The author of the Anonymous Commentary on Aristotle's Categories is an unknown figure from late antiquity, active sometime between the 4th and 6th centuries CE. This period was marked by intense scholarly work on Aristotle's writings, often within philosophical schools that blended Aristotelian and Platonic ideas. The commentator's role was that of a teacher or scholar, producing a detailed, line-by-line explanation of Aristotle's Categories, a foundational text on logic.
This work is the author's only known surviving writing. It is a valuable example of a widespread tradition in which scholars created commentaries to clarify, teach, and defend classical texts. According to modern scholars, these commentaries were crucial for education, often serving as an introduction to logic and philosophy. They played a key role in preserving and interpreting Aristotle's ideas, ensuring their transmission into later Byzantine, Arabic, and Latin intellectual traditions.
Although the author's identity is lost, the commentary itself remains significant. It provides a direct window into the pedagogical methods and philosophical debates of its time, showing how Aristotle was studied and understood in the schools of late antiquity.
Available Works
Sources
- Stanford Encyclopedia Entry (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy) Accessed: 2026-01-26
- Oxford Research Encyclopedia Entry (Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Classics) Accessed: 2026-01-26
- Perseus Entry (Perseus Digital Library) Accessed: 2026-01-26