Herodotus - A Quick Look at his Life and the Gold-digging Ants of India | Supplemental Podcast #9

[@vinrusso821]

Herodotus makes it clear that he is repeating stories told by others about myths. Many things he wrote about were spot on.

[@timurthelamest5630]

By spot on, you mean there is no deviation from the story that was told to him by others? If so, how would you know?

[@ZachariahtheMessiah]

Like Egyptian men sitting down to pee while women stand

[@Tsumami__]

@@ZachariahtheMessiah lol

[@allisvanity...9161]

@@timurthelamest5630 EDIT FOR SPELLING For thousands of years Herodotus was the only source for the circumnavigation of Africa by the Phonecians in 600 B.C. That expedition was sponsored by the Egyptian Pharaoh Necho. In the 20th century a reconstructed Phonecian style vessel rounded the cape of Good Hope, thus proving it possible. There are Ancient accounts of later Phonetician expeditions. Such as Hanno's in 425 B.C. Though Herodotus could be mistaken he was probably right on this topic. Twice Herodotus states that he was merely recording what others told him without passing judgment on the veracity of the account. One of those occasions was in the context of this reported expedition.

[@davidgalloway266]

Absolutely correct. He conveyed stories and has been unfarely maligned for it.

[@vangelisskia214]

"The kinship of all Greeks in blood and speech, and the shrines of gods and the sacrifices that we have in common, and the likeness of our way of life." Herodotus, 8.144.2

[@billybatson8657]

My favorite Herodotus tale is the one in Egypt where he describes a group of Egyptian people in a boat clapping while singing songs. You hear a lot about the architecture of Egypt, but to hear details about the everyday life of the Egyptian people the way he wrote about it makes it so much more vivid.

[@starkiller9897]

He was brilliant at including things like that most writers failed to include!! One of my favourite ancient Greek writers whom there's far to many geniuses to choose from!!

[@viorelpiscanu9425]

Many thanks! Best regards from Bucarest ROMANIA!

[@sachinadkekar1710]

Herodatus' contribution to research is priceless. Salute to the Yoda and also to the historian.

[@lordboston05]

Its worth noting that the account of the ants in some way is validated by referencing the Persian court. I would also add that like any work that endures it is the description of the things that allow us to figure out what they are talking about and not the names, as there are usually hundreds of names for any one thing. The best personal example I can give is the bible, its description of people, places, things, , actions, and activities allows us to understand what is being said even though the names of things have changed.

[@ruthanneseven]

Heroditus, imo, was the original journalist, who included some of his own ideas. He goes off on the most marvelous tangents, seamlessly returning to his pre-tangential story. His musings regarding his observations, and possible reasons can be pretty hilarious. While pondering the mysterious source of the Nile, he has the correct answer in hand, yet dismisses it as highly unlikely. One of my favourites, is his theory on why Egyptian skulls are thicker than the Persians, which he observes from battlefields. I won't ruin it by telling his conclusion, since anyone reading his work deserves the fun of "the reveal"! To call him the "Father of Lies" is undeserved and ignorant. To lie, one must know the true answer, and as a Seeker of knowledge, Heroditus does what any journalist/historian would do. He writes it all down and leaves it to the reader. Reading his work is like hearing a story from a friend. His candor is intimate and remarkable. Students would do well to study his work in context, instead of worthless subjects I won't name. Will have to listen again. Sadly it was late, and I fell asleep. Thank you!

[@ogrejd]

@12:40 - Dolphins are well known to rescue humans at sea. What would be the problem with Herodotus' story on the matter (since you skipped directly to the" gold-digging ants" and didn't go back to it)?

[@nicksmith8293]

The dolphin in question carried the man by a very large distance, and even left him on the beach. But I wouldn’t surprise if this one was actually true

[@henkstersmacro-world]

👍👍👍Herodotus will always be my favorite writer, just like this is my most favorite history channel, thank you Cy!!!

[@HistorywithCy]

Thanks my friend, your words are really touching and will do my best to bring you more of this stuff. Stay tuned and many thanks!

[@michaelleblanc7283]

Excellent pesentation. Good work fellow humanist.

