HERODOTUS, the most ancient of the Greek histo rians whose works are extant, and thence called by Cice ro the Father of History, was born at Halicarnassus in Ca rla, in the first year of the 74th Olympiad, or about 484 years B C. The name of his father was Lyxes ; that of his mother Dryo. The city of Halicarnassus being at that time oppressed by the tyranny of Lygdamis, grandson of Artemisia, Queen of Carla, Herodotus quitted his country, and retired to Samos ; from whence he travelled over Egypt, Greece, Italy, St.c. collecting every where all the informa tion he could procure concerning the origin and history of nations. He then began to digest the materials he had thus collected, and composed that history which has pre served his name and reputation even to our times. He is generally supposed to have written it in the island of Sa mos, where he studied the Ionic dialect, in which his his tory is composed ; his native dialect being the Doric. He afterwards revisited his native place, and is said to have great ly displeased and irritated his countrymen, in consequence of having contributed, by his influence, to the overthrow of the government, and the expulsion of the tyrant Lygdamis, which obliged him again to go into exile. When he had attained his thirty-ninth year, he was induced, by the desire of fame, to recite his history to the people assembled at the Olympic games. It was received with universal ap plause, and procured him a general and permanent cele brity throughout all the states of Greece. The place and period of his death are uncertain; but it is probable that he died in exile in a town of Magna Grtecia.
The history of Herodottis embraces a period of about 240 years, from the time of Cyrus the Great to Xerxes ; and contains, besides the transactions between Persia and Greece, a sketch of the affairs of other nations, as of the Lydians, Ionians, Lvcians, Egyptians, and Macedonians. The work is divided into nine hooks, which are called af ter the nine muses, not by the historian himself, but, as it. is thought, by the Greeks at the Olympic games, when they were first recited, as a compliment to the author.
As an historian; Herodotus has been generally censured for betraying too great a partiality for the marvellous. But it may be remarked in his justification, lmo, That the truth of many of the physical phenomena which he relates, and which were considered as incredible prodigies by the ancient writers, has been abundantly confirmed by modern discoveries; and, 2do, That Ilerodotus compiled a great part of his history from popular traditions, and expressly cautions his readers against an implicit belief of many of the wonderful things he relates upon the authority of mere hearsay. And it is an argument much in favour of this an
cient writer, that his chronology requires less correction, according to Newton's Canons, than that of any of the sub sequent Greek historians. With respect to those great transactions which took place in Greece after his own birth, he is generally thought to be worthy of credit ; and the publication of his work, at a general assembly of the nation, may be considered as a voucher for his veracity. He has, nevertheless, been suspected of partiality in particular in stances ; and Plutarch, the most formidable of his critics, wrote a small treatise On the Malignity of Herodotus, in which he expressly taxes him with injustice towards the Thebans and Corinthians, and, indeed, towards the Greeks in general. His history, however, is still accounted one of the most precious relics of antiquity. The greatest incon venience attending the perusal of this historian, results from his method and arrangement, which are extremely awkward, irregular, and discursive ; some entire histories being introduced, by way of parenthesis, in the bodies of others. his style is easy, graceful, flowing, and copious even to exuberance. Its chief excellence lies in narra tive, as it seems to want force and conciseness for senti ment and remark, in which he is surpassed by Thucydi des. Herodotus is esteemed the model of the Ionic, and Thucydides of the Attic dialect.
Besides this work, Herodotus is supposed to have writ ten an history of Assyria ; which, if it was ever published, (which seems doubtful,) is now lost. The life of Homer, which is usually printed at the end of his works, has also been ascribed to Herodotus ; but the best critics are of opinion that it is the production of a different author.
The two best editions of Herodotus are that of Wessel ing, fol. Amsterdam, 1763 ; and that of Glasgow, in 9 vols. 12mo. 1761. A very excellent edition of Herodotus, in Greek and Latin, was published in Edinburgh by Mr Laing, in 7 vols. 12mo. in the year 1806, corrected by Professor Porson and Professor Dunbar. The editio firinceps is that of Aldus, \Tenet. fol. 1502. There are two English trans lations of this historian ; the one by Littlebury, in 2 vols. 8vo. and the other by Mr Beloe, in 4 vols. 8vo. with many useful and entertaining remarks and annotations. There is also an excellent French translation, with very learned notes, by M. Larcher. The geography of Herodotus has been examined and explained by the ingenious Major Rennell, in one volume 4to, 1800. (z)