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Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 184-194).

Revision of the author's thesis, Hamburg, issued originally under title: Interpretationen einiger ausgewählter Exkurse im Geschichtswerk des Herodot. / "Literatur-und Abkürzungsverzeichnis": p. [225]-229.

Revision of the author's thesis, Hamburg, issued originally under title: Interpretationen einiger ausgewählter Exkurse im Geschichtswerk des Herodot. / "Literatur-und Abkürzungsverzeichnis": p. [225]-229.

This thesis examines the portrayal of women in the Histories of Herod at us against the backdrop of two influences, Greek mythology, and the social customs and thought pertaining to women in ancient Greek society. Herodotus' Histories are particularly wide-ranging and, unlike Thucydides' later account of the Peloponnesian War, not confined to the exclusively political and military spheres. As a result. Herodotus' female characters appear naturally in the course of the stories he is telling, stories he has found as the result of his inquiries. Since his researches are so wide-ranging, the information so acquired comes from many and varied sources, both chronologically and geographically. In the course of placing the information he has gathered before his readers or audience, Herodotus has to present it in terms that can be understood and readily assimilated by those receiving it. It is my contention that in order to achieve this end he naturally moulds his stories according to two systems of information with which he and his audience are familiar, that of mythology and that of the social practices and attitudes of his time concerning women, and that these two systems of information act as a backdrop against which the stories he has collected are viewed. When dealing with information from societies very different from the Greek, Herodotus frequently has occasion to define such information in terms of its alterity or 'otherness' in comparison with what for him and his audience is accepted practice. In this way he is able to render strange, alien and foreign customs comprehensible for his audience by expressing them in terms of what they are not and for this purpose he uses Greek societal norms as his reference point. Conversely, he is also able to render stories from foreign lands familiar by recasting his tales using mythological elements well known to his audience, elements which would enjoy instant recognition in the minds of those receiving the information he is imparting. For ease in examining the social context against which Herodotus is telling his stories concerning women, his female characters have been assigned to the categories of daughter, sister, wife and mother, and in each chapter the customs, attitudes and beliefs pertaining to such categories in both societal and mythological terms have been laid out before examining the characters in each category in the text. There is a final category of Women in Power since the women in this category are an excellent example of alterity in relation to Greek thought and practice. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2001.

This paper examines the relationship between Herodotus’ ethnographic account of the Persians and his narrative of their actions in the Histories. The first chapter analyzes the placement of this ethnography within the historian’s description of the fall of Croesus and the rise of Cyrus and then examines the language that Herodotus uses to describe the Persian customs. The second chapter focuses more narrowly on the elements of the Persian trivium (truth telling, archery, and horsemanship) and analyzes the way in which the historian incorporates these themes into his narrative. Finally, the third chapter of the report examines how Herodotus integrates all three elements of the trivium into an extended logos, that of the revolt of the Persian nobles against the usurper Magi and the subsequent ascension of Darius. This analysis thereby demonstrates that the multifaceted relationship between the historian’s Persian ethnography and his narrative connects the Persians’ successes with their adherence to their customs. / text

Thesis (MPhil (Ancient Studies))--University of Stellenbosch, 2011. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The main purpose of this thesis is to examine examples of information-gathering and political intelligence in Herodotus' Histories. In Herodotus' account, dialogues, anecdotes, and even inserted authorial commentary describe how leaders obtain politically relevant and timely information about other individuals and nations (intelligence). Herodotus links political decisions, based on gathered information, with his presentation of historical causation. In his multi-themed account, Herodotus provides tales of commissioned information-gathering missions, espionage, secret messages, and even disguises as nations and political leaders attempt to find out about their enemies and their allies. While the various anecdotes of information-gathering may not be historically precise, they may, in fact, infer real goals and problems of ancient Greek intelligence practices. The second purpose of this thesis is to explore Herodotus' use of cultural information within decision-making and statecraft. Herodotus presents nomos (culture or custom) as a compelling force for human behavior and military action. By articulating the importance of cultural information to political and military intelligence, Herodotus' work foreshadows modern intelligence theories and practices. This nomos-aspect of Herodotus' information-gathering anecdotes is especially relevant to current post-modern trend of culturally-based intelligence solutions to western counter-insurgency efforts. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die hoofdoel van hierdie tesis is om voorbeelde van inligtingversameling en politieke intellegensie in Herodotus se Histories te ondersoek. In Herodotus se verslae, dialoë, anekdotes en selfs ingevoegde ouktoriele kommentaar word daar beskryf hoe leiers polities relevante en aktuele inligting oor ander indiwidue en nasies (intellegensie) verkry. Herodotus verbind politieke besluite, gebaseer op ingewinde inligting, met sy voorstelling van historiese kousaliteitsleer. In sy vertellings met meervoudige temas, verskaf Herodotus verhale van opdragte wat gegee is vir inligtingsinwinningsendings, spioenasiewerk, geheime boodskappe en selfs vermommings waarmee nasionale en politieke leiers gepoog het om uit te vind oor hul vyande en bondgenote. Terwyl die verskeie anekdotes van inligtinginwinning moontlik nie histories presies is nie, is hulle dalk in werklikheid afgelei van regte doelstellings en probleme van antieke Griekse intellegensiepraktyke. Die tweede doel van hierdie tesis is om ondersoek in te stel na Herodotus se gebruik van kulturele inligting in besluitneming en regeerkuns. Herodotus stel nomos (kultuur of gebruik) as ‟n dwingende krag vir menslike gedrag en militêre aksie voor. Deur die belangrikheid van kulturele inligting vir politieke en militêre intellegensie te artikuleer, is Herodotus se werk ‟n voorafskaduwing van moderne intellegensie teorieë en praktyke. Hierdie nomos-aspek van Herodotus se inligtingsinwinningsanekdotes is veral relevant vir die huidige post-modernistiese neiging van kultuur-gebaseerde intellegensieoplossings vir westerse teen-insergensie pogings.