Georg Friedrich Schömann
Encyclopedia
Georg Friedrich Schömann (June 28, 1793 - March 25, 1879), was a German
classical scholar.
He was born at Stralsund
in Pomerania
. In 1827 he was appointed professor of ancient literature and eloquence in the University of Greifswald; it was there that he died.
Schömann's main interest was in the constitutional and religious antiquities of Greece
. His first works on the subject were De comitiis Atheniensium (1819), the first independent account of the forms of Athenian political life, and a treatise De sortitione judicum apud Athenienses (1820). In conjunction with M. H. E. Meier
, Schömann wrote Der attische Process (1824). Among his other works are:
The question of the religious institutions of the Greeks, which Schömann considered an essential part of their public life, soon attracted his attention, and he took the view that everything really religious was akin to Christianity
, and that the greatest intellects of Greece produced intuitively Christian, dogma
tic ideas. From this point of view he edited the Theogony of Hesiod
(1868), with a commentary, chiefly mythological, and Cicero's De natura deorum (1850, 4th ed. 1876); translated with introduction and flute
s Aeschylus
's Prometheus Bound, and wrote a Prometheus Unbound (1844), in which Prometheus is brought to see the greatness of his offence and is pardoned by Zeus
. Of his contributions on grammatical
subjects special mention may be made of Die Lehre von den Redetheilen nach den Alten dargestellt (1862), an introduction to the elements of the science of grammar. His many-sidedness is shown in his Opuscula academica (4 vols., 1856-1871).
See Franz Susemihl
in Conrad Bursian
's Biog. Jahrbuch für Altertumskunde (1879); A. Baumeister in Allgemeine deutsche Biographie, xxxii.; C. Bursian, Gesch. der class. Philologie in Deutschland (1883), and J. E. Sandys
, Hist. of Classical Scholarship, iii. (1908), p. 165.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
classical scholar.
He was born at Stralsund
Stralsund
- Main sights :* The Brick Gothic historic centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.* The heart of the old town is the Old Market Square , with the Gothic Town Hall . Behind the town hall stands the imposing Nikolaikirche , built in 1270-1360...
in Pomerania
Pomerania
Pomerania is a historical region on the south shore of the Baltic Sea. Divided between Germany and Poland, it stretches roughly from the Recknitz River near Stralsund in the West, via the Oder River delta near Szczecin, to the mouth of the Vistula River near Gdańsk in the East...
. In 1827 he was appointed professor of ancient literature and eloquence in the University of Greifswald; it was there that he died.
Schömann's main interest was in the constitutional and religious antiquities of Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. His first works on the subject were De comitiis Atheniensium (1819), the first independent account of the forms of Athenian political life, and a treatise De sortitione judicum apud Athenienses (1820). In conjunction with M. H. E. Meier
Moritz Hermann Eduard Meier
Moritz Hermann Eduard Meier was a German classical scholar, born at Glogau. When 24 years of age he became professor extraordinarius at the University of Greifswald, and in 1824 was made professor ordinarius at Halle, where he remained until his death...
, Schömann wrote Der attische Process (1824). Among his other works are:
- editions of IsaeusIsaeusIsaeus , fl. early 4th century BC. One of the ten Attic Orators according to the Alexandrian canon. He was a student of Isocrates in Athens, and later taught Demosthenes while working as a metic speechwriter for others. Only eleven of his speeches survive, with fragments of a twelfth. They are...
(1831) and PlutarchPlutarchPlutarch then named, on his becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus , c. 46 – 120 AD, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia...
's Agis and Cleomenes (1839, important for the AtticAttic GreekAttic Greek is the prestige dialect of Ancient Greek that was spoken in Attica, which includes Athens. Of the ancient dialects, it is the most similar to later Greek, and is the standard form of the language studied in courses of "Ancient Greek". It is sometimes included in Ionic.- Origin and range...
law of inheritance and the history of the SpartaSpartaSparta or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c...
n constitution) - Antiquitates juris publici Graecorum (1838)
- a critical examination of GroteGeorge GroteGeorge Grote was an English classical historian, best known in the field for a major work, the voluminous History of Greece, still read.-Early life:He was born at Clay Hill near Beckenham in Kent...
