ON THE HISTORICAL AND ETHNOGRAPHIC METHOD OF HERODOTUS: HERODOTUS AND HIS SOURCES

Ivanchik, Askold

doi:10.31857/S032103910030316-0

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ON THE HISTORICAL AND ETHNOGRAPHIC METHOD OF HERODOTUS: HERODOTUS AND HIS SOURCES

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ON THE HISTORICAL AND ETHNOGRAPHIC METHOD OF HERODOTUS: HERODOTUS AND HIS SOURCES

PII

S032103910030316-0-1

DOI

10.31857/S032103910030316-0

Publication type

Article

Status

Approved

Authors

Askold Ivanchik

Affiliation: HSE University
Address: Russian Federation, Moscow

Abstract

This article discusses the problem of Herodotus’ sources of historical and ethnographic information and his methods of their treatment. The text IV.5-7, in which Herodotus relates four versions of the origin of the Scythians, borrowed from different sources, is chosen for a detailed case study. The analysis of this text and its comparison with other passages of Herodotus allows us to draw a number of conclusions relating to his entire work. The distinction between oral and written prose sources (λόγος, ἀκόη) is irrelevant for Herodotus. He very rarely and only for special reasons mentions the name the author of his source, for the most part confining himself to indicating the group to which he belonged or to which he believes the information ultimately goes back (“Hellenes,” “Scythians,” “Athenians,” etc.). Obviously, he views these accounts as representing the common viewpoints of these groups rather than personal views. Herodotus considers poetic texts to be more personal, and he mentions their authors much more often. Doing so, he treats Homer and other authors of early epic with disdain and distrust, while he values the reports of later poets, up to Aeschylus and including Aristeas, more highly. Herodotus willingly combines different logoi whenever possible, and finds in such a possibility confirmation of their reliability. The possibility of finding their confirmation in what can be seen (ὄψις) is for him an even more important evidence of credibility. If different versions of the same event are irreconcilable, Herodotus simply relates them one after another, often pointing to the one he prefers. His work is characterized by a high level of of self-reflection: Herodotus follows a clearly formulated method. He transmits the evidences of his sources, both oral and written, accurately and practically without distortion. To what extent they reflect the historical reality is another question, and the answer depends to a large extent on the nature of the sources themselves.

Keywords

Herodotus, Scythians, oral history, Ionian prose, ancient ethnography

Received

18.03.2024

Number of characters

46685

GOST	Ivanchik A. ON THE HISTORICAL AND ETHNOGRAPHIC METHOD OF HERODOTUS: HERODOTUS AND HIS SOURCES // Vestnik drevnei istorii URL: http://ras.jes.su/vdi/s032103910030316-0-1-en (circulation date: 07.05.2024).
MLA	Ivanchik, Askold "ON THE HISTORICAL AND ETHNOGRAPHIC METHOD OF HERODOTUS: HERODOTUS AND HIS SOURCES." Vestnik drevnei istorii DOI: 10.31857/S032103910030316-0
APA	Ivanchik A. (). ON THE HISTORICAL AND ETHNOGRAPHIC METHOD OF HERODOTUS: HERODOTUS AND HIS SOURCES. Vestnik drevnei istorii DOI: 10.31857/S032103910030316-0

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