Andronicus of Rhodes facts for kids

Andronicus of Rhodes (Ancient Greek: Ἀνδρόνικος ὁ Ῥόδιος, romanized: Andrónikos ho Rhódios; Latin: Andronicus Rhodius; fl. c. 60 BC) was an important Greek philosopher from the island of Rhodes. He was the leader, or 'scholarch,' of a famous school of thought called the Peripatetic school. He is best known for putting together a new collection of the writings of Aristotle, which is how we still have many of Aristotle's works today.

Andronicus' Life Story

We don't know much about Andronicus' life. People say he was the eleventh leader of the Peripatetic school. He taught in the city of Rome around 58 BC. One of his students was Boethus of Sidon, who later taught Strabo, a famous geographer.

How Andronicus Saved Aristotle's Works

Andronicus is very important in the history of philosophy. A writer named Plutarch said that Andronicus published a new collection of the works of Aristotle and Theophrastus. These writings used to be in a special library owned by a person named Apellicon.

In 84 BC, a Roman general named Sulla brought Apellicon's entire library to Rome. Another scholar, Tyrannion, started working on these texts, but it seems he didn't do much.

Andronicus took on the big task of organizing Aristotle's writings. The way he arranged them is probably the same order we use for Aristotle's books today. We owe a lot to Andronicus because he helped make sure many of Aristotle's important works were saved and passed down to us.

Andronicus' Own Writings

Andronicus also wrote some of his own books about Aristotle. One of his books had a full list of all of Aristotle's writings. He also wrote explanations, called commentaries, on Aristotle's Physics, Ethics, and Categories.

Sadly, none of Andronicus' own writings have survived to today. Two other books, On Emotions and a commentary on Aristotle's Ethics, were sometimes thought to be by him. However, we now know they were written by other scholars much later.

See also

In Spanish: Andrónico de Rodas para niños