Late Antique Historiography

History

Title(s):
  • History
  • Ἱστορία
    (Historia, history)
  • Χρονικὸν σύντομον
    (Chronikon suntomon, Concise chronicle)
Author:
Period covered:
4th-8th c. or only 7th-8th c.
Language:
Greek
State of Preservation:
Fragmentary
Genre:
  • Secular history (classicizing history)
  • Chronicle (general)
  • Secular history (general)
Remarks:
De Boor (1882) argues that Theophanes and the Suda refer to different Trajans and dates the author mentioned by Theophanes to the fourth century. Markopoulos (1978) and Treadgold (2011: 591) think that this is unlikely, but de Boor is followed by Mango - Scott (1997).
Serruys (1907) identified Trajan as the source of an epitome that was used by Symeon the Logothete. That source has now been identified as Theophanes (Wahlgren 2006: 118). Howard-Johnston (2010: 306) and Treadgold (2011) seek to identify Trajan as the common source of Nicephorus and Theophanes (see the entry Anonymous, Chronicle of 720).
Edition - Translation:
Fragments:
  • Suda, τ 901
  • Theophanes Confessor, Chronicle A.M. 5870
Users:
Sources:
Bibliography:
  • C. de Boor (1882) 'Der Historiker Traianus'. Hermes 17: 489-492.
  • J. Howard-Johnston (2010) Witnesses to a world crisis: Historians and histories of the Middle East in the seventh century. Oxford.
  • M. Jankowiak (2013) 'The first Arab siege of Constantinople', in Travaux et mémoires 17:237-320: 249-256.
  • C. Mango, R. Scott (1997) The Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor: Byzantine and Near Eastern history A.D. 284-813. Oxford: xc-xci.
  • A. Markopoulos (1978) Η χρονογραφία του Ψευδο-Συμεων και οι πηγές της. Ioannina: 74-75.
  • D. Serruys (1907) 'Recherches sur l'épitomé (Théodose de Mélitène, Léon le Grammairien, Syméon Logothète, etc.)'. Byzantinische Zeitschrift 16: 1-51.
  • W.T. Treadgold (2011) 'Trajan the Patrician, Nicephorus, and Theophanes'. In: Bibel, Byzanz und christlicher Orient: Festschrift für Stephen Gerö zum 65. Geburtstag, ed. D. Bumazhnov - E. Grypeou - T.B. Sailors - A. Toepel (Orientalia Lovaniensia analecta, 187). Leuven: 589-621.
  • S. Wahlgren (2006) Symeonis magistri et logothetae Chronicon (Corpus fontium historiae Byzantinae, 44.1). Berlin.