's account of the Athenian constitutionHistory of AthensAthens is one of the oldest named cities in the world, having been continuously inhabited for at least 7000 years. Situated in southern Europe, Athens became the leading city of Ancient Greece in the first millennium BCE and its cultural achievements during the 5th century BCE laid the foundations...
(1854, Eng. trans. by B. Bosanquet, 1878) from a conservative point of view - Griechische Alterthümer (1855-1859), treating of the general historical development of the Greek states, followed by a detailed account of the constitutions of Sparta, CreteCreteCrete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
and AthensAthensAthens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, the cultCultThe word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
s and international relations of the Greek tribes.
The question of the religious institutions of the Greeks, which Schömann considered an essential part of their public life, soon attracted his attention, and he took the view that everything really religious was akin to Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
, and that the greatest intellects of Greece produced intuitively Christian, dogma
Dogma
Dogma is the established belief or doctrine held by a religion, or a particular group or organization. It is authoritative and not to be disputed, doubted, or diverged from, by the practitioners or believers...
tic ideas. From this point of view he edited the Theogony of Hesiod
Hesiod
Hesiod was a Greek oral poet generally thought by scholars to have been active between 750 and 650 BC, around the same time as Homer. His is the first European poetry in which the poet regards himself as a topic, an individual with a distinctive role to play. Ancient authors credited him and...
(1868), with a commentary, chiefly mythological, and Cicero's De natura deorum (1850, 4th ed. 1876); translated with introduction and flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
s Aeschylus
Aeschylus
Aeschylus was the first of the three ancient Greek tragedians whose work has survived, the others being Sophocles and Euripides, and is often described as the father of tragedy. His name derives from the Greek word aiskhos , meaning "shame"...
's Prometheus Bound, and wrote a Prometheus Unbound (1844), in which Prometheus is brought to see the greatness of his offence and is pardoned by Zeus
Zeus
In the ancient Greek religion, Zeus was the "Father of Gods and men" who ruled the Olympians of Mount Olympus as a father ruled the family. He was the god of sky and thunder in Greek mythology. His Roman counterpart is Jupiter and his Etruscan counterpart is Tinia.Zeus was the child of Cronus...
. Of his contributions on grammatical
Grammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics,...
subjects special mention may be made of Die Lehre von den Redetheilen nach den Alten dargestellt (1862), an introduction to the elements of the science of grammar. His many-sidedness is shown in his Opuscula academica (4 vols., 1856-1871).
See Franz Susemihl
Franz Susemihl
Franz Susemihl was a German classical philologist born in Laage.He studied ancient languages in Leipzig and Berlin, and from 1848 taught classes at the Domgymnasium in Güstrow. In 1852 he received his habilitation at the University of Greifswald, where in 1863 he became a full professor of...
in Conrad Bursian
Conrad Bursian
Conrad Bursian was a German philologist and archaeologist.He was born at Mutzschen in Saxony. When his parents moved to Leipzig, he received his early education at Thomasschule zu Leipzig, and entered the university in 1847...
's Biog. Jahrbuch für Altertumskunde (1879); A. Baumeister in Allgemeine deutsche Biographie, xxxii.; C. Bursian, Gesch. der class. Philologie in Deutschland (1883), and J. E. Sandys
John Edwin Sandys
Sir John Edwin Sandys FBA , was a classical scholar.He was born at Leicester on 19 May 1844, a son of the Reverend Timothy Sandys of the Church Missionary Society and Rebecca . Living at first in India, he returned to England at the age of eleven, and was educated at the Church Missionary Society...
, Hist. of Classical Scholarship, iii. (1908), p. 165.