Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers is a biography of the Greek philosophers by Diogenes Laërtius

Diogenes Laertius

Diogenes Laertius was a biographer of the Greek philosophers. Nothing is known about his life, but his surviving Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers is one of the principal surviving sources for the history of Greek philosophy.-Life:Nothing is definitively known about his life...

, written in Greek

Ancient Greek

Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...

, perhaps in the first half of the third century AD.

Overview

The Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers, was written in Greek and professes to give an account of the lives and sayings of the Greek philosophers. The work doesn't have an exact title in the manuscripts and appears in various lengthy forms.

Although it is at best an uncritical and unphilosophical compilation, its value, as giving us an insight into the private lives of the Greek sages, led Montaigne

Michel de Montaigne

Lord Michel Eyquem de Montaigne , February 28, 1533 – September 13, 1592, was one of the most influential writers of the French Renaissance, known for popularising the essay as a literary genre and is popularly thought of as the father of Modern Skepticism...

 to write that he wished that instead of one Laërtius there had been a dozen. On the other hand, modern scholars have advised that we treat Diogenes' testimonia with care, especially when he fails to cite his sources: "Diogenes has acquired an importance out of all proportion to his merits because the loss of many primary sources and of the earlier secondary compilations has accidentally left him the chief continuous source for the history of Greek philosophy."

Organization of the work

Laërtius treats his subject in two divisions which he describes as the Ionian and the Italian schools. The biographies of the former begin with Anaximander

Anaximander

Anaximander was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher who lived in Miletus, a city of Ionia; Milet in modern Turkey. He belonged to the Milesian school and learned the teachings of his master Thales...

, and end with Clitomachus, Theophrastus

Theophrastus

Theophrastus , a Greek native of Eresos in Lesbos, was the successor to Aristotle in the Peripatetic school. He came to Athens at a young age, and initially studied in Plato's school. After Plato's death he attached himself to Aristotle. Aristotle bequeathed to Theophrastus his writings, and...

 and Chrysippus

Chrysippus

Chrysippus of Soli was a Greek Stoic philosopher. He was a native of Soli, Cilicia, but moved to Athens as a young man, where he became a pupil of Cleanthes in the Stoic school. When Cleanthes died, around 230 BC, Chrysippus became the third head of the school...

; the latter begins with Pythagoras

Pythagoras

Pythagoras of Samos was an Ionian Greek philosopher, mathematician, and founder of the religious movement called Pythagoreanism. Most of the information about Pythagoras was written down centuries after he lived, so very little reliable information is known about him...

, and ends with Epicurus

Epicurus

Epicurus was an ancient Greek philosopher and the founder of the school of philosophy called Epicureanism.Only a few fragments and letters remain of Epicurus's 300 written works...

. The Socratic school, with its various branches, is classed with the Ionic; while the Eleatics and sceptics are treated under the Italic. He also includes his own poetic verse, albeit pedestrian, about the philosophers he discusses.

Books 1-7: Ionian Philosophy

Book 1: The Seven Sages Seven Sages of Greece The Seven Sages or Seven Wise Men was the title given by ancient Greek tradition to seven early 6th century BC philosophers, statesmen and law-givers who were renowned in the following centuries for their wisdom.-The Seven Sages:Traditionally, each of the seven sages represents an aspect of worldly...

Thales Thales Thales of Miletus was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher from Miletus in Asia Minor, and one of the Seven Sages of Greece. Many, most notably Aristotle, regard him as the first philosopher in the Greek tradition... , Solon Solon Solon was an Athenian statesman, lawmaker, and poet. He is remembered particularly for his efforts to legislate against political, economic and moral decline in archaic Athens... , Chilon Chilon of Sparta Chilon of Sparta was a Lacedaemonian and one of the Seven Sages of Greece.-Early life:Chilon was the son of Damagetus, and lived towards the beginning of the 6th century BC.-Standing and influence:... , Pittacus Pittacus of Mytilene Pittacus was the son of Hyrradius and one of the Seven Sages of Greece. He was a native of Mytilene and the Mytilenaean general who, with his army, was victorious in the battle against the Athenians and their commander Phrynon. In consequence of this victory the Mytilenaeans held Pittacus in the... , Bias Bias of Priene Bias , the son of Teutamus and a citizen of Priene was a Greek philosopher. Satyrus puts him as the wisest of all the Seven Sages of Greece. He was renowned for his goodness.... , Cleobulus Cleobulus Cleobulus was a Greek poet and a native of Lindos, and one of the Seven Sages of Greece.-Life:Cleobulus was the son of Evagoras and a citizen of Lindus in Rhodes Clement of Alexandria calls Cleobulus king of the Lindians, and Plutarch speaks of him as the tyrant... , Periander Periander Periander was the second tyrant of Corinth, Greece in the 7th century BC. He was the son of the first tyrant, Cypselus. Periander succeeded his father in 627 BC. He died in 585 BC.... , Anacharsis Anacharsis Anacharsis was a Scythian philosopher who travelled from his homeland on the northern shores of the Black Sea to Athens in the early 6th century BCE and made a great impression as a forthright, outspoken "barbarian", apparently a forerunner of the Cynics, though none of his works have... , Myson Myson of Chenae Myson of Chenae was, according to Plato, one of the Seven Sages of Greece.According to Sosicrates, who quoted Hermippus, Myson was the son of Strymon, a tyrant of his country. All sources agree that Myson was a plain farmer, though they differ as to his place of birth and residence... , Epimenides Epimenides Epimenides of Knossos was a semi-mythical 6th century BC Greek seer and philosopher-poet. While tending his father's sheep, he is said to have fallen asleep for fifty-seven years in a Cretan cave sacred to Zeus, after which he reportedly awoke with the gift of prophecy... , Pherecydes Pherecydes of Syros Pherecydes of Syros was a Greek thinker from the island of Syros, of the 6th century BC. Pherecydes authored the Pentemychos or Heptamychos, one of the first attested prose works in Greek literature, which formed an important bridge between mythic and pre-Socratic thought.- Life :Very little is...

