) , Gambian footballer Francis Gómez ( born 1968 ) , Venezuelan judoka Francisco Javier Gómez Noya , Spanish triathlete George Gomez ( born 1955 ) , Cuban - American industrial designer Ignacio Gómez ( born c. 1962 ) , Colombian journalist Jaime Luis Gomez ( born 1975 ) , American rapper and actor Joe Gomez ( born 1997 ) , English footballer Jorge Gómez ( born 1968 ) , Chilean footballer Joseph Gómez ( born 1987 ) , Gambian footballer Joshua Gomez ( born 1975 ) , American actor Juan Vicente Gómez ( 1857 -- 1935 ) , ruler of Venezuela in 1908 -- 35 Lefty Gomez ( 1908 -- 1989 ) , American baseball player Luis Humberto Gómez Gallo ( 1962 − 2013 ) , Colombian industrial engenier María Cristina Gómez ( 1938 -- 1989 ) , Salvadoran murder victim Mariano Gómez ( 1799 -- 1872 ) , Filipino priest and martyr Mario Gómez ( born 1985 ) , German footballer Mauro Gómez ( born 1984 ) , Dominican baseball player Máximo Gómez ( 1836 -- 1905 ) , Dominican soldier in the Cuban War of Independence Michelle Gomez ( born 1966 ) , Scottish actress Melissa Castrillon Gomez ( born 1995 ) , Colombian chess player Oscar Gómez ( disambiguation ) Rebecca Marie Gomez ( better known for her stage name Becky G ) ( born 1997 ) , American singer and actress Rick Gomez ( born 1972 ) , American actor Richard Gomez ( born 1966 ) , Filipino actor Ron Gomez ( born 1934 ) , Louisiana journalist and former state representative Scott Gomez ( born 1979 ) , American hockey player Selena Gomez ( born 1992 ) , American actress and singer Tamara Gómez Garrido ( born 1991 ) , Spanish triathlete Ulysses Gomez ( born 1983 ) , Mexican - American mixed martial arts fighter Roberto Gomez Bolaños ( 1929 - 2014 ) Mexican screenwriter , actor and comedian See also ( edit ) Gomez ( band ) Gomes ( Portuguese ) Gomis ( Catalan ) Francisco Gómez ( disambiguation ) References ( edit ) Jump up ^ Mossé , Fernand . Manuel de l'anglais du moyen - âge ( in French ) , Tomes I , Aubier Montaigne , 1945 . p. 475 . Jump up ^ Duden , Das Herkunftswörterbuch : Etymologie der deutschen Sprache ( in German ) , Band 7 , Duden Verlag 1989 . p. 96 . Bräutigam . Surname list This page lists people with the surname Gomez . If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page , you may wish to change that link by adding the person 's given name ( s ) to the link . Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title= Gómez&oldid = 838311466 '' Categories : Surnames Spanish - language surnames Patronymic surnames Hidden categories : Disambiguation pages with short description All set index articles Talk About Wikipedia Wikispecies Беларуская Brezhoneg Català Cebuano Deutsch Ελληνικά Español 한국어 Հայերեն עברית Русский Suomi Svenska Українська 中文 6 more Edit links This page was last edited on 26 April 2018 , at 06 : 25 . Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply . By using this site , you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy . Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation , Inc. , a non-profit organization . About Wikipedia

Question: what is the meaning of the name gomez


Pi Day - wikipedia Pi Day Jump to : navigation , search For National Pie Day , see American Pie Council § National Pie Day . Pi Day Larry Shaw , the organizer of the first Pi Day celebration at the Exploratorium in San Francisco . Significance 3 , 1 , and 4 are the three most significant figures of π Celebrations Pie eating , discussions about π Date March 14 Next time March 14 , 2019 ( 2019 - 03 - 14 ) Frequency Annual Related to Pi Approximation Day Part of a series of articles on the mathematical constant π 3.14159 26535 89793 23846 26433 ... Uses Area of a circle Circumference Use in other formulae Properties Irrationality