PĂRĂSANGA (ὁ παρασάγγης), a Persian measure of length, frequently
mentioned by the Greek writers. It is still used by the Persians, who
call it _ferseng_. According to Herodotus the parasang was equal to
30 Greek stadia. Xenophon must also have calculated it at the same,
as he says that 16,050 stadia are equal to 535 parasangs. (16,050
÷ 535 = 30.) Other ancient writers give a different length for the
parasang. Modern English travellers estimate it variously at from
3½ to 4 English miles, which nearly agrees with the calculation of
Herodotus.
PĂRĂSĪTI (παράσιτοι) properly denotes persons who dine with others.
In the early history of Greece the name had a very different
meaning, being given to distinguished persons, who were appointed as
assistants to certain priests and to the highest magistrates. Their
services appear to have been rewarded with a third of the victims
sacrificed to their respective gods. Such officers existed down to a
late period of Greek history. Solon in his legislation called the act
of giving public meals to certain magistrates and foreign ambassadors
in the prytaneum παρασιτεῖν, and it may be that the parasites were
connected with this institution. The class of persons whom we call
parasites was very numerous in ancient Greece, and appears to have
existed from early times. The characteristic features common to all
parasites are importunity, love of sensual pleasures, and above all
the desire of getting a good dinner without paying for it. During the
time of the Roman emperors a parasite seems to have been a constant
guest at the tables of the wealthy.
PĂRĔDRI (πάρεδροι). Each of the three superior archons was at liberty
to have two assessors (πάρεδροι) chosen by himself, to assist him by
advice and otherwise in the performance of his various duties. The
assessor, like the magistrate himself, had to undergo a _docimasia_
(δοκιμασία) in the Senate of Five Hundred and before a judicial
tribunal, before he could be permitted to enter upon his labours. He
was also to render an account (εὐθύνη) at the end of the year. The
duties of the archons, magisterial and judicial, were so numerous,
that one of the principal objects of having assessors must have been
to enable them to get through their business. From the _paredri_ of
the archons we must distinguish those who assisted the _euthyni_ in
examining and auditing magistrates’ accounts.