Soter derives from the Ancient Greek epithet (Sōtḗr), meaning a saviour, a deliverer. The feminine form is Soteira (Σώτειρα, Sṓteira) or sometimes Soteria (Σωτηρία, Sōtería).
Soter was used as:
- A title of gods: Poseidon Soter, Zeus Soter, Dionysus Soter, Apollo Soter, Hades Soter, Helios Soter, Athena Soteira, Asclepius Soter, Persephone Soteira, and Hecate Soteira.
- The name of a distinct mythical figure, Soter (daimon)
- An epithet of several Hellenistic rulers
- a title of liberators (see also eleutherios (disambiguation)
- a title of Jesus of Nazareth, which came into use some time after the death of Paul the Apostle, most particularly in the fish acronym
- the term "God our Saviour" (, dative) occurs several times in the New Testament, in the Epistle of Jude, 1 Timothy and Titus.
- Pope Soter, .
List of People given the epithet of Soter
Hellenistic Rulers
{| class="wikitable"
!Name
!Description
!Dedication
!Dates
!Ref
|-
|Antigonus I Monophthalmus
|King of the Antigonid empire
|Liberating Athens from Cassander
|382–301 BC
|
|-
|Ptolemy I Soter
|King and Pharaoh of Egypt
|
|323–283 BC
|
|-
|Antiochus I Soter
|King of the Seleucid Empire
|Defeating the Gallic invasion of Anatolia
|281 –261 BC
|
|-
|Diodotus I Soter
|King of Bactria
|
|c. 255 – c. 235 BC
|
|-
|Attalus I Soter
|King of Pergamon
|
|241–197 BC
|
|-
|Seleucus III Ceraunus
|King of the Seleucid Empire
|Postumus
|226/225 – 223 BC
|
|-
|Demetrius I Soter
|King of the Seleucid Empire
|
|161–150 BC
|
|-
|Menander I Soter
|Indo-Greek King
|
|c. 165/155 –130 BC
|
|-
|Strato I Soter
|Indo-Greek King
|
|125–110 BCE
|
|-
|Polyxenos Epiphanes Soter
|Indo-Greek King
|
|c. 100 BC
|
|-
|Diomedes Soter
|Indo-Greek King
|
| 95–90 BC
|
|-
|Hermaeus Soter
|Indo-Greek King
|
|90–70 BC
|
|-
|Dionysius Soter
|Indo-Greek King
|
|65–55 BC
|
|-
|Ptolemy IX Soter
|King and Pharaoh of Egypt
|
|116–107 BC, 88–81 BC
|
|-
|Strato II Soter
|Indo-Greek King
|
|25 CE – 10 AD
|
|-
|Rabbel II Soter
|King of Nabataea
|
|70–106 AD
|
|}
Roman Period
{| class="wikitable"
!Name
!Description
!Dedication
!Dates
!Ref
|-
|Titus Quinctius Flamininus
|Proconsul in the east
|Laconia
|198-194 BC
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/3158]
|-
|Lucius Cornelius Sulla
|Proconsul of the east
|Boeotia
|87–85 BC
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/328048]
|-
|Lucius Licinius Murena
|Legatus in the east
|Caria
|83/82 BC?
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/345168]
|-
|Quintus Caecilius Metellus
|Proconsul in the east
|Attica
|c.68–62 BC
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/6393]
|-
|Pompey the Great
|Governor of Asia
|Samos, Lesbos, Keos
|67–61 BC
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/344116][https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/74810][https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/77865]
|-
|Publius Cornelius Sulla
|
|Caria
|67 BC
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/345171]
|-
|Lucius Antonius
|Propraetor of Asia
|Pergamon
|50/49 BC
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/316633]
|-
|Gaius Julius Caesar
|Roman dictator
|Ephesus, Pergamon, Lesbos, Megara
|49–44 BC
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/248666][https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/302034]
[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/322843][https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/143538]
|-
|Quintus Fufius Calenus
|General
|Olympia
|48/47 BC
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/215025]
|-
|Cato the Younger
|Propraetor of Africa
|Utica
|46 BC
|[https://el.wikisource.org/wiki/%CE%92%CE%AF%CE%BF%CE%B9_%CE%A0%CE%B1%CF%81%CE%AC%CE%BB%CE%BB%CE%B7%CE%BB%CE%BF%CE%B9/%CE%9A%CE%AC%CF%84%CF%89%CE%BD#p72.1]
|-
|Marcus Junius Brutus
|Proconsul of Macedonia, Achaia, Illyricum and Asia
|Oropos
|44–42 BC
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/180636]
|-
|Marcus Junius Silanus
|Proquaestor in Achaea and Macedonia
|Attica
|34–32 BC
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/6400]
|-
|Octavianus
|Roman emperor
|Boeotia
|30-27 BC
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/315306?hs=87-93]
|-
|Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa
|Governor of the east
|Corfu, Lesbos
|19–13 BC
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/42452][https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/74868]
|-
|Gaius Marcius Censorinus
|Proconsul of Asia
|Mylasa
|c. 2 AD
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/261159]
|-
|Germanicus
|Governor of the east
|Phrygia
|17–19 AD
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/270983]
|-
|Gaius Trebonius Proculus Mettius Modestus
|Legatus pro praetore of Lycia et Pamphylia,
|Lycia
|99–102 AD
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/284024]
|-
|Quintus Pompeius Falco
|Proconsul of Asia
|Phrygia
|c.123–128 AD
|[https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/272493]
|}
See also
- Hellenistic religion
- Messiah
- Soteria (disambiguation)
- Soteriology, the study of salvation; in Christian contexts, the branch of Christology dealing with Jesus' capacity as Saviour of humankind
- Sozusa (disambiguation)
Notes
: 8.Roman Emperors are excluded from this list as nearly all were granted the epithet of soter.