Citation with stable link: Philip A. Harland, 'Persian, Indian, and Judean wisdom: Klearchos of Soloi on Magian precedence (fourth century BCE),' Ethnic Relations and Migration in the Ancient World, last modified May 5, 2024, https://philipharland.com/Blog/?p=9740.
Authors: Klearchos of Soloi as cited by Diogenes of Laertes, Lives of Eminent Philosophers 1.9 (link).
Comments: Diogenes (early third century CE) refers to views expressed by Klearchos (or: Clearchus) of Soloi (fourth century BCE) regarding the relation between the foreign wisdom of the Magians (often considered Persian, sometimes Babylonian) and that of either the Indian naked philosophers (gymnosophists) or the Judeans. It seems there were debates about who inherited Magian wisdom.
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Klearchos of Soloi in his work On Education further makes the naked philosophers (gymnosophists) descendents from the Magians, and some also trace the Judeans to the same origin.
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Source of the translation: Translation by Harland.