21 Facts About Sozomen

Sozomen was born around 400 in Bethelia, a small town near Gaza, into a wealthy Christian family of Palestine.

Sozomen told the history of Southern Palestine derived from oral tradition.

Sozomen appeared to be familiar with the region around Gaza, and mentioned having seen Bishop Zeno of Majuma, ar the seaport of Gaza.

Sozomen wrote that his grandfather lived at Bethelia, near Gaza, and became a Christian together with his household, probably under Constantius II.

Sozomen himself had conversed with one of these, a very old man.

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Sozomen seems to have been brought up in the circle of Alaphrion and acknowledges a debt of gratitude to the monastic order.

Sozomen then went to Constantinople to start his career as a lawyer, perhaps at the court of Theodosius II.

Sozomen wrote two works on church history, of which only the second one is extant.

Sozomen wrote it in Constantinople, around the years 440 to 443 and dedicated it to Emperor Theodosius II.

Albert Guldenpenning supposed that Sozomen himself suppressed the end of his work because in it he mentioned the Empress Aelia Eudocia, who later fell into disgrace through her supposed adultery.

Valesius asserted that Sozomen read Socrates, and Robert Hussey and Guldenpenning have proved this.

Sozomen used the work of Socrates as a guide to sources and order.

Sozomen went back to the principal sources used by Socrates and other sources, often including more from them than Socrates did.

Sozomen used the writings of Eusebius, the first major Church historian.

Sozomen appears to have consulted the Historia Athanasii and the works of Athanasius including the Vita Antonii.

Sozomen completes the statements of Socrates from the Apologia contra Arianos, lix, sqq.

Rufinus is the original; Socrates expressly states that he follows Rufinus, while Sozomen knows Socrates' version, but is not satisfied with it and follows Rufinus more closely.

Ecclesiastical records used by Sozomen are principally taken from Sabinus, to whom he continually refers.

Period from Theodosius I, Sozomen stopped following the work of Socrates and followed Olympiodorus of Thebes, who was probably Sozomen's only secular source.

Sozomen used oral tradition, adding some of the most distinctive value to his work.

Work of Sozomen was first printed by Robert Estienne at Paris in 1544, on the basis of Codex Regius, 1444.