Callinus

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Callinus (also known as Kallinus) was a poet who lived in the ancient Greek city of Ephesus in Asia Minor in the mid-7th century BC. He is the earliest known Greek elegiac poet. Very little is known about his life.

Only a few fragments of the poetry of Callinus have survived. One of the longest such fragments, consisting of 21 lines of verse, is a patriotic elegy to his fellow Ephesians urging them to fight the invading Cimmerians, who were menacing the Greek colonies in Asia Minor: "It is honourable to fight for city and family, death finds everyone." Such compositions were accompanied by a flute or some other form of musical pipe and would be played on military campaigns or in social contexts.

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