Epikleros (ἐπίκληρος) (plural epikleroi) was the term used to describe an heiress in ancient Athens, and in other ancient Greek city states. It denoted a daughter of a man who'd no male heirs. In Sparta they were called patroiouchoi (πατρούχοι), as they were in Gortyn. Athenian women weren't allowed to hold property in their own name, so laws to regulate the marriages of epikleroi had to be introduced. At… (More on Epikleros)