Diodorus Siculus: Difference between revisions

Diodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus
	Diodorus Siculus as depicted in a 19th-century fresco
Native name	Διόδωρος
Born	fl. 1st century BC; Agira, Sicily
Language	Ancient Greek
Genre	History
Notable works	Bibliotheca historica

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Diodorus Siculus or Diodorus of Sicily (Ancient Greek: Διόδωρος, romanized: Diódōros; fl. 1st century BC) was an ancient Greek historian from Sicily. He is known for writing the monumental universal history Bibliotheca historica, in forty books, fifteen of which survive intact,^[1] between 60 and 30 BC. The history is arranged in three parts. The first covers mythic history up to the destruction of Troy, arranged geographically, describing regions around the world from Egypt, India and Arabia to Europe. The second covers the time from the Trojan War to the death of Alexander the Great. The third covers the period to about 60 BC. Bibliotheca, meaning 'library', acknowledges that he was drawing on the work of many other authors.

Life

According to his own work, he was born in Agyrium in Sicily (now called Agira).^[2] With one exception, antiquity affords no further information about his life and doings beyond his written works. Only Jerome, in his Chronicon under the "year of Abraham 1968" (49 BC), writes, "Diodorus of Sicily, a writer of Greek history, became illustrious". However, his English translator, Charles Henry Oldfather, remarks on the "striking coincidence"^[3] that one of only two known Greek inscriptions from Agyrium (Inscriptiones Graecae XIV, 588) is the tombstone of one "Diodorus, the son of Apollonius" (“Διόδωρος ∙ Ἀπολλωνίου”) .^[4]^[5] The final work attributed to him is from 21 BC.^[6]

Work

Diodorus' universal history, which he named Bibliotheca historica (Ancient Greek: Βιβλιοθήκη Ἱστορική, "Historical Library"), was immense and consisted of 40 books, of which 1–5 and 11–20 survive:^[7] fragments of the lost books are preserved in Photius and the Excerpts of Constantine Porphyrogenitus.

It was divided into three sections. The first six books treated the mythic history of the non-Hellenic and Hellenic tribes to the destruction of Troy and are geographical in theme, and describe the history and culture of Ancient Egypt (book I), of Mesopotamia, India, Scythia, and Arabia (II), of North Africa (III), and of Greece and Europe (IV–VI).

In the next section (books VII–XVII), he recounts the history of the world from the Trojan War down to the death of Alexander the Great. The last section (books XVII to the end) concerns the historical events from the successors of Alexander down to either 60 BC or the beginning of Julius Caesar's Gallic Wars. (The end has been lost, so it is unclear whether Diodorus reached the beginning of the Gallic War as he promised at the beginning of his work or, as evidence suggests, old and tired from his labours, he stopped short at 60 BC.) He selected the name "Bibliotheca" in acknowledgment that he was assembling a composite work from many sources. Identified authors on whose works he drew include Hecataeus of Abdera, Ctesias of Cnidus, Ephorus, Theopompus, Hieronymus of Cardia, Duris of Samos, Diyllus, Philistus, Timaeus, Polybius, and Posidonius.

References

^ Usher 1969, p. 235.
^ Diod. History 1.4.4.
^ Oldfather, Charles Henry (1977). "Introduction". Diodorus of Sicily In Twelve Volumes.
^ Stronk, Jan P. (2010). Ctesias' Persian History: Introduction, text, and translation by Ctesias. p. 60.
^ "IG XIV 588 - PHI Greek Inscriptions". epigraphy.packhum.org. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
^ "Diodorus Siculus - Greek historian". Retrieved 13 July 2023.
^ "Diodorus Siculus". Encyclopædia Britannica. 4 April 2018.

Bibliography

Ambaglio, Dino; Landucci Gattinoni, Franca; Bravi, Luigi (2008). Diodoro Siculo: Biblioteca storica: commento storico: introduzione generale. Storia. Ricerche (in Italian). Milano: V&P. pp. x, 145. ISBN 9788834315842.
Buckley, Terry (1996). Aspects of Greek History 750-323 BC: A Source-based Approach. London: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-09958-7.
Diodorus Siculus (1935). Library of History: Loeb Classical Library. Translated by Oldfather, C. H. Cambridge, MA.: Harvard University Press.
Diodorus Siculus; H. Valesius; I. Rhodomannus; F. Ursinus (1814). The Historical Library of Diodorus the Sicilian in Fifteen Books to which are added the Fragments of Diodorus. Translated by G. Booth. London: J. Davis – via Google Books.
Diodori Siculi (1798). Peter Wesseling; L. Rhodoman; G. Heyn; N. Eyring (eds.). Bibliothecae Historicae Libri Qui Supersunt: Nova Editio (in Ancient Greek and Latin). Argentorati: Societas Bipontina – via Internet Archive.
Usher, Stephen (1969). The Historians of Greece and Rome. London: Hamish Hamilton. ISBN 0-2410-1527-8.

