Democritus and aristotle biography athens ga

Greek philosopher (c. 460–c. 370 BC)

For other uses, see Democritus (disambiguation).

Democritus (, dim-OCK-rit-əs; Greek: Δημόκριτος, Dēmókritos, meaning "chosen of the people"; c. 460 – c. 370 BC) was an Ancient Greekpre-Socratic philosopher from Abdera, primarily remembered today for his formulation of an atomic theory of the universe.

Democritus wrote extensively on a wide variety of topics.^[3]

None of Democritus' original work has survived, except through second-hand references. Many of these references come from Aristotle, who viewed him as an important rival in the field of natural philosophy.

He was known in antiquity as the ‘laughing philosopher’ because of his emphasis on the value of cheerfulness.^[5]

Life

Democritus was born in Abdera, on the coast of Thrace.^[b] He was a polymath and prolific writer, producing nearly eighty treatises on subjects such as poetry, harmony, military tactics, and Babylonian t