EIREN
EIREN (
εἴρην,
ἴρην), the third class of Spartan youth with
regard to age; the series being:
παῖδες
(aged 7-18),
μελλίρανες (18-20),
ἴρανες (20-30). The last were distinguished
again as
πρωτίρανες or
σφαιρεῖς, according as they were near the lower
or upper limit. (Plut.
[p. 1.708]Lye. 17;
πρωτ. =
οἱ περὶ
εἴκοσι ἔτη παρὰ λάκωσι, Phot., Hesych. ed. Schmidt, s.v.
σφ. =
οἱ ἐκ τῶν
ἐφήβων εἰς ἄνδρας ἀρχόμενοι συντελεῖν,
Paus. 3.14,
6, and
C. I. G. 1386, 1432, &c.) The boys and youths
forming a
βοῦα or
ἴλα chose as their leader (
βουαγόρ) the wisest and bravest of the
ἴρανες (Plut.
ib.;
Xen. Rep. Lac. 2.1.
1). These leaders excepted, the
ἴρανες partook with their elders of the common meal (
ἀνδρεῖα). The
ἰρένες mentioned as buried in a separate tomb at Plataea (
Hdt. 4.85) must have been the officers of all
ranks, not young men: Amompharetus, who was one of them, was in command of a
λόχος (Stein
ad
loc.). (Müller,
Dorians, 2.315; Gilbert,
Staatsalterth. i. pp. 68, 71; on the form of the word,
see Kuhn's
Zeitschr. 8.53;
Philol. 10.431;
Curt.
Stud. 4.1, 116.)
[W.S] [J.M]
