5.2. Regular Arrangement

A regular body of troops would normally draw up in the system called rank and file, that is in an orderly formation in which men arrayed in ranks and files. A file or lochos (ca. 50-40 BC) (ca. 136-137 AD) (λόχος, στίχος, συνωμοτία or δεκανία, later λοχαγία, κοντουβέρνιον, ἀκία (ca. 592-610 AD) (ca. 895-908 AD) and by Nicephorus Uranus and Leo VI ordinos (ca. 895-908 AD), although, in Uranus’ work, it generally means “rank” (ca. 1000 AD)) was a line of men standing one behind the other in predetermined intervals. A line of men standing next to each other in predetermined intervals was called a rank (ζυγὸς or oblique row (ἐγκάρσιος στίχος) and later in the Byzantine years ordinos (ὀρδίνος) . Its name ιt took from the yoke of the oxen by analogy. Arrian, in his Acies contra Alanos, calls it a taxis (τάξις) (135 AD), a term that usually denotes a specific division or generally means “unit”. The most usual regular formation was the rectangular phalanx formed by a formation by file (ca. 50-40 BC) (ca. 136-137 AD), that is the placement of a file beside another file, so that the file leader of the first file stood next to the file leader of the second file as did the file closers and all men in between was called a formation by file (συλλοχισμὸς) (ca. 136-137 AD) .