Peliganes


Peliganes is the word used to refer to the Ancient Macedonian Senators. The term is attested to in Hesychius, Strabo and two inscriptions, one from Dion and one from Laodicea. From the description of Hesychius and the epigraphy, it is evident that Peliganes played a more significant role in Seleucids than Macedon. In Ptolemaic Kingdom the term is unattested. The Seleucid cliché phrase was:
The Macedonian supreme body was called Synedrion. Other Seleucid institutions were the Archontes, Demos, Proboule, Boule, Epistatai and Dikastai.

Etymology

Strabo cites the word as Peligones, meaning the senators of both Macedonians, Thesprotians and Molossians and compares them to Gerontes of Laconians and Massaliotes. He further remarks that πελιοί pelioi in the dialects of Epirus and Macedonia, means old men. Πεληός pelêos or ' is the common Doric form, while in Attic πολιός ' means also grey, grey from age, venerable, bright. The suffix -gan is the Attic suffix -genes. There are many more Macedonian inscribed eponyms such as Epigan, Peleigenes, Peleigines, Peligenes. Pelignas was finally a Macedonian or Epirote chef sent by Olympias to Alexander. Polybius mentions Adeiganes for the council, magistrates of Seleucia, ; a word unattested in epigraphy and other sources. Editor P. Roussel has emended to Peleiganes, while Hammond suggests that it might be an original West Macedonian word. The Albanian term plak or pelak, meaning "elder, old man", seems to be ralated to peligones. It is used to refer to the members of the governing councils in the Albanian tribal organization.