Herodotus of Halicarnassus (Ἡρόδοτος ὁ Ἁλικαρνασσεύς)

Life Herodotus was a Greek historian born in Halicarnassus in Asia Minor. He lived during the 5th century BCE, a period defined by the Persian Wars [1][2]. Following possible exile, he traveled extensively across the Persian Empire, Egypt, and the Greek world, later participating in the founding of the Athenian colony of Thurii in Italy around 443 BCE, where he likely completed his work [1][2]. He is generally believed to have been born around 484 BCE and died between 430 and 420 BCE [1][2].

Works His sole surviving work is The Histories, a complete multi-volume prose narrative written in the Ionic dialect.

Significance Herodotus is traditionally called "The Father of History" for establishing the scope and methods of historical inquiry in his pioneering prose work [1][2]. The Histories centers on the Greco-Persian wars as a clash between freedom and despotism, while its expansive ethnographic digressions provide an invaluable account of the ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern world [1][2].

Sources 1. Encyclopædia Britannica: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Herodotus-Greek-historian 2. World History Encyclopedia: https://www.worldhistory.org/herodotus/