[@HistorywithCy]

Thank you, glad that you enjoyed it... more on the way, stay tuned!

[@fecalmatter4195]

There is nothing wrong about Herodotus's work and there may have been some translation issues between the cultures but even the myths he wrote about gives us an insight of what people were like and I'm curious about the one eyed people.

[@jeanninerossouw5921]

Even modern journals recount things that are thought to be truth at the time, and are corrected a few years later when we have different info. Look at old encyclopedias. So getting one or two facts wrong is human, and does not make you father of lies. I love this work. I feel the actual point that makes him be refered to as this,is not the tall tales, but instead a little recounted episode of when he visited Colchis. Here, he tells us he deduced that the population were infact of Egyptian origins . He says that they had black hair, and practiced circumcision, and were only people he met outside Egypt who did this. The priest confirmed this. Since he had already travelled through the Levant, this has huge implications on the historic record of certain people, so easier to just discredit him.

[@tomcoolinmiami]

Thanks! You’ve provided a critical context that motivates me to read The Histories.

[@Artur_M.]

The part about the marmots from the Dansar plain was amazing.

[@HistorywithCy]

Yeah that was new for me too... had never heard about the marmot theory until I chanced upon it in that NYT article. Interesting stuff for sure!

[@benjansson9786]

I've been reading The Histories and it's so fascinating. Your videos have been very helpful in understanding the time period. Thank you. Also, I am interested in the religious (cultural-exchange?) between Eygpt and the Greek-speaking world that Herodotus talks about. I was surprised to read that many ideas or even gods came from Egypt to Greece. It's fascinating on many levels. Could it be said that there was a kind of Mediterranean religion with just different names for gods based on language?

[@olinayoung6287]

Thanks!

[@HistorywithCy]

My pleasure, thank YOU for stopping by, appreciate it!

[@HAL-yn3zj]

dolphins have saved people before, recently even. While being attacked by sharks a group of dolphins surrounded the swimmer and protected him till be was able to get back to shore. Dolphins are smart and nice, I'm sure they could have saved a person back then too.

[@youreperfectstudio4789]

That video still looked like a lot of work lol 😂

[@HistorywithCy]

Thank you! There were less visuals and no music, so that definitely helped with cutting down the time. More on the way, stay tuned!

[@theknave4415]

tbf to Herodotus, he does draw a sharp distinction between what he knows for certain and what others say about things and events. e.g. gold digging ants = what others said., not what he, himself knows or believes. ;)

[@loke6664]

Was Herodotus the father of history? I would say yes, the difference between his book and earlier books was that his was a general history book of the known world, earlier histories focused on either a single ruler, a ruling family or at best a single country. He was not the father of source critique though but to be fair were we a long time off for that. He feels at least somewhat less politically motivated then Caesar or even the Venerable Bede far later. It wasn't honestly until the rise of real archaeology in the late 19th century that historical sources started to be questioned. I am not sure if he ever actually visited the city of Babylon or just some land belonging to it though. He place the Hanging gardens there but recent archaeology seems to point to them being in Nineveh instead. Herodotus is a great source as long as you can verify his claims with a little archaeology. History should always work hand in hand with it because history doesn't always tell the real story but it tends to tell us the name of the people involved and give us clues while archaeology can tell us a lot but only rarely things like names and why there was a battle at a certain place. Both are vital to understanding the past. Sadly does historians and archaeologists not always get along.

[@kaarlimakela3413]

Great choice. Enlightening.

[@HistorywithCy]

Thank you, hope you enjoyed it!

[@omaindustry3502]

@19:25, South West Turkey

[@juanparacchini4772]

If we judge herodotus to modern standards he seems to not measure up. But for his times, herodotus works was a masterpiece without presedence. It was possibly the greatest work of history in rhe world at that time (mid 400s BC). Its interesting to note how Thucydides also criticized his predecessor, herodotus, for sometimes just taking for granted some of the tales he heard as if truths. But in defence of herodotus, he does actually tell us that the tales he tells us about faraway nations and amazing things; that he neither believes or disbelieve. (Leaves that call to the readers. And he himself seems to think it aa potentially true or false)

[@BiggestCorvid]

FATHER OF LIES also cool dude, history has to start somewhere. Glad you're uploading on a Sunday.

