Editing Historiography (section)

===Antiquity===
{{further|Ancient history|Prehistory|Protohistory|Written history}}
Understanding the past appears to be a universal human need, and the "telling of history" has emerged independently in civilizations around the world. 
What constitutes history is a philosophical question (see [[philosophy of history]]). The earliest [[Chronology|chronologies]] date back to [[ancient Egypt]] and [[Sumerian literature|Sumerian]]/[[Akkadian literature|Akkadian]] [[Mesopotamia]], in the form of [[chronicle]]s and [[annal]]s.<ref name="Vann-2023"/> However, most historical writers in these early civilizations were not known by name, and their works usually did not contain [[narrative]] structures or detailed analysis. By contrast, the term "historiography" is taken to refer to written history recorded in a narrative format for the purpose of informing future generations about events. In this limited sense, "[[ancient history]]" begins with the [[written history]] of early historiography in [[Classical Antiquity]], established in 5th century BC [[Classical Greece]].

====Europe====
=====Greece=====
{{main|Greek historiography}}
{{further|Ancient Greek literature}}
[[File:Thucydides Manuscript.jpg|thumb|upright|Reproduction of part of a tenth-century copy of [[Thucydides]]'s ''[[History of the Peloponnesian War]]'']]

The earliest known systematic historical thought and methodologies emerged in [[ancient Greece]] and the [[Greek colonisation|wider Greek world]], a development which would be an important influence on the writing of history elsewhere around [[History of the Mediterranean region|the Mediterranean]] region. The [[Logographer (history)|tradition of logography]] in [[Archaic Greece]] preceded the full narrative form of historiography, in which logographers such as [[Hecataeus of Miletus]] provided [[prose]] compilations about places [[Ancient Greek geography|in geography]] and peoples in an early form of [[cultural anthropology]], as well as speeches used in [[Ancient Greek law|courts of law]].<ref name="Vann-2023">Vann, Richard T. "Historiography". ''[[Encyclopedia Britannica]]'', 31 Oct. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/topic/historiography. Accessed 31 January 2024.</ref> The earliest known fully narrative critical historical works were ''[[Histories (Herodotus)|The Histories]]'', composed by [[Herodotus]] of [[Halicarnassus]] (484–425&nbsp;BC) who became known as the "father of history".<ref>John L. Myres, (1953), ''Herodotus, Father of History'' {{ISBN|978-1362949077}}</ref> Herodotus attempted to distinguish between more and less reliable accounts, and personally conducted research by travelling extensively, giving written accounts of various Mediterranean cultures.<ref name="Vann-2023"/> Although Herodotus' overall emphasis lay on the actions and characters of men, he also attributed an important role to divinity in the determination of historical events.

[[File:Thucydides-bust-cutout ROM.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|left|Bust of [[Thucydides]], Hellenistic copy of a 4th-century BC work]]

The generation following Herodotus witnessed a spate of local histories of the individual [[city-state]]s (''[[polis|poleis]]''), written by the first of the [[Local history|local historians]] who employed the written archives of city and sanctuary. [[Dionysius of Halicarnassus]] characterized these historians as the forerunners of Thucydides,<ref>Dionysius, ''On Thucydides'', 5.</ref> and these local histories continued to be written into [[Late Antiquity]], as long as the city-states survived. Two early figures stand out: [[Hippias of Elis]], who produced the lists of winners in the [[Ancient Olympic Games|Olympic Games]] that provided the basic chronological framework as long as the pagan classical tradition lasted, and [[Hellanicus of Lesbos]], who compiled more than two dozen histories from civic records, all of them now lost.

[[Thucydides]] largely eliminated divine causality in his account of the war between Athens and Sparta, establishing a rationalistic element which set a precedent for subsequent Western historical writings.<ref name="Vann-2023"/> He was also the first to distinguish between cause and immediate origins of an event, while his successor [[Xenophon]] ({{c.|lk=no|431}}&nbsp;– 355&nbsp;BC) introduced autobiographical elements and biographical character studies in his ''[[Anabasis (Xenophon)|Anabasis]]''.<ref name="Vann-2023"/>

The proverbial [[Philippic]] attacks of the [[Athens|Athenian]] orator [[Demosthenes]] (384–322&nbsp;BC) on [[Philip&nbsp;II of Macedon]] marked the height of ancient political agitation. The now lost history of [[Alexander the Great|Alexander's]] campaigns by the [[diadoch]] [[Ptolemy&nbsp;I]] (367–283&nbsp;BC) may represent the first historical work composed by a ruler. [[Polybius]] ({{c.|lk=no|203}}&nbsp;– 120&nbsp;BC) wrote on the rise of the [[Roman Republic]] to world prominence, and attempted to harmonize the Greek and Roman points of view.<ref name="Vann-2023"/> [[Diodorus Siculus]] composed a [[universal history (genre)|universal history]], the ''[[Bibliotheca historica]]'', that sought to explain various known civilizations from their origins up until his own day in the 1st century BC.<ref name="Vann-2023"/>

