Encyclopedia

Arrian

Arrian (Flavius Arrianus) (âr'ēun) [key], fl. 2d cent. A.D., Greek historian, philosopher, and general, b. Nicomedia in Bithynia. He was governor of Cappadocia under Emperor Hadrian and in A.D. 134 repulsed an invasion of the Alans. His chief work is the Anabasis, the prime extant source on Alexander the Great. Modeled on Xenophon's famous book, the Anabasis relies chiefly on the writings of two of Alexander's generals (Ptolemy I and Aristobulus) for source material. Other extant works include the Indica (an account of a voyage of Alexander's general Nearchus to India) and parts of his edition of and commentaries on the Discourses of Epictetus.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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