Transcendence Value Less than 22 / 7 Approximations Memorization People Archimedes Liu Hui Zu Chongzhi Aryabhata Madhava Ludolph van Ceulen Seki Takakazu Takebe Kenko William Jones John Machin William Shanks Srinivasa Ramanujan John Wrench Chudnovsky brothers Yasumasa Kanada History Chronology Book In culture Legislation Pi Day Related topics Squaring the circle Basel problem Six nines in π Other topics related to π Pi Day is an annual celebration of the mathematical constant π ( pi ) . Pi Day is observed on March 14 ( 3 / 14 in the month / day format ) since 3 , 1 , and 4 are the first three significant digits of π . In 2009 , the United States House of Representatives supported the designation of Pi Day . Pi Approximation Day is observed on July 22 ( 22 / 7 in the day / month format ) , since the fraction  ⁄ is a common approximation of π , which is accurate to two decimal places and dates from Archimedes . Two Pi Day , also known as Tau Day , is lightly observed on June 28 ( 6 / 28 in the month / day format ) . Contents ( hide ) 1 History 2 Observance 3 See also 4 References 5 External links History ( edit ) In 1988 , the earliest known official or large - scale celebration of Pi Day was organized by Larry Shaw at the San Francisco Exploratorium , where Shaw worked as a physicist , with staff and public marching around one of its circular spaces , then consuming fruit pies . The Exploratorium continues to hold Pi Day celebrations . On March 12 , 2009 , the U.S. House of Representatives passed a non-binding resolution ( 111 H. Res. 224 ) , recognizing March 14 , 2009 as National Pi Day . For Pi Day 2010 , Google presented a Google Doodle celebrating the holiday , with the word Google laid over images of circles and pi symbols ; and for the 30th anniversary in 2018 , it was a Dominique Ansel pie with the circumference divided by its diameter . The entire month of March 2014 ( 3 / 14 ) was observed by some as `` Pi Month '' . In the year 2015 , Pi Day had special significance on 3 / 14 / 15 ( month / day / year date format ) at 9 : 26 : 53 a.m. and also at p.m. , with the date and time representing the first 10 digits of π . Observance ( edit ) Pi Day has been observed in many ways , including eating pie , throwing pies and discussing the significance of the number π , due to a pun based on the words `` pi '' and `` pie '' being homophones in English ( / paɪ / ) , and the coincidental circular nature of a pie . Massachusetts Institute of Technology has often mailed its application decision letters to prospective students for delivery on Pi Day . Starting in 2012 , MIT has announced it will post those decisions ( privately ) online on Pi Day at exactly 6 : 28 pm , which they have called `` Tau Time '' , to honor the rival numbers pi and tau equally . In 2015 , the regular decisions were put online at 9 : 26 AM , following that year 's `` pi minute '' . June 28 is `` Two Pi Day '' , also known as `` Tau Day '' . 2π , also known by the Greek letter tau ( τ ) is a common multiple in mathematical formulae . Some have argued that τ is the more fundamental constant , and that Tau Day should be celebrated instead . Celebrations of this date jokingly suggest eating `` twice the pie '' . Princeton , New Jersey , hosts numerous events in a combined celebration of Pi Day and Albert Einstein 's birthday , which is also March 14 . Einstein lived in Princeton for more than twenty years while working at the Institute for Advanced Study . In addition to pie eating and recitation contests , there is an annual Einstein look - alike contest . Pi Pie at Delft University Blackberry Pi Pie A grocery store selling pies for 3.14 dollars , Pi Day 2015 See also ( edit ) Mole Day Sequential time Square Root Day References ( edit ) ^ Jump up to : Landau , Elizabeth ( March 12 , 2010 ) . `` On Pi Day , one number ' reeks of mystery ' '' . CNN . Retrieved March 14 , 2018 . Jump up ^ Bellos , Alex ( March 14 , 2015 ) . `` Pi Day 2015 : a sweet treat for maths fans '' . theguardian.com . Retrieved March 14 , 2016 . Jump up ^ Program on Sveriges Radio -- Swedish national radio company Read March 14 , 2015 ^ Jump up to : United States . Cong . House . Supporting the designation of Pi Day , and for other purposes . 