Book 2: Socrates, with predecessors and followers

Anaximander Anaximander Anaximander was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher who lived in Miletus, a city of Ionia; Milet in modern Turkey. He belonged to the Milesian school and learned the teachings of his master Thales... , Anaximenes Anaximenes of Miletus Anaximenes of Miletus was an Archaic Greek Pre-Socratic philosopher active in the latter half of the 6th century BC. One of the three Milesian philosophers, he is identified as a younger friend or student of Anaximander. Anaximenes, like others in his school of thought, practiced material monism... , Anaxagoras Anaxagoras Anaxagoras was a Pre-Socratic Greek philosopher. Born in Clazomenae in Asia Minor, Anaxagoras was the first philosopher to bring philosophy from Ionia to Athens. He attempted to give a scientific account of eclipses, meteors, rainbows, and the sun, which he described as a fiery mass larger than... , Archelaus Archelaus (philosopher) Archelaus was an Ancient Greek philosopher, a pupil of Anaxagoras, and said by some to have been a teacher of Socrates. He asserted that the principle of motion was the separation of hot from cold, from which he endeavoured to explain the formation of the Earth and the creation of animals and... , Socrates Socrates Socrates was a classical Greek Athenian philosopher. Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy, he is an enigmatic figure known chiefly through the accounts of later classical writers, especially the writings of his students Plato and Xenophon, and the plays of his contemporary ... , Xenophon Xenophon Xenophon , son of Gryllus, of the deme Erchia of Athens, also known as Xenophon of Athens, was a Greek historian, soldier, mercenary, philosopher and a contemporary and admirer of Socrates... , Aeschines, Aristippus Aristippus Aristippus of Cyrene, , was the founder of the Cyrenaic school of Philosophy. He was a pupil of Socrates, but adopted a very different philosophical outlook, teaching that the goal of life was to seek pleasure by adapting circumstances to oneself and by maintaining proper control over both... , Phaedo Phaedo of Elis Phaedo of Elis was a Greek philosopher. A native of Elis, he was captured in war and sold into slavery. He subsequently came into contact with Socrates at Athens who warmly received him and had him freed. He was present at the death of Socrates, and Plato named one of his dialogues Phaedo... , Euclides Euclid of Megara Euclid of Megara was a Greek Socratic philosopher who founded the Megarian school of philosophy. He was a pupil of Socrates in the late 5th century BCE, and was present at his death. He held the supreme good to be one, eternal and unchangeable, and denied the existence of anything contrary to the... , Stilpo Stilpo Stilpo was a Greek philosopher of the Megarian school. He was a contemporary of Theophrastus, Diodorus Cronus, and Crates of Thebes. None of his writings survive, he was interested in logic and dialectic, and he argued that the universal is fundamentally separated from the individual and concrete... , Crito Crito of Alopece Crito of Alopece was a faithful, probably lifelong companion of Socrates. The two had evidently grown up together as friends, being from the same deme and of roughly the same age... , Simon Simon the Shoemaker Simon the Shoemaker was an associate of the Athenian philosopher Socrates in the late 5th century BCE. He is known mostly from the account given in Diogenes Laërtius' Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers... , Glaucon Glaucon Glaucon son of Ariston, was the philosopher Plato's older brother. He is primarily known as a major conversant with Socrates in Republic, and the interlocutor during the Allegory of the Cave... , Simmias Simmias of Thebes Simmias of Thebes was a disciple of Socrates, and a friend of Cebes. In his Memorabilia, Xenophon includes him in the inner circle of Socrates' followers... , Cebes Cebes Cebes of Thebes was a disciple of Socrates in the late 5th-century BCE. One work, known as the Pinax or Tabula, attributed to Cebes still survives, but it is believed to be a composition by an anonymous author of the 1st or 2nd century.... , Menedemus of Eretria Menedemus Menedemus of Eretria was a Greek philosopher and founder of the Eretrian school. He learned philosophy first in Athens, and then, with his friend Asclepiades, he subsequently studied under Stilpo and Phaedo of Elis. Nothing survives of his philosophical views apart from a few scattered remarks...