External links

Greek original works

Greek Wikisource has original text related to this article: Ιστορική Βιβλιοθήκη
Diodorus Siculus. "Library" (in Ancient Greek). Perseus Digital Library. Books 1–5 only. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
"The Library of History" (in Ancient Greek). LacusCurtius. Books 6–10 only. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
Diodorus Siculus. "Library" (in Ancient Greek). Perseus Digital Library. Books 9–17 only. Retrieved 6 September 2017.

English translations

Works by Diodorus Siculus at Project Gutenberg
Diodorus Siculus. "The Library of History". Translated by C. H. Oldfather; C. L. Sherman; C. Bradford Welles; Russel M. Geer; F. R. Walton. LacusCurtius. Books 1–32 only. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
Diodorus Siculus. "Library". Translated by C. H. Oldfather. Theoi E-Texts Library. Books 4–6 only. Retrieved 8 October 2008.
Diodorus Siculus. "Library". Translated by C. H. Oldfather. Perseus Digital Library. Books 9–17 only. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
Diodorus Siculus. "Historical Library". Translated by Andrew Smith. Attalus.org. Books 33–40 only. Retrieved 7 February 2014.

[FOOTNOTEUsher1969235-1] Usher 1969, p. 235.

[2] Diod. History 1.4.4.

[3] Oldfather, Charles Henry (1977). "Introduction". Diodorus of Sicily In Twelve Volumes.

[4] Stronk, Jan P. (2010). Ctesias' Persian History: Introduction, text, and translation by Ctesias. p. 60.

[5] "IG XIV 588 - PHI Greek Inscriptions". epigraphy.packhum.org. Retrieved 3 July 2024.

[6] "Diodorus Siculus - Greek historian". Retrieved 13 July 2023.

[7] "Diodorus Siculus". Encyclopædia Britannica. 4 April 2018.

