Sometime during the 2nd century AD (117 to 120 AD) while in Epirus, probably Nicopolis, Arrian attended lectures of Epictetus of Nicopolis, and proceeded within a time to fall into his pupillage, a fact attested to by Lucian. All that is known about the life of Epictetus is due to Arrian, in that Arrian left an "Encheiridion" ("Handbook") of Epictetus' philosophy. After Epirus he went to Athens, and while there he became known as the "young Xenophon" as a consequence of the similarity of his relation to Epictetus as Xenophon had to Socrates.