111th Cong . Library of Congress . Jump up ^ `` Pi Approximation Day is celebrated today '' . Today In History . Verizon Foundation . Retrieved January 30 , 2011 . Jump up ^ Tau Day : Why you should eat twice the pie -- Light Years -- CNN.com Blogs Archived 12 January 2013 at the Wayback Machine . Jump up ^ Berton , Justin ( March 11 , 2009 ) . `` Any way you slice it , pi 's transcendental '' . San Francisco Chronicle . Retrieved March 18 , 2011 . Jump up ^ Borwein , Jonathan ( March 10 , 2011 ) . `` The infinite appeal of pi '' . Australian Broadcasting Corporation . Retrieved March 13 , 2011 . Jump up ^ Apollo , Adrian ( March 10 , 2007 ) . `` A place where learning pi is a piece of cake '' ( PDF ) . The Fresno Bee . Jump up ^ `` Exploratorium 22nd Annual Pi Day '' . Exploratorium . Retrieved January 31 , 2011 . Jump up ^ McCullagh , Declan ( March 11 , 2009 ) . `` National Pi Day ? Congress makes it official '' . Politics and Law . CNET News . Retrieved March 14 , 2009 . Jump up ^ `` Pi Day '' . Google Doodles . Google . Retrieved October 9 , 2012 . Jump up ^ `` 30th Anniversary of Pi Day ! '' . www.google.com . Retrieved 2018 - 03 - 19 . Jump up ^ Main , Douglas ( March 14 , 2014 ) . `` It 's Not Just Pi Day , It 's Pi Month ! '' . Popular Science . Retrieved July 22 , 2014 . Jump up ^ `` Pi Month Celebration & Circle of Discovery Award Presentation College of Computer , Mathematical , and Natural Sciences '' . Cmns.umd.edu . March 11 , 2014 . Retrieved July 22 , 2014 . Jump up ^ Ro , Sam ( March 13 , 2014 ) . `` March 14 , 2015 Will Be A Once - In - A-Century Thrill For Math Geeks '' . Business Insider . Retrieved March 13 , 2014 . Jump up ^ Smith , K.N. `` Wednesday 's Google Doodle Celebrates Pi Day '' . Jump up ^ McClan , Erin ( March 14 , 2007 ) . `` Pi fans meet March 14 ( 3.14 , get it ? ) '' . msnbc.com . Retrieved January 24 , 2008 . Jump up ^ `` I have SMASHING news ! '' . MIT Admissions . Retrieved March 12 , 2012 . Jump up ^ McGann , Matt . `` Pi Day , Tau Time '' . MIT Admissions . Retrieved March 18 , 2012 . Jump up ^ `` Keep your eyes to the skies this Pi Day '' . MIT Admissions . Retrieved March 14 , 2018 . Jump up ^ `` It 's Pi Day today . But these people say we should refuse to celebrate it '' . The Independent . March 13 , 2018 . Retrieved March 14 , 2018 . Jump up ^ `` Pi Day Turns 25 : Why We Celebrate an Irrational Number '' . March 14 , 2013 . Retrieved March 14 , 2018 . Jump up ^ Bartholomew , Randyn Charles . `` Why Tau Trumps Pi '' . Scientific American . Jump up ^ Landau , Elizabeth . `` In case Pi Day was n't enough , it 's now ' Tau Day ' on the Internet '' . CNN . Jump up ^ `` Tau Day - Come Eat Twice the ( Pi ) e '' . ^ Jump up to : `` Princeton Pi Day & Einstein Birthday Party '' . Princeton Regional Convention and Visitors Bureau . Retrieved March 14 , 2013 . External links ( edit ) Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pi Day . Exploratorium 's Pi Day Web Site NPR provides a `` Pi Rap '' audiovideo Pi Day Professor Lesser 's Pi Day page ( hide ) Events commemorating achievements in the sciences Anniversary celebrations Alfred Russel Wallace centenary Darwin Centennial Celebration ( 1959 ) Regular holidays