Under the title Suda, a large linguistic and encyclopedic dictionary from the 10th century AD is preserved. The title remains hard to interpret; the most likely guess is that it comes from the word souda, which means ditch, because the dictionary resembled a ditch where the entries were deposited by the author or authors.

Incorrectly, the name Suda was previously thought to be the name of a writer, and the dictionary was known as the Lexicon of Suida. As a result of the collaborative work of one or more editors, the Suda incorporates entries from earlier lexicographers, some of whom are mentioned in the preface.

The dictionary also includes notes from ancient commentators as well as quotations from writers of classical and late antiquity or of the Byzantine era. The entries are not arranged in absolute alphabetical order but rather in correspondence, meaning according to the way they are pronounced.

The dictionary, being the only surviving example of its kind, serves as a valuable source of ancient knowledge.

[Excerpt from the text on the back cover of the edition]