Anaximander (611-547 BCE) (jan 25, 610 BC – jan 25, 546 BC)
Description:
Presocratic philosopher. According to fragmentary reports from other philosophers, Anaximander speculated that all matter results from the distillation of hot, cold, dry, and wet elements from απειρων [apeirôn] (the Boundless), an infinite, intelligent, living whole. Examination of fossil evidence persuaded Anaximander that living beings develop from simpler to more complex forms over time.Recommended Reading: Charles H. Kahn, Anaximander and the Origins of Greek Cosmology (Hackett, 1994) and Paul Seligman, The Apeiron of Anaximander; A Study in the Origin and Function of Metaphysical Ideas (Greenwood, 1974).
Added to timeline:
Date:
jan 25, 610 BC
jan 25, 546 BC
~ 64 years