Non-Attic vocalism, epichoric forms, and Attic poetic traditions

The phonological element /aː/ instead of the expected epichoric /εː/ in poetic genres associated with Archaic and Classical Attica is normally considered only with regard to the choral sections of tragedy. Also, it is usually agreed that the prestige of choral lyric, in which Doric features are prominent, accounts for the presence of /aː/. Although this interpretation is valid on a general level, it does not tell the whole story about instances of /aː/. First, tragedy is not the only poetic Attic genre in which /aː/ is found rather than the epichoric /εː/; worth mentioning are, inter alia, instances in Attic epigrams. Second, influence from choral lyric is possibly not the sole factor that determined the presence of /aː/ in Attic poetry. This paper presents an analysis of the use of inherited /aː/ in poetic genres tied to Archaic and Classical Attica that goes beyond the traditional scenario just mentioned and focuses chiefly on selected forms in /aː/ in Attic epigrams.