헤카타이오스(Hekataios)와 헤로도토스(Herodotos)

Abstract

Entering into the 6th Century B.C., the Greeks observed the ‘Oekoumene ’ and their civilization critically, therefore the road to the birth of history was opened. However the first problems discused was not ‘historicity’ of epic poetry, but senseless elements in the Iliad and Odysey and other mythology and legends. The authors that criticized seriously were prose-writers i.e. ‘logographoi ’. Their works were proses and under the new category of ‘historia’, that is inquiry. Nevertheless, their proses held mythological elements, so later critics called them not historians, but prose-writers simply. Compared with prose-writers, Herodotos somewhat converted the legends and folklores into the social science andshowed an objective and general vision in tracking the causes and progresses of Persian War. For that reason, we called him by the name of ‘father of History’ - pater historiae. However, prose-writers also showed scientific and ration- alapproach to the Homeric epics and other legends. Especialy, prose- writer Hekataios, whom Herodotos named and quoted several times, wrote ‘Genealogiai ’ and ‘Periegesis’ and those showed critical judgment and the way of rational analysis, even if his literary style was simple. But he was a father of geographer, not a father of history and his historical perception was not fully developed yet. Nevertheless, prose-writers’ way of investigation - especialy Hekataios’ - directly handed down Herodotos, so they greatly contributed to rational perception of history. Besides, atransition from verse to prose contributed to the introduction of systematical and rational thinking about geography and history. Therefore we can estimate ‘logographoi’ as a basis and forerunner of history.