Strabo

Jamie Milliff
September 4, 2012
Strabo was a Greek geographer during the early days of Rome. Historians have
determined that he was born in a small town in modern day Turkey, called Amasya, Pontus.
From there, he traveled around much of southern Europe and northern Africa, exceeding the
average mans curiosity of the earth and the cultures inhabiting it. (Strabo) It was because of
this curiosity that Strabo became a geographer, studying and wondering how the world came to
be, as well as observing how it was perceived by the cultures and people inhabiting it. Strabo
saw how the present was effected by the past, and because of that, he began to take note and
write down events.
Because Strabo was able to record the mistakes and victories of the Romans, later
cultures were able to prosper from the knowledge that was documented there. As knowing our
history helps us form a more efficient and working society, Strabos account of the Roman
history would have done the same for those of his time. By knowing their previous weaknesses,
they would have been able to play to their strengths. In this way, Strabo was able to help not
only the society of generation of his day, but that of the generations following.
Strabos work didnt have as much of an impact on the environment as modern day
geographers do, but he did believe in environmental determinismthe belief that the
environment shapes the human societies and cultures. One of the examples that he used was that
of Greeces climate. He and many other geographers during that time believed that Greece was
more advanced than countries more north because the temperature was warmer. (Briney) This
could have led to a denser population in southern regions since they were considered more
civilized.
Most of what Strabo was known for was documenting the events, people, and places of
his time, knowing that someday someone would want to look back. By describing the
economies of the surrounding locations, Strabo was able to compare the data between the
separate cities. (S, Michaela) It would be like taking New Yorks economic statistics and
comparing them to South Carolinas. Knowing how drastic the differences were could help the
governing officials know what was needed to build up a certain area.
Lastly, one of Strabos works was to document the political events and statistics of
various rulers such as Augustus and Tiberius. (S, Michaela) By recording these elections, a
geographer could use the data gained to create a census of which area had a higher voting
percentage for the parties, or how many people are actually voting from this area. This continues
even today, where states are known as red or blue states depending on whether they vote
democrat or republican.
Strabo was an unconventional man of his time. He was well-traveled and schooled, and
wrote seventeen known books on Geography. He documented his observations on the world
around himthe way that the people used the land, and how the cultures and popular fashions
changed over time. Because of these documentations, we can look back to the early Roman
Empire and learn from their examples and mistakes.


CITED WORKS PAGE
Briney, Amanda. "Environmental Determinism." About.com Geography. The New York Times
Company, 2012. Web. 03 Sept. 2012.
<http://geography.about.com/od/culturalgeography/a/envdeterminism.htm>.
The Ethos Group. Aydin the City in the Province of Aydin Formerly Tralles. N.d. Aydin the City
in the Province of Aydin Formerly Tralles. The Ethos Group, 2012. Web. 03 Sept. 2012.
<http://www.aydin-information.com/information-about-aydin.shtml>.
Pothecary, Sarah. "Strabo the Geographer." Strabo the Geographer. Forbiddencolour, 2009. Web.
03 Sept. 2012. <http://www.strabo.ca/>.
S, Michaela, Elizabeth H, and Loren S. "How Did Strabo Contribute to the Study of
Geography?" Yahoo! Answers. Yahoo!, 2008. Web. 03 Sept. 2012.
<http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080912070618AAqM1ze>.
Science Channel. "What Did Strabo Write About?" Curiosity. Discovery, 2011. Web. 03 Sept.
2012. <http://curiosity.discovery.com/question/strabo-word>.
"Strabo." Funk & Wagnalls New Encyclopedia. 4th ed. Vol. 24. N.p.: Funk & Wagnalls, 1983.
372-73. Print.