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2023}}
-{{Short description|1st-century-BC Ancient Greek historian}}
+{{Short description|1st-century BC Greek historian}}
 {{Redirect|Diodorus}}
 {{Infobox writer
 | name = Diodorus Siculus
-| native_name      = Διόδωρος
+| native_name      = {{lang|grc-Grek|Διόδωρος|italic=no}}
 | image = Diodoro siculo - storico di Agira.jpg
 | caption = Diodorus Siculus as depicted in a 19th-century [[fresco]]
 | birth_date = {{fl.}}&nbsp;1st century BC
-| birth_place = [[Agira]], [[Sicily]]
+| birth_place = [[Agira]], Sicily
-| death_date = Unknown
+| death_date =
 | language = [[Ancient Greek language|Ancient Greek]]
 | genre = [[History]]
@@ Line 14: / Line 15: @@
 }}
-'''Diodorus Siculus''', or '''Diodorus of Sicily''' ({{lang-grc-gre|[[wikt:Διόδωρος|Διόδωρος]]|Diódōros}}; {{fl.}}&nbsp;1st century BC), was an [[ancient Greece|ancient Greek]] [[historian]]. He is known for writing the monumental [[universal history]] ''[[Bibliotheca historica]]'', in forty books, fifteen of which survive intact,{{sfn|Usher|1969|p=235}} between 60 and 30 BC.
+'''Diodorus Siculus''' or '''Diodorus of Sicily''' ({{langx|grc|[[wikt:Διόδωρος|Διόδωρος]]|Diódōros}}; {{fl.}}&nbsp;1st century BC) was an [[ancient Greece|ancient Greek]] [[historian]] from [[Sicily]]. He is known for writing the monumental [[Universal history (genre)|universal history]] ''[[Bibliotheca historica]]'', in forty books, fifteen of which survive intact,{{sfn|Usher|1969|p=235}} between 60 and 30 BC.
-The history is arranged in three parts. The first covers mythic history up to the destruction of [[Troy]], arranged geographically, describing regions around the world from Egypt, India and Arabia to Europe. The second covers the time from the [[Trojan War]] to the [[Death of Alexander the Great|death]] of [[Alexander the Great]]. The third covers the period to about 60 BC. ''Bibliotheca'', meaning 'library', acknowledges that he was drawing on the work of many other authors.
+The history is arranged in three parts. The first covers mythic history up to the destruction of [[Troy]], arranged geographically, describing regions around the world from Egypt, India and Arabia to Europe. The second covers the time from the [[Trojan War]] to the [[death of Alexander the Great]]. The third covers the period to about 60 BC. ''Bibliotheca'', meaning 'library', acknowledges that he was drawing on the work of many other authors.
+==Life==
-He was a good person who thought good
+According to his own work, he was born in [[Agira|Agyrium]] in [[Sicily]] (now called Agira).<ref>Diod. ''History'' 1.4.4.</ref> With one exception, [[classical antiquity|antiquity]] affords no further information about his life and doings beyond his written works. Only [[Jerome]], in his ''[[Chronicon (Jerome)|Chronicon]]'' under the "year of [[Abraham]] 1968" (49 BC), writes, "Diodorus of Sicily, a writer of Greek history, became illustrious". However, his [[English language|English]] translator, [[Charles Henry Oldfather]], remarks on the "striking coincidence"<ref>{{cite book |title=Diodorus of Sicily In Twelve Volumes |author-link=Charles Henry Oldfather |first=Charles Henry |last=Oldfather |year=1977 |chapter=Introduction}}</ref> that one of only two known Greek inscriptions from Agyrium (''[[Inscriptiones Graecae]]'' XIV, 588) is the tombstone of one "Diodorus, the son of Apollonius" (“''Διόδωρος ∙ Ἀπολλωνίου''”) .<ref>{{cite book |title=Ctesias' Persian History: Introduction, text, and translation by Ctesias |first=Jan P. |last=Stronk |year=2010 |page=60}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=IG XIV 588 - PHI Greek Inscriptions |url=https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/140915?&bookid=26&location=1686 |access-date=2024-07-03 |website=epigraphy.packhum.org}}</ref> The final work attributed to him is from 21 BC.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Diodorus-Siculus |title= Diodorus Siculus - Greek historian |accessdate= July 13, 2023}}</ref>
 ==Work==
@@ Line 23: / Line 25: @@
 [[File:Bibliotheca historica.tif|thumb|''Bibliotheca historica'', 1746]]
-Diodorus' [[universal history]], which he named ''Bibliotheca historica'' ({{lang-grc-gre|Βιβλιοθήκη Ἱστορική}}, "Historical Library"), was immense and consisted of 40 books, of which 1–5 and 11–20 survive:<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/164108/Diodorus-Siculus |title=Diodorus Siculus |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |date=4 April 2018 }}</ref> fragments of the lost books are preserved in [[Photios I of Constantinople|Photius]] and the ''[[Constantinian Excerpts|Excerpts]]'' of [[Constantine VII|Constantine Porphyrogenitus]].
+Diodorus' [[Universal history (genre)|universal history]], which he named ''Bibliotheca historica'' ({{langx|grc|Βιβλιοθήκη Ἱστορική}}, "Historical Library"), was immense and consisted of 40 books, of which 1–5 and 11–20 survive:<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/164108/Diodorus-Siculus |title=Diodorus Siculus |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |date=4 April 2018 }}</ref> fragments of the lost books are preserved in [[Photios I of Constantinople|Photius]] and the ''[[Constantinian Excerpts|Excerpts]]'' of [[Constantine VII|Constantine Porphyrogenitus]].
