Herodotus was the first writer to perform systematic investigation of historical events.
17 Facts About Herodotus
2.
Herodotus is referred to as "The Father of History", a title conferred on him by the ancient Roman orator Cicero.
3.
Herodotus's work deviates from the main topics to provide a cultural, ethnographical, geographical, and historiographical background that forms an essential part of the narrative and provides readers with a wellspring of additional information.
4.
Herodotus has been criticized for his inclusion of "legends and fanciful accounts" in his work.
5.
However, Herodotus explained that he reported what he could see and was told.
6.
Herodotus wrote his Histories in the Ionian dialect, in spite of being born in a Dorian settlement.
7.
Panyassis, the epic poet related to Herodotus, is reported to have taken part in a failed uprising.
8.
The Suda informs us that Herodotus later returned home to lead the revolt that eventually overthrew the tyrant.
9.
Herodotus probably traveled to Tyre next and then down the Euphrates to Babylon.
10.
Herodotus would have made his researches known to the larger world through oral recitations to a public crowd.
11.
Herodotus announced the purpose and scope of his work at the beginning of his Histories:.
12.
Herodotus's record of the achievements of others was an achievement in itself, though the extent of it has been debated.
13.
Herodotus's work is the earliest Greek prose to have survived intact.
14.
Herodotus the son of Sphynx lies; in Ionic history without peer; a Dorian born, who fled from slander's brand and made in Thuria his new native land.
15.
Thucydides, who had been trained in rhetoric, became the model for subsequent prose-writers as an author who seeks to appear firmly in control of his material, whereas with his frequent digressions Herodotus appeared to minimize his authorial control.
16.
The interplay of civilizations was more relevant to Greeks living in Anatolia, such as Herodotus himself, for whom life within a foreign civilization was a recent memory.
17.
Several English translations of Herodotus' Histories are readily available in multiple editions.