Hellenic,Greek, orancient Greek historiography involves efforts made by theAncient Greeks to track and recordhistorical events. By the 5th century BC, it became an integral part ofancient Greek literature and held a prestigious place in laterRoman historiography andByzantine literature.
The historical period ofancient Greece is exclusive in world history as the first period attested directly in properhistoriography, while earlier ancient history orproto-history is known by much more circumstantial evidence, such asannals,chronicles,king lists, and pragmaticepigraphy.
The ancient Greeks told myths and legends about their past, such as the legends associated with theTrojan War. In the 6th century BC, skeptical authors cast doubt on the irrational aspects of these stories while maintaining their basic core. According toMoses Finley, the first steps towards history writing by Greeks were taken inIonia, where Greeks were in closest contact with foreign peoples and later came under the rule of non-Greek polities:Lydia andPersia. Wishing to learn something about their rulers, Greek writers began to collect information on the geography, customs, and pieces of history of the Lydians and Persians. Only disparate quotations of these works survive.[1]
Hecataeus of Miletus has been described as the author who "foreshadows Herodotus".[2] In hisGenealogies, he examined legendary tales, behind which he saw "historical facts distorted by exaggeration or by literal interpretation of metaphors." He also wrote a work of geography, thePeriēgēsis orPeriodos gēs (Journey round the World), which contains information about the countries and peoples located along the coasts of the Mediterranean and Black Sea.[3]
Herodotus is widely known as the "father of history", hisHistories being eponymous of the entire field. Written between the 450s and 420s BC, the scope of Herodotus' work reaches about a century in the past, discussing 6th century BC historical figures such asDarius I of Persia,Cambyses II, andPsamtik III and alludes to some 8th century BC ones such asCandaules.
Herodotus was succeeded by authors such asThucydides andXenophon. Most of these authors were eitherAthenians or pro-Athenians, which explains why far more is known about the history and politics ofAthens than of most other contemporary cities. Their scope is further limited by a focus on political, military and diplomatic history, generally ignoring economic and social history.[4] However, while works approaching modern ethnography arose primarily amongst theRomans, some Greeks did include ancillary material describing the customs and rituals of different peoples,Herodotus himself being a prime example in his descriptions of theEgyptians,Scythians, and others.
The tradition of ancient Greek historiography proved to be very influential over the centuries.Polybius, who witnessed the Greeks coming under Roman hegemony, is considered the most important historiographer of theHellenistic period. The first Roman historians still wrote in Greek, and Latin historiography was also strongly influenced by Greek traditions: Authors such asSallust andTacitus were heavily influenced by Thucydides. Greek historiography continued to flourish inlate antiquity, reaching a final peak withProcopius of Caesarea.Theophylact Simocatta, who wrote in the early 7th century AD, is generally considered to be the last ancient Greek historiographer.
