Sopater of Apamea

Who is Sopater of Apamea?

Sopater of Apamea, was a distinguished sophist and Neoplatonist philosopher.

He was a disciple of Iamblichus, after whose death, he went to Constantinople, where he enjoyed the favour and personal friendship of Constantine I.

The Suda lists that he wrote variety of works, including one On Providence, and another called People who have Undeserved Good or Bad Fortune. He is distinguished from another sophist of that name "Of Apamea ...", who wrote epitomes of very many authors and probably also the Historical Extracts, of which Photius has preserved a summary, from which it appears that it contained a vast variety of fact and fiction, collected from a great number of authors.

Sozomenus relates "an invention of persons who desired to vilify the Christian religion", that Constantine asked Sopater for purification after having killed his son Crispus and that Sopater denied him.

Sopater was one of many who were put to death by Constantine, sometime before 337 AD. Zosimus ascribes his death to the machinations of Ablabius. Eunapius alleges that Sopater was charged with detaining by magical arts a fleet laden with grain.