Otto Karl Seeck (2 February 1850 – 29 June 1921) was a German classical historian who is perhaps best known for his work on the decline of the ancient world. He was born inRiga.
He first began studying chemistry at theImperial University of Dorpat but transferred to theUniversity of Berlin to study classical history underTheodor Mommsen. Seeck earned his doctorate from the University of Berlin in 1872 after writing his thesis on theNotitia Dignitatum,[1] a document enumerating the roles and responsibilities of administrative officials of the laterRoman Empire c. 400 AD.[2] He habilitated under Mommsen inBerlin in 1877 and, with the help of Mommsen, secured a post at theUniversity of Greifswald in 1881, where he taught Roman History andArchaeology.[3] There he metKarl Julius Beloch. In 1907 he went to theUniversity of Münster where he continued teaching and writing.
Seeck wrote many influential works onlate antiquity andsocial Darwinism. He was widely published in such academic journals as theDeutsche Zeitschrift für Geschichtswissenschaft (German Journal of History),Hermes,Zeitschrift für Kirchengeschichte (Journal of Church History), and theZeitschrift für Sozial- und Wirtschaftsgeschichte (Journal of Social and Economic History).[4] Some of his monographs, including his influential 6-volumeGeschichte des Untergangs der antiken Welt (History of the Decline of the Ancient World)—which set forth his beliefs concerning social Darwinism, later influencingOswald Spengler—are still in print today.[5]