Ada Lovelace Day Darwin Day DNA Day Evolution Day Mole Day Pi Day Yuri 's Night Year long events First International Polar Year ( 1882 -- 1883 ) Second International Polar Year ( 1932 -- 1933 ) International Polar Year ( 2007 -- 2008 ) International Geophysical Year International Year of Planet Earth International Year of Astronomy International Year of Chemistry International Year of Crystallography International Year of Light International Space Year World Year of Physics 2005 Holidays , observances , and celebrations in the United States January New Year 's Day ( federal ) Martin Luther King Jr . Day ( federal ) Confederate Heroes Day ( TX ) Fred Korematsu Day ( CA , FL , HI , VA ) Idaho Human Rights Day ( ID ) Inauguration Day ( federal quadrennial , DC area ) Kansas Day ( KS ) Lee -- Jackson Day ( formerly Lee -- Jackson -- King Day ) ( VA ) Robert E. Lee Day ( FL ) Stephen Foster Memorial Day ( 36 ) The Eighth ( LA , former federal ) January -- February Super Bowl Sunday February American Heart Month Black History Month Washington 's Birthday / Presidents ' Day ( federal ) Valentine 's Day Georgia Day ( GA ) Groundhog Day Lincoln 's Birthday ( CA , CT , IL , IN , MO , NJ , NY , WV ) National Girls and Women in Sports Day National Freedom Day ( 36 ) Primary Election Day ( WI ) Ronald Reagan Day ( CA ) Rosa Parks Day ( CA , MO ) Susan B. Anthony Day ( CA , FL , NY , WI , WV , proposed federal ) February -- March Mardi Gras Ash Wednesday ( religious ) Courir de Mardi Gras ( religious ) Super Tuesday March Irish - American Heritage Month National Colon Cancer Awareness Month Women 's History Month St. Patrick 's Day ( religious ) Spring break ( week ) Casimir Pulaski Day ( IL ) Cesar Chavez Day ( CA , CO , TX , proposed federal ) Evacuation Day ( Suffolk County , MA ) Harriet Tubman Day ( NY ) Holi ( NY , religious ) Mardi Gras ( AL ( in two counties ) , LA ) Maryland Day ( MD ) National Poison Prevention Week ( week ) Prince Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole Day ( HI ) Saint Joseph 's Day ( religious ) Seward 's Day ( AK ) Texas Independence Day ( TX ) Town Meeting Day ( VT ) March -- April Easter ( religious ) Palm Sunday ( religious ) Passover ( religious ) Good Friday ( CT , NC , PR , religious ) Easter Monday ( religious ) April Confederate History Month 420 Day April Fools ' Day Arbor Day Confederate Memorial Day ( AL , MS ) Days of Remembrance of the Victims of the Holocaust ( week ) Earth Day Emancipation Day ( DC ) Thomas Jefferson 's Birthday ( AL ) Pascua Florida ( FL ) Patriots ' Day ( MA , ME ) San Jacinto Day ( TX ) Siblings Day Walpurgis Night ( religious ) May Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Jewish American Heritage Month Memorial Day ( federal ) Mother 's Day ( 36 ) Cinco de Mayo Harvey Milk Day ( CA ) Law Day ( 36 ) Loyalty Day ( 36 ) Malcolm X Day ( CA , IL , proposed federal ) May Day Military Spouse Day National Day of Prayer ( 36 ) National Defense Transportation Day ( 36 ) National Maritime Day ( 36 ) Peace Officers Memorial Day ( 36 ) Truman Day ( MO ) June Lesbian , Gay , Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month Father 's Day ( 36 ) Bunker Hill Day ( Suffolk County , MA ) Carolina Day ( SC ) Emancipation Day In Texas / Juneteenth ( TX ) Flag Day ( 36 , proposed federal ) Helen Keller Day ( PA ) Honor America Days ( 3 weeks ) Jefferson Davis Day ( AL , FL ) Kamehameha Day ( HI ) Odunde Festival ( Philadelphia , PA ) Senior Week ( week ) West Virginia Day ( WV ) July Independence Day ( federal ) Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea ( HI , unofficial ) Parents ' Day ( 36 ) Pioneer Day ( UT ) July -- August Summer vacation August American Family Day ( AZ ) Barack Obama Day ( IL ) Bennington Battle Day ( VT ) Hawaii Admission Day / Statehood Day ( HI ) Lyndon Baines Johnson Day ( TX ) National Aviation Day ( 36 ) Service Reduction Day ( MD ) Victory over Japan Day ( RI , former federal ) Women 's Equality Day ( 36 ) September Prostate Cancer Awareness Month Labor Day ( federal ) California Admission Day ( CA ) Carl Garner Federal Lands Cleanup Day ( 36 ) Constitution Day ( 36 ) Constitution Week ( week ) Defenders Day ( MD ) Gold Star Mother 's Day ( 36 ) National Grandparents Day ( 36 ) National Payroll Week ( week ) Native American Day ( CA , TN , proposed federal ) Patriot Day ( 36 ) September -- October Hispanic Heritage Month Oktoberfest Rosh Hashanah ( religious ) Yom Kippur ( religious ) October Breast Cancer Awareness Month Disability Employment Awareness Month Filipino American History Month LGBT History Month Columbus Day ( federal ) Halloween Alaska Day ( AK ) Child Health Day ( 36 ) General Pulaski Memorial Day German - American Day Indigenous Peoples ' Day ( VT ) International Day of Non-Violence Leif Erikson Day ( 36 ) Missouri Day ( MO ) National School Lunch Week Native American Day ( SD ) Nevada Day ( NV ) Sweetest Day White Cane Safety Day ( 36 ) October -- November Diwali ( religious ) November Native American Indian Heritage Month Veterans Day ( federal ) Thanksgiving ( federal ) Day after Thanksgiving ( 24 ) Election Day ( CA , DE , HI , KY , MT , NJ , NY , OH , PR , WV , proposed federal ) Family Day ( NV ) Hanukkah ( religious ) Lā Kūʻokoʻa ( HI , unofficial ) Native American Heritage Day ( MD , WA ) Obama Day ( Perry County , AL ) December Christmas ( religious , federal ) Alabama Day ( AL ) Christmas Eve ( KY , NC , SC ) Day after Christmas ( KY , NC , SC , TX ) Festivus Hanukkah ( religious , week ) Indiana Day ( IN ) Kwanzaa ( religious , week ) National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day ( 36 ) New Year 's Eve Pan American Aviation Day ( 36 ) Rosa Parks Day ( OH , OR ) Wright Brothers Day ( 36 ) Varies ( year round ) Eid al - Adha ( religious ) Eid al - Fitr ( religious ) Ramadan ( religious , month ) Legend : ( federal ) = federal holidays , ( state ) = state holidays , ( religious ) = religious holidays , ( week ) = weeklong holidays , ( month ) = monthlong holidays , ( 36 ) = Title 36 Observances and Ceremonies Bold indicates major holidays commonly celebrated in the United States , which often represent the major celebrations of the month . See also : Lists of holidays , Hallmark holidays , public holidays in the United States , New Jersey , New York , Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands . Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pi_Day&oldid=836777851 '' Categories : 1988 establishments in California March observances July observances Observances about science Pi Recurring events established in 1988 Unofficial observances Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Use mdy dates from March 2018 Infobox holiday fixed day Talk Contents About Wikipedia অসমীয়া Asturianu বাংলা Беларуская ( тарашкевіца )  Български Català Чӑвашла Čeština Cymraeg Dansk Deutsch Eesti Ελληνικά Español Esperanto فارسی Français 한국어 Հայերեն हिन्दी Hrvatski Bahasa Indonesia Íslenska Italiano עברית ಕನ್ನಡ ქართული Kiswahili Lietuvių Magyar Македонски മലയാളം Nederlands नेपाली 日本 語 Norsk Norsk nynorsk ଓଡ଼ିଆ Polski Português Română Русский Scots සිංහල Simple English Slovenčina Slovenščina کوردی Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska தமிழ் తెలుగు ไทย Türkçe Українська Tiếng Việt 文言 粵語 中文 52 more Edit links This page was last edited on 16 April 2018 , at 19 : 54 . 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Question: how long have we been celebrating pi day