Black Doves Speak: Herodotus and the Languages of Barbarians
Harvard University Press, 2005
Paper: 978-0-674-01790-0
Library of Congress Classification D56.52.H45M86 2005
Dewey Decimal Classification 938.007202
Paper: 978-0-674-01790-0
Library of Congress Classification D56.52.H45M86 2005
Dewey Decimal Classification 938.007202
ABOUT THIS BOOK | REVIEWS | TOC
ABOUT THIS BOOK
In Greek thought, barbaroi are utterers of unintelligible or inarticulate sounds. What importance does the text of Herodotus's Histories attribute to language as a criterion of ethnic identity? The answer to this question illuminates the empirical foundations of Herodotus's pluralistic worldview. The first translator of cultures also translates, describes, and evaluates foreign speech to a degree unparalleled by other Greek ancient authors. For Herodotus, language is an area of interesting but surprisingly unproblematic difference, which he offers to his audience as a model for coming to terms in a neutral way with other, more emotionally charged, cultural differences.
See other books on: Barbarians | Herodotus | Knowledge and learning | Language and languages | Languages
See other titles from Harvard University Press
![](https://www.bibliovault.org/thumbs/978-0-472-03143-6-thumb.jpg "Unmaking the West: "What-If?" Scenarios That Rewrite World History")
![](https://www.bibliovault.org/thumbs/978-0-226-67500-8-thumb.jpg "Walter Ralegh's "History of the World" and the Historical Culture of the Late Renaissance")