[@HistorywithCy]

Thanks! Yeah it be nice to make the podcast a weekly thing once my schedule becomes more predictable. Thanks for stopping by, appreciate it!

[@starkilr101]

We history bois owe our interests to Herodotus and then Thucydides

[@HistorywithCy]

That we do! Thanks for watching, I hope to do more on Herodotus in the near future!

[@tawan20082008]

thanks more please

[@HistorywithCy]

You're welcome, will do!

[@devinsmith4790]

I only read a little of Herodotus, he seems more entertaining than Josephus by the sounds of it.

[@kaushiksheshnagraj7176]

Wow so much stunning

[@HistorywithCy]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@kaushiksheshnagraj7176]

@@HistorywithCy thanks

[@ZephrusPrime]

Herodotus still owes me 500 Drachmae.

[@pete5134]

I remember reading about that Marmot story in a tatty copy of the Fortean Times, of all things, well over twenty years ago. Glad it panned out (so to speak) and is now recounted via media I'd actually trust. 👍

[@talisikid1618]

He’s more accurate than many modern folk who live totally in a fantasy world. That’s especially true of “academics” & “journalists”.

[@chuckaubry767]

Ok uncle ok.

[@jonerlandson1956]

*1177 BCE...* the collapse of the bronze age... draught... shortage of tin... and... the sea peoples... *the philistines... and.. the greeks...* pretty much the same peoples... insides out... and... outsides in... they put everything into their image... in relation to what it really was... *the song of the sirens...* will lull you to sleep... except... it... is getting loud...

[@beepboop204]

woof woof moo moo

[@HistorywithCy]

Thanks!

[@beepboop204]

@@HistorywithCy i srsly appreciate you, ur videos have helped me through many a night of withdrawals!

[@pianista1969]

Who was the mother of history then ?

[@hanonomiri]

Large army do lose some time... Look what happened in Afghanistan...!?!

[@matthewv4086]

Was he a Persian citizen by birth?

[@HistorywithCy]

Technically yes... maybe not citizen but subject since Halicarnassus was under Persian rule at the time of his birth.

[@hermescarraro3393]

I see... So Herodotus was different from the previous scribes and "historians" because he never rapresented his characters in a biased black and white way. While in ancient egypt the scribes wrote of their pharaohs as infallible in their rule and invincible in battle, Herodotus shows people as, well, people. Not perfect and flawless beings. And while he did use the many historical figures he wrote about to explain ideas and teach morals, it was still a step towards a superior form of historical recording. I mean. Yes. Some Historians are still very biased... And many historical books are... Well... Not very neutral... But such is the nature of man. But still. They are way less one sided than before. Especially because now we can listen to everyone, not just a specific group of people.

[@HistorywithCy]

Yeah, all interesting points! The more and more I've gone through Herodotus over the years, the more I appreciate him and his work. I supposed because when I first read Histories, I treated it like a collection of stories that the author wrote more for entertainment, but as the years have gone by and I've been able to analyze things more critically, and also see how things are often lost in translation, I start to see that the man seems to have done his best with the information that he was given. Anyway, hope all is well in Italy... stay safe!

[@hermescarraro3393]

@@HistorywithCy Yeah. He was definitively more of a storyteller... But at least he tried to be objective in his writing. Something that previous recorders did not do... Cof! Cof! *Ramses II* Cof! Cof! *Eternal treaty* Cof! Cof! Yeah...

[@johnivan9672]

Herodotus was the father of history but not the best historian. The best Greek historian for me was Thoucedides.

[@indravrtrahaana763]

Were not the Gold Digging Ants of Himalayas actually Marmots of Ladakh?

[@HistorywithCy]

That is a theory yes... watch the last third of the video for that. Thanks for stopping by, appreciate it and stay safe!

