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The helots (; , ''heílotes'') were a subjugated population group that formed the main population of Laconia and Messenia, the territory controlled by Sparta. Their exact status was already disputed in antiquity: according to Critias, they were "slaves to the utmost",〔Apud Libanios, ''Orationes'' 25, 63 = Frag. 37 DK; see also Plutarch, ''Li Lycurgus'' 28, 11.〕 whereas according to Pollux, they occupied a status "between free men and slaves".〔Pollux 3, 83. The expression probably originates in Aristophanes of Byzantium; Cartledge, p.139.〕 Tied to the land, they primarily worked in agriculture as a majority and economically supported the Spartan citizens. The number of helots in relation to Spartan citizens varied throughout the history of the Spartan state; according to Herodotus, there were seven helots for each Spartan at the time of the Battle of Plataea in 479 BC.〔Herodotus. ''Histories'', 8, 28-29.〕 Thus the need to keep helot population in check and prevent rebellion was one of the main concerns of the Spartans. Helots were ritually mistreated, humiliated and even slaughtered: every autumn, they could be killed by a member of the Crypteia without fear of repercussion.〔Plutarch, ''Life of Lycurgus'', 28, 3–7.〕〔Herakleides Lembos ''Fr. Hist. Gr.'' 2, 210.〕〔Athenaeus, 657 D.〕 Uprisings and attempts to improve the lot of the helots did occur, such as the Conspiracy of Cinadon. == Etymology == Several theories exist regarding the origin of the name "helot". According to Hellanicus, the word relates to the village of Helos, in the south of Sparta.〔Hellanicos, Frag. 188 J.〕 Pausanias thus states, "Its inhabitants became the first slaves of the Lacedaemonian state, and were the first to be called helots".〔(Trans. by W.H.S. Jones and H.A. Ormerod ) (1918), Accessed: 11 June 2006. Pausanias. ''Description of Greece'', 3, 20, 6.〕 This explanation is however not very plausible in etymological terms.〔P. Chantraine, ''Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue grecque'', s.v. .〕 Linguists have associated the word with the root , ''wel-'', as in , ''halískomai'', "to be captured, to be made prisoner". In fact, some ancient authors did not consider the term ethnic, but rather an indication of servitude: Antiochus of Syracuse writes: "those of the Lacedaemonians who did not take part in the expedition were adjudged slaves and were named helots",〔''(Geography Trans. by H.L. Jones ) (1924), Accessed: 11 June 2006. Apud Strabo 6, 3, 2.〕 while Theopompus (fragment 122), cited by Athenaeus (VI, 416c), states, "...and the one nation called their slaves helots and the others called them penestae..." 〔Athenaeus of Naucratis. Yonge, C.D., Editor. ''(''The Deipnosophists'', or ''Banquet of the Learned'', of Athenæus )''. Accessed: 11 June 2006.〕
Certainly conquest comprised one aspect of helotism; thus Messenians, who were conquered in the Messenian Wars of the 8th century BC, become synonymous in Herodotus with helots. The situation seems less clear in the case of the earliest helots, who, according to Theopompus, were descended from the initial Achaeans, whom the Dorians had conquered. But not all Achaeans were reduced to helotism: the village of Amykles, home of the Hyacinthia festival, enjoyed special status, as did others. Contemporary authors propose alternative theories: according to Antiochus of Syracuse, helots were the Lacedaemonians who did not participate in the Messenian Wars; for Ephorus of Cyme, they were the ''perioeci'' ("dwellers in surrounding communities") from Helos, reduced to slavery after a failed revolt. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Helots」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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