Meanings
- historicalAn ancient Greek colony on the south coast of Sicily, at the site of modern Agrigento.
She^([Syracuse]) was now the nearest Greek neighbour of Carthage; since the overthrow of Selinous, the territories of Carthage and of Akragas had marched on each other.
1892, E. A. Freeman, The History of Sicily from the Earliest Times, Volume III, Clarendon Press, page 5162 more examples
Pindar probably left Greece for Sicily in the autumn of 476 BC, writing to celebrate the victories of the rulers of Akragas, where he lived for a time, and undoubtedly serving as an official poet to the ruling families.
2002, Michael Bennett, Aaron J. Paul, Mario Iozzo, Magna Graecia: Greek Art from South Italy and Sicily, Cleveland Museum of Art, page 37The city of Himera in the north of Sicily had traditionally been on good terms with Carthage; Theron of Akragas took over Himera in 483, and the exiled leader called in the Carthaginians. It was Syracuse rather than Himera which three years later won the battle of Himera. Himera was never rich again, and before the end of the century, Carthage had wiped out Himera, Selinus to the west of Akragas, and finally Akragas itself in 406. There were several restorations of Akragas, including a short Indian summer in the late 4th century BCE, but in the 3rd it became a Carthaginian fortress.
2010, Tim Cooke, editor, The New Cultural Atlas of the Greek World, Marshall Cavendish, page 86
Origin
- Ancient GreekἈκράγᾱς
- EnglishAkragas
Borrowed from Ancient Greek Ἀκράγᾱς (Akrágās); compare Agrigento.
More words from Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
Akragas. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Akragas
“Akragas.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Akragas. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Akragas,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Akragas.
Source: Akragas on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.