Book 3: Plato

Plato Plato Plato , was a Classical Greek philosopher, mathematician, student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. Along with his mentor, Socrates, and his student, Aristotle, Plato helped to lay the...

Book 4: The Academy Platonic Academy The Academy was founded by Plato in ca. 387 BC in Athens. Aristotle studied there for twenty years before founding his own school, the Lyceum. The Academy persisted throughout the Hellenistic period as a skeptical school, until coming to an end after the death of Philo of Larissa in 83 BC...

Speusippus Speusippus Speusippus was an ancient Greek philosopher. Speusippus was Plato's nephew by his sister Potone. After Plato's death, Speusippus inherited the Academy and remained its head for the next eight years. However, following a stroke, he passed the chair to Xenocrates. Although the successor to Plato... , Xenocrates Xenocrates Xenocrates of Chalcedon was a Greek philosopher, mathematician, and leader of the Platonic Academy from 339/8 to 314/3 BC. His teachings followed those of Plato, which he attempted to define more closely, often with mathematical elements... , Polemo Polemon (scholarch) Polemon of Athens was an eminent Platonist philosopher and Plato's third successor as scholarch or head of the Academy from 314/313 to 270/269 BC... , Crates of Athens Crates of Athens Crates of Athens was the son of Antigenes of the Thriasian deme, the pupil and eromenos of Polemo, and his successor as scholarch of the Platonic Academy, in 270/69 BC... , Crantor Crantor Crantor was a Greek philosopher of the Old Academy, probably born around the middle of the 4th century BC, at Soli in Cilicia.-Life:Crantor moved to Athens in order to study philosophy, where he became a pupil of Xenocrates and a friend of Polemo, and one of the most distinguished supporters of... , Arcesilaus Arcesilaus Arcesilaus was a Greek philosopher and founder of the Second or Middle Academy—the phase of Academic skepticism. Arcesilaus succeeded Crates as the sixth head of the Academy c. 264 BC. He did not preserve his thoughts in writing, so his opinions can only be gleaned second-hand from what is... , Bion Bion of Borysthenes Bion of Borysthenes , c. 325 – c. 250 BC, was a Greek philosopher. After being sold into slavery, and then released, he moved to Athens, where he studied in almost every school of philosophy. It is, however, for his Cynic-style diatribes that he is chiefly remembered... , Lacydes Lacydes of Cyrene Lacydes of Cyrene, Greek philosopher, was head of the Academy at Athens in succession to Arcesilaus from 241 BC. He was forced to resign c. 215 BC due to ill-health, and he died c. 205 BC. Nothing survives of his works.-Life:... , Carneades Carneades Carneades was an Academic skeptic born in Cyrene. By the year 159 BC, he had started to refute all previous dogmatic doctrines, especially Stoicism, and even the Epicureans whom previous skeptics had spared. As head of the Academy, he was one of three philosophers sent to Rome in 155 BC where his... , Clitomachus

Book 5: The Peripatetics

Aristotle Aristotle Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology... , Theophrastus Theophrastus Theophrastus , a Greek native of Eresos in Lesbos, was the successor to Aristotle in the Peripatetic school. He came to Athens at a young age, and initially studied in Plato's school. After Plato's death he attached himself to Aristotle. Aristotle bequeathed to Theophrastus his writings, and... , Strato Strato of Lampsacus Strato of Lampsacus was a Peripatetic philosopher, and the third director of the Lyceum after the death of Theophrastus... , Lyco Lyco of Troas Lyco of Troas, son of Astyanax, was a Peripatetic philosopher and the disciple of Strato, whom he succeeded as the head of the Peripatetic school, c. 269 BC; and he held that post for more than forty-four years.-Life:... , Demetrius Demetrius Phalereus Demetrius of Phalerum was an Athenian orator originally from Phalerum, a student of Theophrastus and one of the first Peripatetics... , Heraclides Heraclides Ponticus Heraclides Ponticus , also known as Herakleides and Heraklides of Pontus, was a Greek philosopher and astronomer who lived and died at Heraclea Pontica, now Karadeniz Ereğli, Turkey. He is best remembered for proposing that the earth rotates on its axis, from west to east, once every 24 hours...

