Philosophers

624-546 Thales of MiletusGreek mathematician, astronomer and pre-Socratic philosopher from Miletus in Ionia, Asia Minor. He was one of the Seven Sages of Greece. Many, most notably Aristotle, regarded him as the first philosopher in the Greek tradition.

610-546 Anaximander Greek philosopher who was the first to develop a systematic philosophical view of the world.  Also of Miletus, was likely the teacher of Pythagoras.

570-495 Pythagoras Greek philosopher, mathematician, and founder of the Pythagorean brotherhood that, although religious in nature, formulated principles that influenced the thought of Plato and Aristotle and contributed to the development of mathematics and Western rational philosophy. Maintained that the ultimate reality was abstract and relational, depending on numbers.

551-479 Confucius China’s most famous teacher, philosopher, and political theorist, whose ideas have influenced the civilization of East Asia. He emphasized personal and governmental morality, correctness of social relationships, justice, kindness, and sincerity.

535-475 Heraclitus Greek philosopher, and a native of the city of Ephesus. Claimed that fire is the foundation of existence, which is ever flowing. Famous for saying “No man ever steps in the same river twice”.

515-? Parmenides Greek philosopher of Elea in southern Italy held that the multiplicity of existing things, their changing forms and motion, are but an appearance of a single eternal reality, thus considered one of the founders of metaphysics. Plato’s dialogue the Parmenides deals with his thought.

495-430 Zeno of Elea Greek philosopher of Magna Graecia (Sicily and coastal 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 described as “immeasurably subtle and profound”.

469-399 Socrates Greek philosopher committed to objectifying the self and holding it up to scrutiny in order to examine human nature. Developed the Socratic method, which tests every assumption for its grounding and implications. Having produced no writings, his thoughts are known through the dialogues of Plato.

460-370 Hippocrates Greek physician considered to be the father of modern medicine. The most historically prominent theoretical scheme of was the doctrine of the four humors of the body: blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile (or sometimes serum). Health was defined as the balance of the four humors. Disease was defined as the imbalance

436-338 Isocrates Greek philosopher who held that reality is immediate human experience and metaphysical speculation is a waste of time and energy and said that all knowledge is tentative, and values are relative. Composed the Panegyricus, a work that raises the question of whether philosophy is something that just the Greeks do.