Sosicrates of Rhodes (Σωσικράτης ὁ Ῥόδιος)

Life Sosicrates was a Greek historian from Rhodes who lived during the 2nd century BCE. No details of his personal life survive. His chronological placement is secured by his citation in later works, most notably Diogenes Laërtius's 3rd-century CE Lives of the Eminent Philosophers. He is a distinct figure from the historian Socrates of Rhodes [1].

Works He is known for a single, lost work: the Successions of Philosophers (Διαδοχαὶ τῶν φιλοσόφων). This doxographical history organized philosophers into schools based on intellectual lineage. It served as a major source for Diogenes Laërtius, who cites it frequently [1][2].

Significance Sosicrates's significance lies in his role as a source for later historians of philosophy. His Successions was a standard reference in antiquity, transmitting biographical and doctrinal information. Though fragmentary, his work is crucial for understanding Hellenistic philosophical biography and historiography.

Sources 1. Diogenes Laërtius, Lives of the Eminent Philosophers (Perseus Digital Library): http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0258 2. Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology (Perseus Digital Library): http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0104:entry=sosicrates-bio-1