Ancient History/Biographical Dictionary

WIthin this biographical dictionary, persons are listed in alphabetical order, followed by a link to the relevant Wikipedia page, followed by their nationality and profession. Each entry concludes with a one or two line summary of their contributions.

A

Aristotle (wp) Early 3rd century BC. Greek philosopher and scientist, student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great.

C

Julius Caesar: (wp) 100-44 BC. Roman statesman and general, conqueror of Gaul (55-49 BC) and dictator perpetuus of the Roman Republic from 48 BC to his assassination in 44 BC.

Bartolome de las Casas (wp) early 16th century AD Spanish Franciscan, a proponent of native rights during the early stages of the conquest of Central and South America.

Cleopatra-Was one of the riches women in ancient Egypt.

H

Herodotus: (wp) 4th cent BC. Greek Historian, known for his inquiries into the histories of Egypt, Persia, and Greece.

K

Khafre: (wp) 26th century BC. Egyptian pharaoh who built the second largest pyramid at Giza and the Great Sphinx.

Khufu: (wp) 26th century BC. Egyptian pharaoh who built the Great Pyramid of Giza, the largest pyramid in Egypt and the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World that survives.

L

Leonidas (wp). late 5th/early 4th century BC. Greek monarch. Spartan king and commander at the battle of Thermopylae, 480 BC.

R

Walter Raleigh (wp) 15th-16th cent. AD English knight and naval explorer involved in the settlement and exploitation of the Americas.

S

King Scorpion (wp) 33rd century BC. Dynasty 0 Egyptian pharaoh, whose tomb shows the first signs of Pharaonic culture and the earliest known example of a writing system.

Sima Qian (wp) c. 140- c.90 b.c., under the reign of the Han emperor Wudi. Sima Qian is the most influential and recognizable historians in all of Chinese history, if not the world. He composed a 130-chapter, 500,000+ character history of China up until the time at which he lived. During the beginning of his history, to which he devoted most of his life, he happened to offend the Emperor Wudi by defending a general who had displeased him. For this offence, he was castrated, a punishment which was typically followed up by the sufferer's willing suicide. But Sima Qian decided that the completion of his history, for the betterment of China, was more important than his own life, even if he had to live in shame. When it was finished, it was known as "The Records of the Grand Historian," for the position he held in the Han court.

Sneferu: (wp) Late 27th century–26th centuries BC. Egyptian pharaoh who constructed three pyramids at Dashur; the third pyramid—the Red Pyramid—became the first true pyramid to be completed.