Book 6: The Cynics

Antisthenes Antisthenes Antisthenes was a Greek philosopher and a pupil of Socrates. Antisthenes first learned rhetoric under Gorgias before becoming an ardent disciple of Socrates. He adopted and developed the ethical side of Socrates' teachings, advocating an ascetic life lived in accordance with virtue. Later writers... , Diogenes of Sinope Diogenes of Sinope Diogenes the Cynic was a Greek philosopher and one of the founders of Cynic philosophy. Also known as Diogenes of Sinope , he was born in Sinope , an Ionian colony on the Black Sea , in 412 or 404 BCE and died at Corinth in 323 BCE.Diogenes of Sinope was a controversial figure... , Monimus Monimus Monimus of Syracuse, was a Cynic philosopher.According to Diogenes Laërtius, Monimus was the slave of a Corinthian money-changer who heard tales about Diogenes of Sinope from Xeniades, Diogenes' master. In order that he might become the pupil of Diogenes, Monimus feigned madness by throwing money... , Onesicritus Onesicritus Onesicritus , a Greek historical writer, who accompanied Alexander on his campaigns in Asia. He claimed to have been the commander of Alexander's fleet but was actually only a helmsman; Arrian and Nearchus often criticize him for this. When he returned home, he wrote a history of Alexander's... , Crates of Thebes Crates of Thebes Crates of Thebes, was a Cynic philosopher. Crates gave away his money to live a life of poverty on the streets of Athens. He married Hipparchia of Maroneia who lived in the same manner that he did. Respected by the people of Athens, he is remembered for being the teacher of Zeno of Citium, the... , Metrocles Metrocles Metrocles was a Cynic philosopher from Maroneia. He studied in Aristotle’s Lyceum under Theophrastus, and eventually became a follower of Crates of Thebes who married Metrocles’ sister Hipparchia... , Hipparchia, Menippus Menippus Menippus of Gadara, was a Cynic and satirist. His works, which are all lost, were an important influence on Varro and Lucian. The Menippean satire genre is named after him.-Life:... , Menedemus Menedemus the Cynic Menedemus was a Cynic philosopher, and a pupil of the Epicurean Colotes of Lampsacus. Diogenes Laërtius states that he used to go about garbed as a Fury, proclaiming himself a sort of spy from Hades:...

Book 7: The Stoics

Zeno of Citium Zeno of Citium Zeno of Citium was a Greek philosopher from Citium . Zeno was the founder of the Stoic school of philosophy, which he taught in Athens from about 300 BC. Based on the moral ideas of the Cynics, Stoicism laid great emphasis on goodness and peace of mind gained from living a life of virtue in... , Aristo, Herillus, Dionysius Dionysius the Renegade Dionysius the Renegade , also known as Dionysius of Heraclea, was a Stoic philosopher and pupil of Zeno of Citium who, late in life, abandoned Stoicism when he became afflicted by terrible pain.... , Cleanthes Cleanthes Cleanthes , of Assos, was a Greek Stoic philosopher and the successor to Zeno as the second head of the Stoic school in Athens. Originally a boxer, he came to Athens where he took up philosophy, listening to Zeno's lectures. He supported himself by working as water-carrier at night. After the... , Sphaerus Sphaerus Sphaerus of Borysthenes or the Bosphorus, was a Stoic philosopher.He studied first under Zeno of Citium, and afterwards under Cleanthes. He taught in Sparta, where he acted as advisor to Cleomenes III. He moved to Alexandria at some point, where he lived in the court of Ptolemy IV Philopator... , Chrysippus Chrysippus Chrysippus of Soli was a Greek Stoic philosopher. He was a native of Soli, Cilicia, but moved to Athens as a young man, where he became a pupil of Cleanthes in the Stoic school. When Cleanthes died, around 230 BC, Chrysippus became the third head of the school...

Books 8-10: Italian Philosophy

Book 8: Pythagoreans Pythagoreanism Pythagoreanism was the system of esoteric and metaphysical beliefs held by Pythagoras and his followers, the Pythagoreans, who were considerably influenced by mathematics. Pythagoreanism originated in the 5th century BCE and greatly influenced Platonism...

Pythagoras Pythagoras Pythagoras of Samos was an Ionian Greek philosopher, mathematician, and founder of the religious movement called Pythagoreanism. Most of the information about Pythagoras was written down centuries after he lived, so very little reliable information is known about him... , Empedocles Empedocles Empedocles was a Greek pre-Socratic philosopher and a citizen of Agrigentum, a Greek city in Sicily. Empedocles' philosophy is best known for being the originator of the cosmogenic theory of the four Classical elements... , Epicharmus Epicharmus of Kos Epicharmus is thought to have lived within the hundred year period between c. 540 and c. 450 BC. He was a Greek dramatist and philosopher often credited with being one of the first comic writers, having originated the Doric or Sicilian comedic form. Aristotle writes that he and Phormis invented... , Archytas Archytas Archytas was an Ancient Greek philosopher, mathematician, astronomer, statesman, and strategist. He was a scientist of the Pythagorean school and famous for being the reputed founder of mathematical mechanics, as well as a good friend of Plato.... , Alcmaeon Alcmaeon of Croton Alcmaeon of Croton was one of the most eminent natural philosophers and medical theorists of antiquity. His father's name was Peirithus . He is said by some to have been a pupil of Pythagoras, and he may have been born around 510 BC... , Hippasus Hippasus Hippasus of Metapontum in Magna Graecia, was a Pythagorean philosopher. Little is known about his life or his beliefs, but he is sometimes credited with the discovery of the existence of irrational numbers.-Life:... , Philolaus Philolaus Philolaus was a Greek Pythagorean and Presocratic philosopher. He argued that all matter is composed of limiting and limitless things, and that the universe is determined by numbers. He is credited with originating the theory that the earth was not the center of the universe.-Life:Philolaus is... , Eudoxus Eudoxus of Cnidus Eudoxus of Cnidus was a Greek astronomer, mathematician, scholar and student of Plato. Since all his own works are lost, our knowledge of him is obtained from secondary sources, such as Aratus's poem on astronomy...