 It was divided into three sections. The first six books treated the mythic history of the non-[[Ancient Greece|Hellenic]] and Hellenic tribes to the destruction of Troy and are geographical in theme, and describe the history and culture of [[Ancient Egypt]] (book I), of [[Mesopotamia]], [[India]], [[Scythia]], and [[Arabia]] (II), of [[North Africa]] (III), and of [[Greece]] and Europe (IV–VI).
-In the next section (books VII&ndash;XVII), he recounts the history of the world from the [[Trojan War]] down to the [[death of Alexander the Great]]. The last section (books XVII to the end) concerns the historical events from the [[Diadochi|successors of Alexander]] down to either 60 BC or the beginning of [[Julius Caesar]]'s [[Gallic Wars]]. (The end has been lost, so it is unclear whether Diodorus reached the beginning of the Gallic War as he promised at the beginning of his work or, as evidence suggests, old and tired from his labours he stopped short at 60 BC.) He selected the name "Bibliotheca" in acknowledgment that he was assembling a composite work from many sources. Identified authors on whose works he drew include [[Hecataeus of Abdera]], [[Ctesias of Cnidus]], [[Ephorus]], [[Theopompus]], [[Hieronymus of Cardia]], [[Duris of Samos]], [[Diyllus]], [[Philistus]], [[Timaeus (historian)|Timaeus]], [[Polybius]], and [[Posidonius]].
+In the next section (books VII&ndash;XVII), he recounts the history of the world from the [[Trojan War]] down to the [[death of Alexander the Great]]. The last section (books XVII to the end) concerns the historical events from the [[Diadochi|successors of Alexander]] down to either 60 BC or the beginning of [[Julius Caesar]]'s [[Gallic Wars]]. (The end has been lost, so it is unclear whether Diodorus reached the beginning of the Gallic War as he promised at the beginning of his work or, as evidence suggests, old and tired from his labours, he stopped short at 60 BC.) He selected the name "Bibliotheca" in acknowledgment that he was assembling a composite work from many sources. Identified authors on whose works he drew include [[Hecataeus of Abdera]], [[Ctesias of Cnidus]], [[Ephorus]], [[Theopompus]], [[Hieronymus of Cardia]], [[Duris of Samos]], [[Diyllus]], [[Philistus]], [[Timaeus (historian)|Timaeus]], [[Polybius]], and [[Posidonius]].
 ==See also==
@@ Line 33: / Line 35: @@
 * [[Callon of Epidaurus]]
 * [[Diophantus of Abae]]
+* [[Hellenic historiography]]
+* [[Historic recurrence]]
 * [[Pliny the Elder]]
 * [[Strabo]]
-== Citations ==
+== References ==
 {{Reflist}}
+== Bibliography ==
-== General and cited references==
 * {{cite book |last1=Ambaglio |first1=Dino |first2=Franca |last2=Landucci Gattinoni |first3=Luigi |last3=Bravi |title=Diodoro Siculo: Biblioteca storica: commento storico: introduzione generale. Storia. Ricerche |location=Milano |publisher=V&P |year=2008 |pages=x, 145 |isbn=9788834315842 |language=it}}
 * {{cite book |title=Aspects of Greek History 750-323 BC: A Source-based Approach |first=Terry |last=Buckley |publisher=Routledge |year=1996 |isbn=0-415-09958-7 |location=London}}
@@ Line 49: / Line 53: @@
 ==Further reading==
 {{Library resources box |by=yes |onlinebooks=yes |others=yes |about=yes |label=Diodorus Siculus |viaf= |lccn= |lcheading= |wikititle= }}
+* Ambaglio, Delfino. 1995. ''La Biblioteca storica di Diodoro Siculo. Problemi e metodo.'' Como: Edizioni New Press.
 * Braithwaite-Westoby, Kara. "[https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/707724 Diodorus and the Alleged Revolts of 374–373 BCE]," Classical Philology 115, no. 2 (April 2020): 265–270.
 * Clarke, Katherine. 1999. "Universal perspectives in Historiography." In ''The Limits of Historiography: Genre and Narrative in Ancient Historical Texts.'' Edited by Christina Shuttleworth Kraus, 249–279. Mnemosyne. Supplementum 191. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill.
 * Hammond, Nicholas G. L. 1998. "Portents, Prophecies, and Dreams in Diodorus' Books 14–17." ''Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies'' 39.4: 407–428.
 * Hau, Lisa Irene, Alexander Meeus, and Brian Sheridan (eds.). 2018. ''Diodoros of Sicily: Historiographical Theory and Practice in the Bibliotheke.'' Peeters: Leuven.
+* [[Richard Laqueur|Laqueur, Richard]]. 1992. ''Diodors Geschichtswerk – Die Überlieferung von Buch I-V.'' Frankfurt am Main.
 * McQueen, Earl I. 1995. ''Diodorus Siculus. The Reign of Philip II: The Greek and Macedonian Narrative from Book XVI. A Companion.'' London: Bristol Classical Press.
 * Muntz, Charles E. 2017. ''Diodorus Siculus and the World of the Late Roman Republic.'' New York: Oxford Univ. Press.
+* Rathmann, Michael. 2016. ''Diodor und seine „Bibliotheke“. Weltgeschichte aus der Provinz.'' Berlin: de Gruyter, {{ISBN|978-3-11-048144-0}}.
