PHILOSOPHER

Melissus of Samos

470 BC - 430 BC

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Melissus of Samos (; Ancient Greek: Μέλισσος ὁ Σάμιος; fl. 5th century BC) was the third and last member of the ancient school of Eleatic philosophy, whose other members included Zeno and Parmenides. Little is known about his life, except that he was the commander of the Samian fleet in the Samian War. Melissus’ contribution to philosophy was a treatise of systematic arguments supporting Eleatic philosophy. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Melissus of Samos has received more than 98,010 page views. His biography is available in 42 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 41 in 2019). Melissus of Samos is the 190th most popular philosopher (up from 211th in 2019), the 99th most popular biography from Greece (up from 110th in 2019) and the 17th most popular Philosopher.

Melissus of Samos is most famous for his argument that if something is both finite and has an end, then it cannot be eternal.

Memorability Metrics

  • 98k

    Page Views (PV)

  • 69.02

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 42

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 13.80

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 1.97

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

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Among PHILOSOPHERS

Among philosophers, Melissus of Samos ranks 190 out of 1,081. Before him are Hippasus, Han Fei, Jakob Böhme, Muhammad Abduh, Sextus Empiricus, and Athanasius Kircher. After him are Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite, Ernest Renan, Pierre Bayle, John Scotus Eriugena, Nicolas Malebranche, and Xun Kuang.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 470 BC, Melissus of Samos ranks 5. Before him are Socrates, Aspasia, Mozi, and Philolaus. After him are Callicrates, Hippocrates of Chios, Achilles Painter, and Teres I. Among people deceased in 430 BC, Melissus of Samos ranks 3. Before him are Phidias and Empedocles. After him are Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus and Archelaus.

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In Greece

Among people born in Greece, Melissus of Samos ranks 99 out of 936. Before him are George II of Greece (1890), Oruç Reis (1473), Cimon (-510), Nestor (null), Irene Papas (1929), and Creon (null). After him are Nâzım Hikmet (1902), Mahfiruz Hatun (1590), Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt (1789), Phryne (-371), Scopas (-395), and John III Doukas Vatatzes (1192).

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Among PHILOSOPHERS In Greece

Among philosophers born in Greece, Melissus of Samos ranks 17. Before him are Theophrastus (-371), Pyrrho (-365), Antisthenes (-445), Isocrates (-436), Clement of Alexandria (150), and Hippias (-443). After him are Diotima of Mantinea (-450), Chilon of Sparta (-600), Cratylus (-500), Epimenides (-690), Apollodorus of Athens (-180), and Prodicus (-460).

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