[@indravrtrahaana763]

@@HistorywithCy 😊

[@jordand1043]

MACEDONIA was mentioned in Homer’s ( Melegave) book ILIAD and ODYSI in the war of ILION ( the Trojan war) which took place sirca 1194-1184 BC;, meaning 550-580 B.C. Years before Karan as “first “ King Of Macedonia ( According Herodotus ancient historian) THANKS GOD AND WE MACEDONIANS HAVE OUR HISTORIANS ……………………… Homer- Angel Macedonian- Angel Greek- Klitiras : D And many more verses

[@LuisAldamiz]

Philobarbaros = not bigoted enough. Herodotus is amazing, even when he has things wrong, as when doubting the African circumnavigation of Necho's Phoenician sailors, he gives the evidence that allows us to disagree with him. He's generally very scientifically minded. People being saved by dolphins is very plausible (even recently dolphins saved someone from a shark attack actively protecting them) and as for the Indian gold-digging antiques, he just told what he had been told, what is naive maybe but honest anyhow.

[@josebenardi1554]

He often pointed out that he doesn't believe the most outlandish tales he's recounting, yet people want to make it look that he believed them.

[@LuisAldamiz]

@@josebenardi1554 - He may have believed some or most of them, when he did not believe something, he set that clear. This was at the beginning of written history and until then oral accounts, incl. legends, were considered mostly credible if told by someone who you have no reason to doubt, while deceit and lies did exist, they were more focused on specific gains and not so much in falsifying history (although this one was distorted by repeated retellings and embelishments, of course). Reasonable "credulity" or at least giving the source the benefit of doubt was generally good in those days (and to some extent even today) for information gathering, that's why the Illiad was considered history (but not the Odyssey, much more clearly a fictional fantasy), and that's why many people even believed in gods, go figure! When you can't thoroughly investigate every single claim and your source seems credible, then believing is by default the less incorrect attitude.

[@fsalhin99]

@@josebenardi1554 so he's basically like the news, they'll run the fakest news and give a little disclaimer in a corner for a second? lol imagine a news channel running new about alien invasion all day long and claiming to it be hearsay, what effect will it have on its viewers? in fact what kind of people will even watch it in the first place? yeah the people who already believe it to be true

[@iskog.831]

But flying snakes do exist... Though they're actually more like gliding snakes. Also they're present in India which makes me think Egyptians could've easily got them through trade? Also dolphins are known for rescuing people??? Seems like some historians could use some zoology lessons before trying to call bs on Herodotus.

[@ravensthatflywiththenightm7319]

I never really understood the "hate" Herodotus got over the centuries for his seemingly fanciful accounts. Plenty of other historians and travelers have done much worse and I don't hear anyone complaining about it. He's the "father of history", not "the bestest best historian ever".

[@julianshepherd2038]

Herodotus "I had bills"

[@ravensthatflywiththenightm7319]

@Ghost Ghost I had no idea the Greco-Persian Wars were "folklore tales".

[@ravensthatflywiththenightm7319]

@Ghost Ghost Sweetheart, don't be ignorant.

[@mattstakeontheancients7594]

Keep up the great work. Currently reading Xenophon’s Cyrus The Great. May check out Herodotus next. Thanks for the upload.

[@HistorywithCy]

Oh yeah, if you like Xenophon, you'll really enjoy Herodotus' take on Cyrus. I'll one day do a program on Xenophon too.. Thanks for stopping by, appreciate it!

[@TheRedneckPreppy]

BAM! A Cy video drops like a unexpected album! Herodotus was always one of my favourite historians. Nicely done!

[@HistorywithCy]

Thanks! Herodotus is also one of my favorites... first time I read (most) of the Histories was back in college and my professor used to knock on him a lot. I suppose I just wanted to get through the class so I didn't think too much of it at the time, but after a few years had passed I reread the Histories and now really appreciate it a lot more and tend to think, "you know, this guy was trying to do the best that he could with the info he had" which is really commendable. I'm definitely a Herodotus fan!