Book 9: Uncategorized (Eleatics Eleatics The Eleatics were a school of pre-Socratic philosophers at Elea , a Greek colony in Campania, Italy. The group was founded in the early fifth century BCE by Parmenides. Other members of the school included Zeno of Elea and Melissus of Samos... , Atomists Atomism Atomism is a natural philosophy that developed in several ancient traditions. The atomists theorized that the natural world consists of two fundamental parts: indivisible atoms and empty void.According to Aristotle, atoms are indestructible and immutable and there are an infinite variety of shapes... , Skeptics Pyrrhonism Pyrrhonism, or Pyrrhonian skepticism, was a school of skepticism founded by Aenesidemus in the 1st century BCE and recorded by Sextus Empiricus in the late 2nd century or early 3rd century CE. It was named after Pyrrho, a philosopher who lived from c. 360 to c. 270 BCE, although the relationship... , etc.)

Heraclitus Heraclitus Heraclitus of Ephesus was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher, a native of the Greek city Ephesus, Ionia, on the coast of Asia Minor. He was of distinguished parentage. Little is known about his early life and education, but he regarded himself as self-taught and a pioneer of wisdom... , Xenophanes Xenophanes of Colophon was a Greek philosopher, theologian, poet, and social and religious critic. Xenophanes life was one of travel, having left Ionia at the age of 25 he continued to travel throughout the Greek world for another 67 years. Some scholars say he lived in exile in Siciliy... , Parmenides Parmenides Parmenides of Elea was an ancient Greek philosopher born in Elea, a Greek city on the southern coast of Italy. He was the founder of the Eleatic school of philosophy. The single known work of Parmenides is a poem, On Nature, which has survived only in fragmentary form. In this poem, Parmenides... , Melissus Melissus of Samos Melissus of Samos was the third and last member of the ancient school of Eleatic philosophy, whose other members included Zeno and Parmenides. Little is known about his life except that he was the commander of the Samian fleet shortly before the Peloponnesian War. Melissus’ contribution to... , Zeno of Elea Zeno of Elea Zeno of Elea was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher of southern Italy and a member of the Eleatic School founded by Parmenides. Aristotle called him the inventor of the dialectic. He is best known for his paradoxes, which Bertrand Russell has described as "immeasurably subtle and profound".- Life... , Leucippus Leucippus Leucippus or Leukippos was one of the earliest Greeks to develop the theory of atomism — the idea that everything is composed entirely of various imperishable, indivisible elements called atoms — which was elaborated in greater detail by his pupil and successor, Democritus... , Democritus Democritus Democritus was an Ancient Greek philosopher born in Abdera, Thrace, Greece. He was an influential pre-Socratic philosopher and pupil of Leucippus, who formulated an atomic theory for the cosmos.... , Protagoras Protagoras Protagoras was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher and is numbered as one of the sophists by Plato. In his dialogue Protagoras, Plato credits him with having invented the role of the professional sophist or teacher of virtue... , Diogenes of Apollonia, Anaxarchus Anaxarchus Anaxarchus was a Greek philosopher of the school of Democritus. Together with Pyrrho, he accompanied Alexander the Great into Asia. The reports of his philosophical views suggest that he was a forerunner of the Greek skeptics.-Life:... , Pyrrho Pyrrho Pyrrho , a Greek philosopher of classical antiquity, is credited as being the first Skeptic philosopher and the inspiration for the school known as Pyrrhonism, founded by Aenesidemus in the 1st century BC.- Life :Pyrrho was from Elis, on the Ionian Sea... , Timon

Book 10: Epicurus

Epicurus Epicurus Epicurus was an ancient Greek philosopher and the founder of the school of philosophy called Epicureanism.Only a few fragments and letters remain of Epicurus's 300 written works...

The work contains incidental remarks on many other philosophers, and there are useful accounts concerning Hegesias

Hegesias of Cyrene

Hegesias of Cyrene was a Cyrenaic philosopher. He argued that happiness is impossible to achieve, and that the goal of life was the avoidance of pain and sorrow. Conventional values such as wealth, poverty, freedom, and slavery are all indifferent and produce no more pleasure than pain...

, Anniceris

Anniceris

Anniceris was a Cyrenaic philosopher. He argued that pleasure is achieved through individual acts of gratification which are sought for the pleasure that they produce, but he also laid great emphasis on the love of family, country, friendship and gratitude, which provide pleasure even when they...

, and Theodorus

Theodorus the Atheist

Theodorus the Atheist, of Cyrene, was a philosopher of the Cyrenaic school. He lived in both Greece and Alexandria, before ending his days in his native city of Cyrene. As a Cyrenaic philosopher, he taught that the goal of life was to obtain joy and avoid grief, and that the former resulted from...

