Democritus ( dih-MOK-rih-təs; Greek: Δημόκριτος, Dēmókritos; c. 460 – c. 370 BC) was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher from Abdera, primarily remembered today for his formulation of an atomic theory of the universe. Democritus wrote extensively on a wide variety of topics.
None of Democritus' original work has survived, except through second-hand references. Many of these references come from Aristotle, who viewed him as an important rival in the field of natural philosophy. He was known in antiquity as the ‘laughing philosopher’ because of his emphasis on the value of cheerfulness.
HistoryLayer draws the world as it was in any year from 123,000 BCE to
2026. Move the slider and the borders redraw for that year; the map
carries 23,890 events, 12,790 people, 837 wars and 13,183 cities, each
one readable in place. Signing in is optional and lets you keep what
you find.