[@cliffgaither]

​@HistorywithCy :: Herodotus, I think you already know, was very unique in his approach to his story-telling. As one commentator in this thread has pointed-out, Herodotus had respect for his potential readers. He ( Herodotus ) made it clear that not everything he was told could be taken literally and the reader had to make up their minds on an individual level of common-sense ; another mind-blowing characteristic of Herodotus was his energy to travel up and down the Nile to experience the ebb and flow of the Nile and avoiding the dangerous cataracts. Not only a great historian was he, but also one of the earliest investigative journalists. Whatever "hate" he has since received from modern doubters of his research :: Herodotus saw❕️ Herodotus interviewed❕️ Herodotus conversed with the Native People❕️ Herodotus ate their food❕️ Herodotus breathed the air of the ancient Mediterranean and Egypt❕️ It was all so-much-more than his detractors. _What if Herodotus did not have a great desire for knowledge and travel ?_ _We would be ignorant of so much of the ancient past._

[@riadhalrabeh3783]

I think we are being harsh on the man.. he didn't say that the ants are digging for gold.. the ants makes burrows and mounds of sand outside.. it just happened that the area is full of gold and any digging can bring some gold... it is also possible the ants didn't like the gold for being too conductive of heat and decide to take it out thus increasing its abundance in their mounds. Large rats or rat like do exist and recently some has been found by archaeologist.

[@HistorywithCy]

Hi, thanks for stopping by and your comment, appreciate it! Yes, that's actually discussed at 15:08 in the video... the possibility that they are Himalayan marmots according to French explorer and anthropologist Michel Peissel. Check out that part, I think you'll find his discovery interesting. Thanks again for stopping by and more on the way, stay tuned!

[@jamvin5647]

I started reading Herodotus and Thucydides until I realized how dense they were in terms of historical knowledge. When I started, I knew absolutely nothing about history, so I was a little overwhelmed but was very determined to get through the book. This channel has been helping me so much with filling in the gaps in my knowledge so I can read and understand the books. I've watched videos from other channels and this is the best channel in my opinion so I've just been binging your whole "Greece (Ancient)" playlist and some other videos from you. Thank you for this abundance of knowledge. This is an interesting time to be alive where you can learn anything from the internet now so I like to take advantage of the educational opportunities we have today because of the internet, for all the intellectuals throughout history who would've given their first-born child to have access to the information we have available to us at our fingertips today and mostly take for granted. Your content is amazing, keep up the good work!

[@SiegfriedDeniz]

didn't they also found a ring in the Danube 10 or 15 years ago where Herodotus also wrote about? Something to do with Darius and his campaign against the Scyths?

[@andyventures6574]

So he heard the story about Mountain Ants from a persian. Boom. Truth he told. Again.

[@nishensemble]

I really hope you keep doing these man - these seem like they take a ton of time, but they're super helpful.

[@HistorywithCy]

For sure, no plans of stopping...thanks for the support, appreciate it!

[@angeleyeszarai]

When I saw the title "gold-digging ants of India"........ I WAS LIKE 🤔 Did he just call that entire culture "gold-digging ants???" I clicked ready to CHECK you for being disrespectful... but no. You were literally referring to gold digging ants 😂 so nevermind

[@TwistedAlphonso1]

I thought he meant either anthropomorphic human sized gold-digging ants or gold-digging aunts. Lmaoo

[@viorelpiscanu9425]

We in Romania folklore have a Say: "Dupa razboi, multi viteji se arata"... As long as there are no other reliable SOURCES from than long gone time, we SHOULD give him our credit!

[@tristanmason7405]

Actually there are snakes that "fly", referred to as gliding snakes. In his day and time one can understand how ppl considered these snakes were flying...

[@juanparacchini4772]

That was very interesting. Love that argument about the possible semi historical basis of the tale of the indian gold digging ants. It was also said achilles lead a contingent of myrmydons ("ant men") at Troy. Achilles was a king from thessaly. His grandfather took the throne from an older line of kings. The ant men where descendants of myrmidon son of eurymedousa who had intercourse with an ant. The greek elites usually called and seen lower classes as animals.

[@tobewanad]

Assassin's Creed Odyssey has been an amazing time, especially with the 30+ hours of historical content in the Discovery Tours. I didn't hear about Herodotus' failed coup that led to exile though, thats fascinating! The gold digging ant/marmot translation error is wild too

[@josebenardi1554]

What a coincidence, just finished reading Herodotus.

[@HistorywithCy]

Hope that you enjoyed it... I'm sure that it wouldn't be the last time you read it!