The [[Chaldea]]n priest [[Berossus]] ({{floruit|3rd century}}&nbsp;BC) composed a Greek-language ''History of [[Babylonia]]'' for the [[Seleucid]] king [[Antiochus&nbsp;I]], combining [[Hellenistic]] methods of historiography and [[Mesopotamia]]n accounts to form a unique composite. Reports exist of other near-eastern histories, such as that of the [[Phoenicia]]n historian [[Sanchuniathon]]; but he is considered semi-legendary and writings attributed to him are fragmentary, known only through the later historians [[Philo of Byblos]] and [[Eusebius]], who asserted that he wrote before even the [[Trojan War]]. The native Egyptian priest and historian [[Manetho]] composed a [[history of Egypt]] in Greek for the [[Ptolemaic Kingdom|Ptolemaic royal court]] during the 3rd century BC.

=====Rome=====
{{Main|Roman historiography}}
{{further|Latin literature}}
[[File:Ritratto maschile detto il vecchio di otricoli, 50 ac ca. (busto moderno), da otricoli (visconti), MT533, 05.jpg|thumb|upright|The Roman [[Patrician Torlonia|bust]] traditionally identified as [[Cato the Elder]]]]

[[Ancient Romans|The Romans]] adopted the Greek tradition, writing at first in Greek, but eventually chronicling their history in a freshly non-Greek language. Early [[Roman literature|Roman works]] were still written in Greek, such as the annals of [[Quintus Fabius Pictor]]. However, the ''[[Origines]]'', composed by the Roman statesman [[Cato the Elder]] (234–149&nbsp;BC), was written in [[Latin]], in a conscious effort to counteract Greek cultural influence. It marked the beginning of [[Roman historiography|Latin historical writings]]. Hailed for its lucid style, [[Julius Caesar]]'s (103–44&nbsp;BC) ''[[Commentarii de Bello Gallico|de Bello Gallico]]'' exemplifies autobiographical war coverage. The politician and orator [[Cicero]] (106–43&nbsp;BC) introduced rhetorical elements in his political writings.

[[Strabo]] (63&nbsp;BC&nbsp;– {{c.|lk=no|24}}&nbsp;AD) was an important exponent of the [[Greco-Roman]] tradition of combining geography with history, presenting a descriptive history of peoples and places known to his era. The Roman historian [[Sallust]] (86–35&nbsp;BC) sought to analyze and document what he viewed as the decline of the [[Constitution of the Roman Republic|Republican Roman state]] and its virtues, highlighted in his respective narrative accounts of the [[Catilinarian conspiracy]] and the [[Jugurthine War]].<ref name="Vann-2023"/> [[Livy]] (59&nbsp;BC&nbsp;– 17&nbsp;AD) records the rise of [[Roman Empire|Rome]] from [[city-state]] to [[empire]].<ref name="Vann-2023"/> His speculation about what would have happened if [[Alexander the Great]] had marched against Rome represents the first known instance of [[alternate history]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/txt/ah/Livy/Livy09.html |title=Livy's History of Rome: Book 9 |publisher=Mcadams.posc.mu.edu |access-date=2010-08-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070228233052/http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/txt/ah/Livy/Livy09.html |archive-date=2007-02-28 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Biography, although popular throughout antiquity, was introduced as a branch of history by the works of [[Plutarch]] ({{c.|lk=no|45}}&nbsp;– 125&nbsp;AD) and [[Suetonius]] ({{c.|lk=no|69}}&nbsp;– after 130&nbsp;AD) who described the deeds and characters of ancient personalities, stressing their human side.<ref name="Vann-2023"/> [[Tacitus]] ({{c.|lk=no|56|117}}&nbsp;AD) denounces Roman immorality by praising [[Germanic peoples|German]] virtues, elaborating on the [[Literary topos|topos]] of the [[Noble savage]]. Tacitus' focus on personal character can also be viewed as pioneering work in [[psychohistory]].<ref name="Vann-2023"/> Although rooted in Greek historiography, in some ways Roman historiography shared traits with [[Chinese literature|Chinese historiography]], lacking [[Historical sociology|speculative theories]] and instead relying on annalistic forms, [[Ancestor worship|revering ancestors]], and imparting [[moral]] lessons for their audiences, laying the groundwork for [[Medieval historiography|medieval Christian historiography]].<ref name="Vann-2023"/>