 (Cyrenaics

Cyrenaics

The Cyrenaics were an ultra-hedonist Greek school of philosophy founded in the 4th century BC, supposedly by Aristippus of Cyrene, although many of the principles of the school are believed to have been formalized by his grandson of the same name, Aristippus the Younger. The school was so called...

); Persaeus

Persaeus

Persaeus , of Citium, son of Demetrius, was a Stoic philosopher, and a friend and favourite student of Zeno of Citium.He lived in the same house as Zeno...

 (Stoic); and Metrodorus and Hermarchus

Hermarchus

Hermarchus or Hermarch , sometimes incorrectly written Hermachus , was an Epicurean philosopher. He was the disciple and successor of Epicurus as head of the school. None of his writings survive. He wrote works directed against Plato, Aristotle, and Empedocles. A fragment from his Against...

 (Epicureans). Book VII is incomplete and breaks off during the life of Chrysippus. From a table of contents in one of the manuscripts (manuscript P), this book is known to have continued with Zeno of Tarsus

Zeno of Tarsus

Zeno of Tarsus was a Stoic philosopher.He was a pupil of Chrysippus, and when Chrysippus died c. 206 BC, he succeeded him to become the fourth head of the Stoic school in Athens....

, Diogenes, Apollodorus

Apollodorus of Seleucia

Apollodorus of Seleucia, , was a Stoic philosopher, and a pupil of Diogenes of Babylon.He wrote a number of handbooks on Stoicism, including ones on Ethics and Physics which are frequently cited by Diogenes Laërtius....

, Boethus

Boethus of Sidon (Stoic)

Boethus was a Stoic philosopher from Sidon, and a pupil of Diogenes of Babylon.He is said to have denied, contrary to the standard Stoic view, that the cosmos is an animate being, and he suggested that it was not the whole world which was divine, but only the ether or sphere of the fixed stars...

, Mnesarchides, Mnasagoras, Nestor, Basilides

Basilides (Stoic)

Basilides , was a Stoic philosopher who denied the existence of incorporeal entities.Nothing is known about the life of Basilides. From a table of contents in one of the medieval manuscripts, we know that he was listed in the missing part of Book VII of Diogenes Laërtius' Lives and Opinions of...

, Dardanus

Dardanus of Athens

Dardanus , of Athens, was a Stoic philosopher, lived c. 160-c. 85 BC.He was a pupil of Diogenes of Babylon and Antipater of Tarsus. Cicero mentions him as being one of the leaders of the Stoic school at Athens together with Mnesarchus at a time when Antiochus of Ascalon was turning away from...

, Antipater

Antipater of Tarsus

Antipater of Tarsus was a Stoic philosopher. He was the pupil and successor of Diogenes of Babylon as leader of the Stoic school, and was the teacher of Panaetius...

, Heraclides, Sosigenes, Panaetius

Panaetius

Panaetius of Rhodes was a Stoic philosopher. He was a pupil of Diogenes of Babylon and Antipater of Tarsus in Athens, before moving to Rome where he did much to introduce Stoic doctrines to the city. After the death of Scipio in 129, he returned to the Stoic school in Athens, and was its last...

, Hecato

Hecato of Rhodes

Hecato or Hecaton of Rhodes was a Stoic philosopher.He was a native of Rhodes, and a disciple of Panaetius, but nothing else is known of his life. It is clear that he was eminent amongst the Stoics of the period. He was a voluminous writer, but nothing remains...

, Posidonius

Posidonius

Posidonius "of Apameia" or "of Rhodes" , was a Greek Stoic philosopher, politician, astronomer, geographer, historian and teacher native to Apamea, Syria. He was acclaimed as the greatest polymath of his age...

, Athenodorus

Athenodoros Cordylion

Athenodoros Cordylion was a Stoic philosopher, born in Tarsus. He was the keeper of the library at Pergamon, where he was known to cut out passages from books on Stoic philosophy if he disagreed with them:...

, another Athenodorus

Athenodoros Cananites

Athenodorus Cananites was a Stoic philosopher. He was born in Canana, near Tarsus ; his father was Sandon...

, Antipater

Antipater of Tyre

Antipater of Tyre was a Stoic philosopher, and a contemporary of Cato the Younger and Cicero. Antipater is said to have befriended Cato when the latter was a young man. He appears to be the same as the Antipater of Tyre mentioned by Strabo....

, Arius

Arius Didymus

Arius Didymus of Alexandria, was a Stoic philosopher and teacher of Augustus. Fragments of his handbooks summarizing Stoic and Peripatetic doctrines are preserved by Stobaeus and Eusebius.-Life:...

, and Cornutus

Lucius Annaeus Cornutus

Lucius Annaeus Cornutus, , a Stoic philosopher, flourished in the reign of Nero , when his house in Rome was a school of philosophy.-Life:He was a native of Leptis Magna in Libya, but resided for the most part in Rome...

. The whole of Book X is devoted to Epicurus, and contains three long letters written by Epicurus, which explain Epicurean doctrines.