[@NovaSeven]

Excellent video Cy! I remember reading a footnote in the Landmark Herodotus that mentioned the gold-digging ants may have actually been marmots, but it was great to get the whole story of how modern researchers discovered that. Also interesting to learn how part of the story was lost in translation when going from Persian to Greek.

[@HistorywithCy]

Haha yeah I have the Landmark edition too but don't remember reading about the marmots...my go to is my old Penguin classics version. That's the one I used for years but the commentary in the Landmark edition is great!

[@morriganmhor5078]

Btw, Cy, won´t you do a video on Xenophon's Anabasis (and Katabasis)? It could be really nice work.

[@keithrosenthal4757]

Well considering there ARE flying snakes Chrysopelea, which are also known as “gliding snake” is a genus that belongs to the family Colubridae. Mostly in Southeast Asia, China, Sir Lanka and India but we’re spotted in additional regions throughout.

[@Golshanim]

Love the gold digging ant explanation which is new for me. Thank you

[@HistorywithCy]

Yeah that was new for me too... had never heard about the marmot theory until recently when I was doing some research. Fascinating stuff!

[@TLO7]

10:40 philobabarous "fond of foreigners" haha... yea right.. more like "barbarian lover", used in a very negative context like racist ppl say "*racist slur* lover" when they try to insult someone they dont like

[@DonalDocRavioli]

Interestingly, on some continents, there are snakes several feet long and use their scales to clime certain trees. Often climbing quite high and for whatever reason, are known to jump out of the tree onto the branches of another tree or to the ground. Can't recall which places this occurs but the documentary was done by a well-respected producer, Nat Geo, not quite sure. All I thought was, ain't going there!

[@jacktravers5049]

I BELIEVE YOURE REFERRING TO THE KOALA

[@رحّالغريب-ذ1د]

رجاء رجاء pLs الترجمة للعربية محتوى فيديوهات مفيد جدا لكن الترجمة لاتعمل على الفيديو

[@papertoyss]

You know, the funniest thing on this video is that the Turks errected a statue of a Greek historical figure in the ancient Greek Hallicarnassus (nowadays Bodrum - sounds like a suburb of Mordor), while at the same time they show complete disregard to anything that is Greek, literally, most notably and starting with the Greeks themselves. *Some years ago* the Turks built a replica of an ancient Greek ship they discovered in what is nowadays their waters, and decided that it's a great *opportunity* to deploy their "Turks are ancient indigenous" plan (yes this trully exists or at least existed), by sailing to Italy and to (if I recall correctly) the ancient Greek city of Neapolis (nowadays Napoli). They indeed carried out this plan, they sailed to Italy, only to find out that the *local authorities* disagreed with the Turkish plan of forging well known History, and much more a kind of History that binds the Italian and Greek nations for all eternity, not to mention that they tried to deploy their plans using a city which is proud for its Greek past and heritage. So they refused docking on the main port (which the Turks wanted to be the main attraction/advertisment of their ...ancient heritage) and instead they allowed docking in a small harbour near by, without the celebrations and the champagnes. Edit: Caria was colognized by the Greeks during the Iron Age Greek migrations, ie around the 11th c BCE, ie 700 years before Herodotus was born, and remained Greek for many centuries after his death.

[@robijnbruinsma4489]

The animosity towards Herodotus may be due to his sheer audacity to attempt a history linking together Greeks and Persians as if observing them from a distance. Also, he is so very readable.

[@markgarin6355]

Guess you've never heard of the ant hill garnets of Arizona....ha. But a simple translation issue isn't storytelling....

[@MalayArcher]

Have a safe travel friend :)

[@HistorywithCy]

Thanks buddy, hope that all is well with you!

