Bryennios

Bryennios or Bryennius (Greek: Βρυέννιος), feminine form Bryennissa (Βρυέννισσα), was the name of a noble Byzantine family which rose to prominence in the 11th and 12th centuries, mostly as military commanders. The etymology of the name is uncertain, but Bardanes Tourkos is known to have had a son named Bryennios or Bryenes (fl. 813), and the Bryennioi may have been descended from this man. The first definite members of the family appear later in the 9th century, with the strategos Theoktistos Bryennios. None are known for the 10th, but they reappear in the mid-to-late 11th century, when they rose to high military commands and became associated with the Komnenian dynasty. Members of the family retained high positions through the 12th century, and are documented up to the 15th century.

Notable members

• Alexios Bryennios, megas doux in 1156
• Joseph Bryennios (c. 1350 – 1430), Byzantine monk and writer
• Manuel Bryennios (fl. 1300), Byzantine scholar
• Nikephoros Bryennios (ethnarch) (fl. 1050s), Byzantine general
• Nikephoros Bryennios the Elder (fl. 1070s), Byzantine general, son of the ethnarch, who made an attempt on the throne of Michael VII Doukas in 1077–1078
• Nikephoros Bryennios the Younger (1062–1137), son or grandson of the preceding, Byzantine general, statesman and historian, husband of Anna Komnene
• Theoktistos Bryennios, (fl. 842), strategos of the Peloponnese