Ancient Origins of the History of Religions: Herodotus Example

Abstract

Although it is stated that the history of religions started to be formed as a discipline in the 19th century, when Max Muller lived, it is stated by religious scholars that researching other religious traditions is dates back to earlier times. In this respect, it is stated that Herodotus, who is described as the father of history because of his work titled History, can be considered as the father of the history of religions because he has a comparative study of the religions of foreigners and includes religious phenomena in research on the societies he studied. Therefore, in this study, within the framework of the approach which bases the research on beliefs of others on Herodotus in the literature of History of Religions, answers are sought for the questions such as what the basic features are that made Herodotus gain this position, whether it is possible to accept Herodotus as a historian of religions and whether it is possible to accept his work as a work history of religions. Therefore, to find answers to these and similar questions by putting forth the parameters of Herodotus's method, the importance and value of the way he dealt with the religious phenomena, which he used as a research subject, are examined in terms of the History of Religions.