[@jimmyfaulkner1855]

Great Video. This passage from Herodotus’ The Histories 8.68 (tr. Godley) always stands out to me: “And I say to you this: spare your ships, and do not fight at sea. Their men are as much stronger than your men by sea as men are stronger than women. Why is it so necessary for you to risk everything by fighting at sea? Do you not possess Athens, for which you set out on this march, and do you not have the rest of Hellas? No one stands in your way. Those who opposed you have received what they deserved. I will tell you how I think the affairs of your enemies will turn out: If vou do not hurry to hght at sea, but keep your ships here and stay near land, or even advance into the Peloponnese, then, my lord, you will easily accomplish what you had in mind on coming here. The Hellenes are not able to hold out against you for a long time, but you will scatter them, and they will each flee to their own cities. I have learned that they have no food on this island, and it is not likely, if you lead your army against the Peloponnese, that those of them who have come from there will sit still, nor will they care to fight at sea for Athens. But if you hurry to fight at sea immediately, I fear that your fleet if reduced to cowardice may also injure your army on land. In addition, my King, take this to heart: Good people's slaves tend to be base, and the slaves of the base tend to be good. You, who are best among men, have base slaves, who are accounted your allies, the Egyptians and Cyprians and Cilicians and Pamphylians, who are of no use at all.” What do you think is the true significance and legacy of Artemisia I of Caria as expressed in this passage by Herodotus? I ask because it seems bizarre that a Greek on the opposite side in the war would give her so much praise in his work.

[@beverly3397]

Great job on showing how a person can report honestly based on what they can compare it to from their understanding life. Do we not do the same even with food for example on KZbin they have people like the Irish tasting pie they never had before and compare it to something they are familiar with. In our modern times more and more of what Herodotus stated has been proven true as per dolphins. People who are so quick to judge in our modern times need to do better research and stop repeating the dogma. Thank You for being such a Man. 🔆🔆🔆🔆

[@rigulur]

another example of his skepticism would be him describing different animals that can be found in Egypt and how the flow of certain rivers may or may not work. he makes reference to many animals, but then also recounts a story of a pheonix. he specifically states that he's never seen that particular creature at the time of writing it so it might not be true, which was admirably transparent for someone who is apparently a charlatan

[@IosifStalin2]

Even today, there are people who believe a virgin gave birth to a son, a man rode a winged creature to Jerusalem etc etc. Why be so harsh on poor Herodotus?

[@laurachapple6795]

I like how he doesn't believe in one-eyed men but is totally okay with griffins.

[@asmrnaturecat984]

Since u are a Persian, I wish you would use local prononciation of Persian ruler instead of Greeks pronounciation

[@starkiller9897]

My father was a sailor who travelled all over the world he swam with dolphins many times in his youth. He would grab hold of their fins & would drag him along. LOL Also meantioned that dolphins will save you from predators like sharks. There's been many accounts of dolphins fighting off sharks!! The dolphins attack the sharks with their pointy snout & at full speed hit a shark underneath its belly where its really soft, the white part of the shark. The most vulnerable part of the shark & that drives them away!! Dolphins throught history where known to be man's best friend in the ocean!!

[@omaindustry3502]

100% we knew that the Histories was your favorite book

[@thegalli]

Herodotus was a cool dude, thanks for giving us some of his flavor

[@HistorywithCy]

My pleasure, thank you for stopping by!

[@shermanatorosborn9688]

He did his research

[@shermanatorosborn9688]

Today's monarcheologist hate him

[@marioarcadia3611]

Great videos, you have my subscription 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@HistorywithCy]

Thanks, glad you enjoyed this and more on the way, stay tuned and thanks for watching!

[@thomasvieth6063]

Google shows me minato, not minaro people in Kashmir

[@beasleydad]

Great podcast man. Interesting look at herodotus and I never would have hears the potential marmot mix up explanation. It is a great theory, I wish I knew enough about Persian to comment, and I wonder if the Tibetan for the creature made a difference?

[@HistorywithCy]

Thank you! Yeah, I don't know how much his Tibetan helped him in that particular region with the marmots. Interesting stuff and interesting guy... I'm sure that if he were still alive today, he'd have a KZbin and travel channel that would be huge!

[@billmiller4972]

How was it possible to travel like Herodotus travelled? Travelling is expensive. But there wer no credit cards at that time. So he must have carried the money with him. Lots of money. Money that would have attracted robbers. How did he manage to survive this? Or did the Persian do a much better work in keeping robbers down than most rulers since then? Or were there some kind of credit letters back then?

