Kasra Abdavi-Azar - Greek or barbarian? Diogenes Laertius on the

Journal article

Kasra Abdavi-Azar
Bulletin of The Institute of Classical Studies, vol. 68(3), 2025, pp. 395–407

Cite

APA Click to copy
Abdavi-Azar, K. (2025). Greek or barbarian? Diogenes Laertius on the contested origin of philosophy. Bulletin of The Institute of Classical Studies, 68(3), 395–407. https://doi.org/10.1093/bics/qbae024

Chicago/Turabian Click to copy
Abdavi-Azar, Kasra. “Greek or Barbarian? Diogenes Laertius on the Contested Origin of Philosophy.” Bulletin of The Institute of Classical Studies 68, no. 3 (2025): 395–407.

MLA Click to copy
Abdavi-Azar, Kasra. “Greek or Barbarian? Diogenes Laertius on the Contested Origin of Philosophy.” Bulletin of The Institute of Classical Studies, vol. 68, no. 3, 2025, pp. 395–407, doi:10.1093/bics/qbae024.

BibTeX Click to copy

@article{kasra2025a,
  title = {Greek or barbarian? Diogenes Laertius on the contested origin of philosophy},
  year = {2025},
  issue = {3},
  journal = {Bulletin of The Institute of Classical Studies},
  pages = {395–407},
  volume = {68},
  doi = {10.1093/bics/qbae024},
  author = {Abdavi-Azar, Kasra}
}

Abstract

Though largely a silent observer throughout his Vitae philosophorum, Diogenes Laertius comes to the fore in his proem to refute the popular belief in a barbarian origin of philosophy. This study examines his defence-cum-critique in detail and offers some reflections on its sources and intended audience. It will be argued that Diogenes employs four distinct and partly incompatible arguments to counter sentiments that ultimately can be traced back to the Old Academy and early Peripatos but by Diogenes’ time had gained widespread circulation among Stoics and Platonists as well as Jews and Christians. The analysis thus reshapes our perception of Diogenes by showing that he consciously positioned himself within a controversial discourse, not only by relating the views of others but by advancing his own convictions with novel arguments.