Allegorical interpretation is the approach which assigns a higher-than-literal interpretation to the contents of a text (eg Bible).
The method has its origins in both Greek thought (who tried to avoid the literal interpretations of ancient Greek myths) and in the rabbinical schools of the Land of Israel. Most notably of pre-Christian authors Philo of Alexandria expressly refers to its use by his predecessors and uses it himself to discover indications of different doctrines of philosophy in the stories of the Pentateuch. The traces of allegorical and typological interpretation can be found later in New Testament but are further developed in the Epistle of Barnabas and especially by Origen.