[@xiuhcoatl4830]

If he was truly a merchant, then he would have traveled with the caravans in the safe trade routes, since most of his travels were in the acahenenid empire, makes sense the persian armies kept their trade routes safe for trade. Other thing common back then was mercenaries, hired to protect them in case bandits appeared.

[@jkinggamer4020]

They are not lies you just don’t have them now

[@WTFisDrifting]

Anyone got an answer on the flying snakes

[@johnivan9672]

And as a Greek myself who read both

[@cccwolfturkccc]

South western coast not south eastern

[@mirzoxidbaxtiyarov1423]

Can you please make a video about Ancient Chorasmia

[@altinmares8363]

Channel > "Kings and Generals" if you love history

[@alexanderborschel2135]

Oh herodotus, you cray cray

[@subhamomm5930]

Wow so much amusing.

[@reese1337]

there is a flying snake it flies from tree to tree look it up on youtube

[@HistorywithCy]

HI. Yes, I know what you're talking about, but those are in the jungles of south and southeast Asia, not the deserts of Egypt. Thanks for stopping by, ,appreciate it, stay safe!

[@abs3n424]

If you can talk about the happy Yemen and the civilization of Sheba and the Arabian Peninsula, Bani Ismail, whom it is said of the Nabataeans and their relationship with other civilizations, and do not forget the Empire of Persia, which I think was the greatest empire in the world ... And thank you for your great efforts in such historical topics. Keep going. You are really wonderful

[@doomsf2]

Truely father of history but also wrote about Gods, Legends and Myths. Also there is a great chance he took these stories from previuse resources OR later Historians who rewrote/copied his book changed things to make more exciting or for whatever reasons..

[@13minutestomidnight]

For someone living in a world with only fledgling science, dominated by religious beliefs, and without even an academic tradition of what a history should be, I think he deserves much more credit than he gets.

[@matthewperry5121]

Awsome

[@kathleencalhoun2225]

I think Herodotus was more intelligent than many people living on earth today. You already explained the confusion surrounding the marmots, but regarding the possibility that there were flying snakes during his time, it could have been a extinct species of reptile, and also consider the platypus--if this animal were described to some in the ancient world, they may have found it hard to believe and so would have discredited the existence of such an animal. The items you mentioned about a Cyclops race and the existence of griffins could have been folklore repeated to him from ignorant people that he decided was worth writing about--who knows? As far as questioning his statement about the number of Persians as being two million, what is incredible about that? Twenty million sounds incredible, but not two million. I entertain as being more unreliable the idea that the modern generations of people living today would know more about current events of ancient cultures than those who were actual eye witnesses who lived through these events themselves. I think Herodotus would be more of an expert at knowing what he was talking about than those who take second guesses at what history really could have been instead of he said.

[@andrewtannenbaum1]

Great job. Learned a lot. Herodotus is shown to be more accurate than we might be predisposed. Why not include Hebrew Scripture in your review of early historical writing? After all, it has proven time after time to be accurate history, even analytical, based on modern research and understanding.

[@andrewtannenbaum1]

Start by reading the gospels and then take it from there.... like I did.

[@andrewtannenbaum1]

Scholars who have faith in the God attested to by the historical record tend to believe it is historical. They are biased because this God has changed their lives. So they study Scripture until they can discern fact from fiction, literalism from figuratism, and finally anachronism amongst the limits of knowledge. While others give a nod to Scripture, they avoid such a strict interpretation of history based on the God of one people. But God reasons with us through Scripture, such that we can avoid the Catch-22 of a false narrative.

[@HistorywithCy]

Thank you!

[@jon7806]

Cy why so many credible greek philosophers have so many disparities when it comes to our view of the world today? not only herodotus. but even homer and others.

[@xcvbnm123]

First also great video keep up the work bro

[@HistorywithCy]

Thank you, appreciate it!

[@anitapollard1627]

Very cool 🤗 especially the part possibly explaining the gold digging ants. Thank you 💕

[@tequilamockingbird758]

Niiiiiice

[@micha2909]

Totally in love with the mysterious underground mountain ants which turn out to be incredibly cute fluffy marmots. 🐿️