<i>Iliad</i> , <i>Odyssey</i> , and statistics

Abstract For centuries, the Homeric Question has fuelled fierce debate among scholars. The Homeric epics are widely regarded as having their origins in the Late Bronze Age, with oral transmission continuing until a final redaction in the eighth to second century BCE. The question of whether a single poet wrote both The Iliad and The Odyssey , the time and place in which Homer(s) worked and lived, and the circumstances of the poems’ final composition are still subjects of discussion. In the present paper, a fairly simple statistical χ 2 analysis has been carried out to evaluate the frequency of the keywords related to metals and weapons, which are mainstays of the material culture of this ancient period. A thorough examination of The Iliad discloses a pronounced predominance of the keyword ‘bronze’, exhibiting a higher frequency in The Iliad than in The Odyssey . On initial observation, the prevalence of dominance appears to be a consequence of the warlike nature of The Iliad . Notwithstanding, a significant dominance endures even when the intrinsic disparities between the two poems are taken into account and suitably adjusted. This remarkable discrepancy suggests the potential for distinct authorship, editorial involvement, or redaction locations for The Iliad and The Odyssey .