-* Pfuntner, Laura. 2015. "Reading Diodorus through Photius: The Case of the Sicilian Slave Revolts." ''Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies'' 55.1: 256–272.
 * Rubincam, Catherine. 1987. "The Organization and Composition of Diodorus' Bibliotheke." ''Échos du monde classique (= Classical views)'' 31:313–328.
 * Sacks, Kenneth S. 1990. ''Diodorus Siculus and the First Century.'' Princeton, NJ: Princeton Univ. Press.
@@ Line 61: / Line 67: @@
 * Stronk, Jan P. 2017. ''Semiramis' Legacy. The History of Persia According to Diodorus of Sicily.'' Edinburgh: Edinburgh Univ. Press.
 * Sulimani, Iris. 2008. "Diodorus' Source-Citations: A Turn in the Attitude of Ancient Authors Towards their Predecessors?" ''Athenaeum'' 96.2: 535–567.
+* Wirth, Gerhard. 2007. ''Katastrophe und Zukunftshoffnung. Mutmaßungen zur zweiten Hälfte von Diodors Bibliothek und ihren verlorenen Büchern.'' Wien: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, {{ISBN|978-3-7001-3723-8}}.
 ==External links==
 {{Commons category}}
 {{Wikisource author}}
+{{wikisourcelang|el|Διόδωρος Σικελιώτης|Διόδωρος Σικελιώτης}}
 {{Wikiquote}}
 ; Greek original works
 * {{Wikisourcelang-inline|el|Ιστορική Βιβλιοθήκη|Ιστορική Βιβλιοθήκη}}
 * {{cite web|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2008.01.0540
-|author=Diodorus Siculus|language=grc|title=Library|publisher=Perseus Digital Library|at=Books 1–5 only|access-date=2017-09-06}}
+|author=Diodorus Siculus|language=grc|title=Library|publisher=Perseus Digital Library|at=Books 1–5 only|access-date=6 September 2017}}
-* {{cite web|url=https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Diodorus_Siculus/home.html|title=The Library of History|language=grc|publisher=LacusCurtius|at=Books 6–10 only|access-date=2017-09-06}}
+* {{cite web|url=https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Diodorus_Siculus/home.html|title=The Library of History|language=grc|publisher=LacusCurtius|at=Books 6–10 only|access-date=6 September 2017}}
-* {{cite web|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text.jsp?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0083|author=Diodorus Siculus|language=grc|title=Library|publisher=Perseus Digital Library|at=Books 9–17 only|access-date=2017-09-06}}
+* {{cite web|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text.jsp?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0083|author=Diodorus Siculus|language=grc|title=Library|publisher=Perseus Digital Library|at=Books 9–17 only|access-date=6 September 2017}}
 ; English translations
 * {{Gutenberg author|id=44254}}
-* {{cite web|url=https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Diodorus_Siculus/home.html|title=The Library of History|publisher=LacusCurtius|author=Diodorus Siculus|translator1=C. H. Oldfather|translator2=C. L. Sherman|translator3=C. Bradford Welles|translator4=Russel M. Geer|translator5=F. R. Walton|at=Books 1–32 only|access-date=2017-06-25}}
+* {{cite web|url=https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Diodorus_Siculus/home.html|title=The Library of History|publisher=LacusCurtius|author=Diodorus Siculus|translator1=C. H. Oldfather|translator2=C. L. Sherman|translator3=C. Bradford Welles|translator4=Russel M. Geer|translator5=F. R. Walton|at=Books 1–32 only|access-date=25 June 2017}}
-* {{cite web|url=http://www.theoi.com/Text/DiodorusSiculus4A.html|author=Diodorus Siculus|title=Library|translator=C. H. Oldfather|at=Books 4–6 only|publisher=Theoi E-Texts Library|access-date=2008-10-08}}
+* {{cite web|url=http://www.theoi.com/Text/DiodorusSiculus4A.html|author=Diodorus Siculus|title=Library|translator=C. H. Oldfather|at=Books 4–6 only|publisher=Theoi E-Texts Library|access-date=8 October 2008}}
-* {{cite web|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text.jsp?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0084|title=Library|author=Diodorus Siculus|translator=C. H. Oldfather|at=Books 9–17 only|publisher=Perseus Digital Library|access-date=2017-06-25}}
+* {{cite web|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text.jsp?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0084|title=Library|author=Diodorus Siculus|translator=C. H. Oldfather|at=Books 9–17 only|publisher=Perseus Digital Library|access-date=25 June 2017}}
-* {{cite web|url=http://www.attalus.org/info/diodorus.html|title=Historical Library|publisher=Attalus.org|author=Diodorus Siculus|translator=Andrew Smith|at=Books 33–40 only|access-date=2014-02-07}}
+* {{cite web|url=http://www.attalus.org/info/diodorus.html|title=Historical Library|publisher=Attalus.org|author=Diodorus Siculus|translator=Andrew Smith|at=Books 33–40 only|access-date=7 February 2014}}
 {{Authority control}}
@@ Line 90: / Line 98: @@
 [[Category:Hellenistic-era historians]]
 [[Category:Historians from Magna Graecia]]
-[[Category:Greek-language historians from the Roman Empire]]
 [[Category:Sicilian Greeks]]
 [[Category:Works about mining]]
+[[Category:Historians of Phoenicia]]

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