Nika riots in the context of Greek language

Hagia Sophia, officially the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, is a mosque serving as a major cultural and historical site in Istanbul, Turkey. It was formerly a church (360–1453) and a museum (1935–2020). The last of three church buildings to be successively erected on the site by the Eastern Roman Empire, it was completed in AD 537, becoming the world's largest interior space and among the first to employ a fully pendentive dome. It is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture and is said to have "changed the history of architecture". From its dedication in 360 until 1453 Hagia Sophia served as the cathedral of Constantinople in the Byzantine liturgical tradition, except for the period 1204–1261 when the Latin Crusaders installed their own hierarchy. After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, it served as a mosque, having its minarets added soon after. The site became a museum in 1935, and was redesignated as a mosque in 2020.

The current structure was built by the Byzantine emperor Justinian I as the Christian cathedral of Constantinople between 532–537 and was designed by the Greek geometers Isidore of Miletus and Anthemius of Tralles. It was formally called the Temple of God's Holy Wisdom, (Greek: Ναὸς τῆς Ἁγίας τοῦ Θεοῦ Σοφίας, romanized: Naòs tês Hagías toû Theoû Sophías) the third church of the same name to occupy the site, as the prior one had been destroyed in the Nika riots. As the episcopal see of the ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople, it remained the world's largest cathedral for nearly a thousand years, until the Seville Cathedral was completed in 1520.

Narses (also spelled Nerses; Latin pronunciation: [ˈnarseːs]; Armenian: Ներսէս; Greek: Ναρσής; c. 478–573) was a distinguished Roman general and statesman of Armenian heritage, renowned for his critical role in Emperor Justinian I’s military campaigns. Alongside the famed Belisarius, Narses was instrumental in the reconquest of Italy during the Gothic War (535–554), which sought to restore the western provinces of the Roman Empire.

Narses first gained significant recognition by suppressing the Nika riots in 532, using his diplomatic skills and wealth to help quell the revolt. His later campaigns in Italy were marked by decisive victories, most notably at the Battle of Taginae in 552, where he defeated the Ostrogothic king Totila, and at the Battle of Mons Lactarius in 553, effectively ending the Ostrogothic kingdom.

Tribonian (Greek: Τριβωνιανός [trivonia'nos], c. 485? – 542) was a jurist and advisor of the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantine). During the reign of the Emperor Justinian I, he supervised the revision of the empire's legal code. He has been described as one of the wisest collaborators of Justinian.

Tribonian was a Greek from Cyme, who studied law in Constantinople, where he became the most renowned legal scholar of his day. He was a close friend of Emperor Justinian, who appointed him to head the commission that compiled the Codex Justinianus and the Digest. Justinian also appointed Tribonian to high offices in the imperial administration, such as magister officiorum and quaestor sacri palatii, but at the beginning of the Nika riots he was forced to dismiss him on charges made by his enemies. Tribonian died in 542 of a disease, perhaps the plague.

Pompeius (Greek: Πομπήιος, died 532) was a politician of the Byzantine Empire and nephew of the Emperor Anastasius I (reigned 491–518). His family gained political prominence with the accession of Anastasius. Pompeius was consul in 501, and was elevated to the patricianate, probably by Anastasius. He held military office, serving in the Iberian War. He married a woman named Anastasia, and had at least one son. In 532, Pompeius' brother Hypatius was acclaimed emperor by the rioters during the Nika riots; after the riots were put down, both Hypatius and Pompeius were executed.

A sports rivalry is intense competition between athletic teams or athletes, affecting participants, management, and supporters all to varying degrees.

One of the first known sports rivalries occurred in the Roman Empire between the Blues and the Greens, and the minor teams of the Reds and Whites, each of which were chariot racing clubs competing at the Hippodrome in Constantinople. The rivalry took on political tones as well, coming close to deposing the Roman Emperor Justinian in 532 CE in a riot and the suppression of the riot killed tens of thousands of people.