Hippias of Elis was born before the middle of the fifth century. He was frequently appointed to represent Elis as an ambassador and traveled widely for professional reasons as well. He was richly paid for his lessons on a variety of topics, including mnemonics, speech rhythms and harmonies, astronomy, mathematics, ethics, and history. He did original work in mathematics, and was known for a more technical approach to teaching than that of Protagoras. He visited Athens regularly, is the principal character in the two Platonic dialogues named after him, and appears also in the Protagoras. He appears to have been a supporter of the idea that nature is opposed to custom.

Hypothesis to Sophocles' Oedipus Tyrannos (DK 9)

The poets after Homer have this peculiarity: they call kings before the Trojan war “tyrants,” although this word was given to the Greeks rather late, in the time of Archilochus according to the sophist Hippias. For Homer says that Echetus – who was the most lawless of all – was a king and not a tyrant: “to Echetus the king, destroyer of men.” They say that tyrants are named after the Tyrrhenians, some of whom were terrible robbers.