Herodotus was a Greek writer and geographer credited with being the first historian. He is referred to as "The Father of History", a title conferred on him by the ancient Roman orator Cicero.

His magnum opus is a long account of the Greco-Persian Wars that he called “The Histories.”

Before Herodotus, no writer had ever made such a systematic, thorough study of the past or tried to explain the cause-and-effect of its events.

Herodotus explained that he reported what he "saw and [what was] told to him." A sizable portion of the Histories has since been confirmed by modern historians and archaeologists.