His chief authorities were Favorinus

Favorinus

Favorinus of Arelata was a Roman sophist and philosopher who flourished during the reign of Hadrian.He was of Gaulish ancestry, born in Arelate . He is described as a hermaphrodite by birth...

 and Diocles of Magnesia

Diocles of Magnesia

Diocles of Magnesia was an ancient Greek writer from Magnesia, who probably lived in the 2nd or 1st century BC. The claim that he is the Diocles to whom Meleager of Gadara dedicated his anthology is questionable...

, but his work also draws (either directly or indirectly) on books by Antisthenes of Rhodes

Antisthenes of Rhodes

Antisthenes of Rhodes was a Greek historian who lived c. 200 BCE. He took an active part in the political affairs of his country, and wrote a history of his own time, which, notwithstanding his bias towards his native island, is spoken of in terms of high praise by Polybius...

, Alexander Polyhistor

Alexander Polyhistor

Lucius Cornelius Alexander Polyhistor was a Greek scholar who was enslaved by the Romans during the Mithridatic War and taken to Rome as a tutor. After his release, he continued to live in Italy as a Roman citizen...

, and Demetrius of Magnesia

Demetrius of Magnesia

Demetrius of Magnesia was a Greek grammarian and biographer, and a contemporary of Cicero and Atticus. He had, in Cicero's recollection, sent Atticus a work of his on concord, , which Cicero also was anxious to read...

, as well as works by Hippobotus

Hippobotus

Hippobotus was a Greek historian of philosophers and philosophical schools. His writings are frequently quoted by Diogenes Laërtius. He wrote On the Sects and a Register of Philosophers . He treated philosophers as early as the Seven Sages and Pythagoras, and as late as Crates, Menedemus, and...

, Aristippus

Aristippus

Aristippus of Cyrene, , was the founder of the Cyrenaic school of Philosophy. He was a pupil of Socrates, but adopted a very different philosophical outlook, teaching that the goal of life was to seek pleasure by adapting circumstances to oneself and by maintaining proper control over both...

, Panaetius

Panaetius

Panaetius of Rhodes was a Stoic philosopher. He was a pupil of Diogenes of Babylon and Antipater of Tarsus in Athens, before moving to Rome where he did much to introduce Stoic doctrines to the city. After the death of Scipio in 129, he returned to the Stoic school in Athens, and was its last...

, Apollodorus

Apollodorus

Apollodorus of Athens son of Asclepiades, was a Greek scholar and grammarian. He was a pupil of Diogenes of Babylon, Panaetius the Stoic, and the grammarian Aristarchus of Samothrace...

, Sosicrates

Sosicrates

Sosicrates of Rhodes was a Greek historical writer. Sosicrates was born on the island Rhodes and is noted, chiefly, for his frequent mention by Diogenes Laërtius in his Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers — referencing Sosicrates as the sole authority behind such facts as Aristippus having...

, Satyrus

Satyrus the Peripatetic

Satyrus of Callatis was a distinguished peripatetic philosopher and historian, whose biographies of famous people are frequently referred to by Diogenes Laërtius and Athenaeus. He came from Callatis Pontica, as we learn from a Herculaneum papyrus...

, Sotion

Sotion

Sotion of Alexandria was a Greek doxographer and biographer, and an important source for Diogenes Laërtius. None of his works survive; they are known only indirectly...

, Neanthes

Neanthes of Cyzicus

Neanthes is apparently the name of two writers whose works have largely been lost. The elder Neanthes of Cyzicus was a disciple of Philiscus of Miletus , who himself had been a pupil of Isocrates...

, Hermippus

Hermippus of Smyrna

Hermippus of Smyrna, a Peripatetic philosopher, surnamed by the ancient writers the Callimachian , from which it may be inferred that he was a disciple of Callimachus about the middle of the 3rd century BC, while the fact of his having written the life of Chrysippus proves that he lived to about...

, Antigonus

Antigonus of Carystus

Antigonus of Carystus , Greek writer on various subjects, flourished in the 3rd century BC. After some time spent at Athens and in travelling, he was summoned to the court of Attalus I of Pergamum...

, Heraclides, Hieronymus

Hieronymus of Rhodes

Hieronymus of Rhodes was a Peripatetic philosopher, and an opponent of Arcesilaus and Lyco of Troas. Only a few fragments of his works survive, preserved in the quotations of later writers.-Life:...

, and Pamphila

Pamphile of Epidaurus

Pamphile of Epidaurus was an historian who lived in the reign of Nero. According to the Suda she was an Epidaurian; Photius describes her as an Egyptian by birth or descent, which may be reconciled by supposing that she was a native of Epidaurus, and that her family came from Egypt...

 From the statements of the pseudo-Burlaeus, in the 14th-century work De vita et moribus philosophorum, the text of Diogenes seems to have been much fuller than that which we now possess.

