Definition: Socrates the historian was sometimes called Socrates Scholasticus, which seems useful to distinguish him from the famous philosopher, but may be the result of a confusion with another Church historian, Evagrius Scholasticus. Socrates was born in Constantinople, in about A.D. 380. He wrote a seven book Ecclesiastical History that continued the history of Eusebius. Socrates' Ecclesiastical History covers religious and secular controversies and uses a wide variety of sources, including oral ones. The style of Socrates' Ecclesiastical History is described as plain and accurate. It is thought that the contemporary historian Sozomen copied unattributed material from Socrates. Socrates' sources include Eusebius, Rufinus, Athansius, the Synagogue of Sabinus, Church documents, and the orations of Libanius.
Source: The Historians of Late Antiquity, by David Rohrbacher.
Occupation: Historian
Alternate Spellings: Sokrates