====Biblical====
[[Biblical historiography]] is the study of the writing of history in the context of the [[Hebrew Bible]], and covers from the 12th century BC to the mid-4th century BC with a revival during the [[Hasmonean period]] in the second century BC. It encompasses two main trends: a quasi-secular approach focusing on political history, and a [[kerygma]]tic approach emphasizing divine action and moral lessons.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rofé |first=Alexander |date=2016 |title=Properties of Biblical Historiography and Historical Thought |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/43894622?seq=2 |journal=Vetus Testamentum |volume=66 |issue=3 |pages=433–455 |issn=0042-4935}}</ref>

====East Asia====
=====China=====
{{Main|Chinese historiography|Twenty-Four Histories}}
{{further|Chinese literature}}
[[File:Shiji.jpg|upright|thumb|First page of the ''[[Shiji]]'']]

The [[Han dynasty]] [[eunuch]] [[Sima Qian]] (145–86&nbsp;BC) was the first in China to lay the groundwork for [[Chinese historiography|professional historical writing]]. His work superseded the older style of the ''[[Spring and Autumn Annals]]'', compiled in the 5th century BC, the ''[[Bamboo Annals]]'', the ''[[Classic of History]]'', and other court and dynastic [[annals]] that recorded history in a [[chronological]] form that abstained from [[analysis]] and focused on moralistic teaching.<ref name="Vann-2023"/> In 281&nbsp;AD the tomb of [[King Xiang of Wei]] ({{died in|296&nbsp;BC}}) was opened, inside of which was found a historical text called the ''Bamboo Annals'', after the writing material. It is similar in style to the ''Spring and Autumn Annals'' and covers events from the mythical [[Yellow Emperor]] to 299&nbsp;BC. Opinions on the authenticity of the text has varied throughout the centuries, and it was rediscovered too late to gain the same status as the ''Spring and Autumn Annals''.<ref>Wilkinson, Endymion (2018). ''Chinese History: A New Manual''. Self-published. p. 681 {{ISBN|978-0998888309}}</ref>

Sima's ''[[Shiji]]'' (''[[Records of the Grand Historian]]''), initiated by his father the [[Chinese astronomy|court astronomer]] [[Sima Tan]] (165–110&nbsp;BC), pioneered the "Annals-biography" format, which would become the standard for prestige history writing in China. In this genre a history opens with a chronological outline of court affairs, and then continues with detailed biographies of prominent people who lived during the period in question.<ref>Thomas R. Martin, ''Herodotus and Sima Qian: The First Great Historians of Greece and China: A Brief History with Documents'' (2009). {{ISBN|978-0312416492}}</ref> The scope of his work extended as far back as the 16th century&nbsp;BC with the founding of the [[Shang dynasty]]. It included many treatises on specific subjects and individual biographies of prominent people. He also explored the lives and deeds of commoners, both contemporary and those of previous eras.

Whereas Sima's had been a universal history from the beginning of time down to the time of writing, his successor [[Ban Gu]] wrote an annals-biography history limiting its coverage to only the [[Western Han dynasty]], the ''[[Book of Han]]'' (96&nbsp;AD). This established the notion of using dynastic boundaries as start- and end-points, and most later Chinese histories would focus on a single dynasty or group of dynasties.

The Records of the Grand Historian and Book of Han were eventually joined by the ''[[Book of the Later Han]]'' (AD 488) (replacing the earlier, and now only partially extant, Han Records from the Eastern Pavilion) and the ''[[Records of the Three Kingdoms]]'' (AD 297) to form the "Four Histories". These became mandatory reading for the [[Imperial Examinations]] and have therefore exerted an influence on Chinese culture comparable to the [[Thirteen Classics|Confucian Classics]]. More annals-biography histories were written in subsequent dynasties, eventually bringing the number to between twenty-four and twenty-six, but none ever reached the popularity and impact of the first four.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wilkerson, Endymion |title=Chinese History: A New Manual |year=2017 |isbn=978-0998888309 |edition=5th |pages=692–695|publisher=Endymion Wilkinson, c/o Harvard University Asia Center }}</ref>

Traditional Chinese historiography describes history in terms of [[dynastic cycle]]s. In this view, each new dynasty is founded by a morally righteous founder. Over time, the dynasty becomes morally corrupt and dissolute. Eventually, the dynasty becomes so weak as to allow its replacement by a new dynasty.<ref>{{cite book|author=Jörn Rüsen|title=Time and History: The Variety of Cultures|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SvGyzu-nLaUC&pg=PA54|year=2007|publisher=Berghahn Books|isbn=978-1-84545-349-7|pages=54–55}}</ref>