Manuscript editions

There are many extant manuscript

Manuscript

A manuscript or handwrite is written information that has been manually created by someone or some people, such as a hand-written letter, as opposed to being printed or reproduced some other way...

s of the Lives, although none of them are especially old, and they all descend from a common ancestor, because they all lack the end of Book VII. The three most useful manuscripts are known as B, P, and F. Manuscript B (Codex Borbonicus) dates from the 12th century, and is in the National Library of Naples. Manuscript P (Paris) and manuscript F (Florence) are probably a little younger.

There seem to have been some early Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 translations, which have no longer survived. A 10th century work entitled Tractatus de dictis philosophorum shows some knowledge of Diogenes. Henry Aristippus

Henry Aristippus

Henry Aristippus of Calabria, sometimes known as Enericus or Henricus Aristippus, was the archdeacon of Catania and later chief familiaris of the triumvirate of familiares who replaced the Emir Maio of Bari as chief functionaries of the kingdom of Sicily in 1161...

, in the 12th century, is known to have translated at least some of the work into Latin, and in the 14th century an unknown author made use of a Latin translation for his De vita et moribus philosophorum (attributed erroneously to Walter Burley

Walter Burley

Walter Burley was a medieval English Scholastic philosopher and logician. He was a Master of Arts at Oxford in 1301, and a fellow of Merton College, Oxford until about 1310. He spent sixteen years at Paris until 1326, becoming a fellow of the Sorbonne by 1324. After that, he spent seventeen...

).

Printed editions

The first printed editions were Latin translations. The first, Laertii Diogenis Vitae et sententiae eorum qui in philosophia probati fuerunt (Romae: Giorgo Lauer, 1472), printed the translation of Ambrogio Traversari (whose manuscript presentation copy to Cosimo de' Medici

Cosimo de' Medici

Còsimo di Giovanni degli Mèdici was the first of the Medici political dynasty, de facto rulers of Florence during much of the Italian Renaissance; also known as "Cosimo 'the Elder'" and "Cosimo Pater Patriae" .-Biography:Born in Florence, Cosimo inherited both his wealth and his expertise in...

 was dated February 8, 1433) and was edited by Elio Francesco Marchese. The Greek

Greek language

Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...

 text of the lives of Aristotle and Theophrastus appeared in the third volume of the Aldine

Aldine Press

Aldine Press was the printing office started by Aldus Manutius in 1494 in Venice, from which were issued the celebrated Aldine editions of the classics . The Aldine Press is famous in the history of typography, among other things, for the introduction of italics...

 Aristotle in 1497. The first edition of the whole Greek text was that published by Hieronymus Froben

Hieronymus Froben

Hieronymus Froben was a famous pioneering printer in Basel and the eldest son of Johann Froben. He was educated at the University of Basel and traveled widely in Europe....

 in 1533.

The first critical edition of the entire text, by H.S. Long in the Oxford Classical Texts

Oxford Classical Texts

Oxford Classical Texts , or Scriptorum Classicorum Bibliotheca Oxoniensis, is a series of books published by Oxford University Press. It contains texts of ancient Greek and Latin literature, such as Homer's Odyssey and Virgil's Aeneid, in the original language with a critical apparatus...

, was not produced until 1964; this edition was superseded by Miroslav Marcovich

Miroslav Marcovich

Miroslav Marcovich was a philologist and university professor. Marcovich was born in Belgrade. He studied at the University of Belgrade Faculty of Philosophy graduating in 1942. In 1943 he served as the assistant to Georg Ostrogorsky, expert in Byzantine studies. He served in the army under Josip...

's Teubner edition, published between 1999 and 2002. A new edition, by Tiziano Dorandi, is to be published by Cambridge University Press (see T. Dorandi, Laertiana Berlin, Walter de Gruyter 2009).

English translations

There have been three English translations of the complete Lives. The first was a late 17th-century translation by ten different persons. A better translation was made by Charles Duke Yonge

Charles Duke Yonge

Charles Duke Yonge was an English historian, classicist, and cricketer. He wrote numerous works of modern history, and translated several classical works.-Life:...

 (1853), but although this was more literal, it still contained many inaccuracies. The translation by Robert Drew Hicks

Robert Drew Hicks

Robert Drew Hicks was a classical scholar, and a fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge.He was born in 1850, was educated at Bristol Grammar School, and entered Trinity College, Cambridge in 1868. Graduating BA in 1874, he became a fellow of Trinity in 1876. He was college lecturer in Classics from...

 (1925) for the Loeb Classical Library

Loeb Classical Library

The Loeb Classical Library is a series of books, today published by Harvard University Press, which presents important works of ancient Greek and Latin Literature in a way designed to make the text accessible to the broadest possible audience, by presenting the original Greek or Latin text on each...

, remains the definitive translation, although it is slightly bowdlerized.

External links

• Diogenes Laërtius, Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers, translated by Charles Duke Yonge
  Charles Duke Yonge
  Charles Duke Yonge was an English historian, classicist, and cricketer. He wrote numerous works of modern history, and translated several classical works.-Life:...
  
  (1853)
• Ancient Greek text of Diogenes' Lives
• Article on the Manuscript versions at the Tertullian Project
• A bibliography on the Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers