The "Synagoge" (Gk: collection of useful word explanations) is one of the most important lexicographical sources from early Byzantine times. The anonymous author quotes extracts from the works of ancient authors which have not been preserved elsewhere and gives details of customs and myths from the epoch. At the same time, he presents his own age and provides a rich source of information on education and scholarship.

The present edition combines all the available manuscripts of the oldest version of the "Synagoge", and thus provides the first complete and critical survey of the context of the genesis and developmental stages of this work. In addition, the second part presents a new edition of the letter alpha from manuscript B, which contains particul-arly valuable data and thus required a new edition, the only previous version dating back to 1828. Comprehensive indexes provide access to the edition.