Otto Seeck
Encyclopedia
Otto Seeck was a German
classical historian who is perhaps best known for his work on the decline of the ancient world. He was born in Riga
.
He first began studying chemistry at the University of Dorpat but transferred to the University of Berlin to study classical history under Theodor Mommsen
. Seeck earned his doctorate from the University of Berlin in 1872 after writing his thesis on the Notitia Dignitatum, a document enumerating the roles and responsibilities of administrative officials of the later Roman empire
c. 400 C.E. He habilitated under Mommsen in Berlin
in 1877 and, with the help of Mommsen, secured a post at the University of Greifswald in 1881, where he taught Roman History and Archaeology
. There he met Karl Julius Beloch
. In 1907 he went to the University of Münster
where he continued teaching and writing.
Seeck has written many influential works on late antiquity and social Darwinism
. He has been widely published in such academic journals as the Deutsche Zeitschrift für Geschichtswissenschaft (German Journal of History), Hermes, Zeitschrift für Kirchengeschichte (Journal of Church History), and the Zeitschrift für Sozial- und Wirtschaftsgeschichte (Journal of Social and Economic History). Many of his monographs, including his influential 6-volume Geschichte des Untergangs der antiken Welt (History of the Decline of the Ancient World) -- which set forth his beliefs concerning Social Darwinism
, later influencing Oswald Spengler
-- are still in print today, and they remain highly regarded.
Selected Works
• Quaestiones de notitia dignitatum. Dissertation, Berlin 1872
(Questions concerning the Notitia Dignitatum)
• Notitia dignitatum. Accedunt notitia urbis Constantinopolitanae et laterculi provinciarum. Berlin 1876
http://books.google.com/books?id=xlYGAAAAQAAJ&source=gbs_similarbooks
• Die Kalendertafel der Pontifices. Berlin 1885
(The Calendar Tables of the Pontifices)
http://www.archive.org/details/diekalendertafe00seecgoog
• Die Quellen der Odyssee. Berlin 1887
(The Sources of the Odyssey)
http://www.archive.org/details/diequellenderod00seecgoog
• Die Briefe des Libanius zeitlich geordnet. Leipzig 1906
(The letters of Libanius arranged chronologically)
http://www.archive.org/details/diebriefedeslib00seecgoog
• Regesten der Kaiser und Päpste für die Jahre 311 bis 476 n. Chr.: Vorarbeit zu einer Prosopographie der christlichen Kaiserzeit. Stuttgart 1919.
(Synopses of the emperors and popes for the years 311-476 AD: preliminary work for a prosopography the Christian Empire)
http://books.google.com/books?id=euAJAQAAIAAJ&source=gbs_similarbooks
• Geschichte des Untergangs der antiken Welt. 6 Bände. Metzler, Stuttgart 1895–1920
(History of the Decline of the Ancient World)
http://www.archive.org/details/geschichtedesunt01seec
• Kaiser August. 1902 (Caesar Augustus)
http://books.google.com/books?id=u8MsAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=inauthor:%22Otto+Seeck%22&hl=en&ei=5r3fTaTMCsjb0QGCs6XxAw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CEMQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q&f=false
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
classical historian who is perhaps best known for his work on the decline of the ancient world. He was born in Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
.
He first began studying chemistry at the University of Dorpat but transferred to the University of Berlin to study classical history under Theodor Mommsen
Theodor Mommsen
Christian Matthias Theodor Mommsen was a German classical scholar, historian, jurist, journalist, politician, archaeologist, and writer generally regarded as the greatest classicist of the 19th century. His work regarding Roman history is still of fundamental importance for contemporary research...
. Seeck earned his doctorate from the University of Berlin in 1872 after writing his thesis on the Notitia Dignitatum, a document enumerating the roles and responsibilities of administrative officials of the later Roman empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
c. 400 C.E. He habilitated under Mommsen in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
in 1877 and, with the help of Mommsen, secured a post at the University of Greifswald in 1881, where he taught Roman History and Archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
. There he met Karl Julius Beloch
Karl Julius Beloch
Karl Julius Beloch was a German classical and economic historian.In 1870 he moved to Italy for health reasons, where he subsequently studied in Palermo and Rome. In 1875 he received his doctorate from the University of Heidelberg...
. In 1907 he went to the University of Münster
University of Münster
The University of Münster is a public university located in the city of Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. The WWU is part of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, a society of Germany's leading research universities...
where he continued teaching and writing.
Seeck has written many influential works on late antiquity and social Darwinism
Social Darwinism
Social Darwinism is a term commonly used for theories of society that emerged in England and the United States in the 1870s, seeking to apply the principles of Darwinian evolution to sociology and politics...
. He has been widely published in such academic journals as the Deutsche Zeitschrift für Geschichtswissenschaft (German Journal of History), Hermes, Zeitschrift für Kirchengeschichte (Journal of Church History), and the Zeitschrift für Sozial- und Wirtschaftsgeschichte (Journal of Social and Economic History). Many of his monographs, including his influential 6-volume Geschichte des Untergangs der antiken Welt (History of the Decline of the Ancient World) -- which set forth his beliefs concerning Social Darwinism
Social Darwinism
Social Darwinism is a term commonly used for theories of society that emerged in England and the United States in the 1870s, seeking to apply the principles of Darwinian evolution to sociology and politics...
, later influencing Oswald Spengler
Oswald Spengler
Oswald Manuel Arnold Gottfried Spengler was a German historian and philosopher whose interests also included mathematics, science, and art. He is best known for his book The Decline of the West , published in 1918, which puts forth a cyclical theory of the rise and decline of civilizations...
-- are still in print today, and they remain highly regarded.
Selected Works
• Quaestiones de notitia dignitatum. Dissertation, Berlin 1872
(Questions concerning the Notitia Dignitatum)
• Notitia dignitatum. Accedunt notitia urbis Constantinopolitanae et laterculi provinciarum. Berlin 1876
http://books.google.com/books?id=xlYGAAAAQAAJ&source=gbs_similarbooks
• Die Kalendertafel der Pontifices. Berlin 1885
(The Calendar Tables of the Pontifices)
http://www.archive.org/details/diekalendertafe00seecgoog
• Die Quellen der Odyssee. Berlin 1887
(The Sources of the Odyssey)
http://www.archive.org/details/diequellenderod00seecgoog
• Die Briefe des Libanius zeitlich geordnet. Leipzig 1906
(The letters of Libanius arranged chronologically)
http://www.archive.org/details/diebriefedeslib00seecgoog
• Regesten der Kaiser und Päpste für die Jahre 311 bis 476 n. Chr.: Vorarbeit zu einer Prosopographie der christlichen Kaiserzeit. Stuttgart 1919.
(Synopses of the emperors and popes for the years 311-476 AD: preliminary work for a prosopography the Christian Empire)
http://books.google.com/books?id=euAJAQAAIAAJ&source=gbs_similarbooks
• Geschichte des Untergangs der antiken Welt. 6 Bände. Metzler, Stuttgart 1895–1920
(History of the Decline of the Ancient World)
http://www.archive.org/details/geschichtedesunt01seec
• Kaiser August. 1902 (Caesar Augustus)
http://books.google.com/books?id=u8MsAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=inauthor:%22Otto+Seeck%22&hl=en&ei=5r3fTaTMCsjb0QGCs6XxAw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CEMQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q&f=false