Anicius Manlius Severinus Boëthius (AD 480 - 524 or 525) was a Christian philosopher of the 6th century. He was born in Rome to an important family — many of his ancestors had been consuls, including his father Fl. Manlius Boëthius in 487 — but he served as an official for the kingdom of the Ostrogoths. In 522 he also saw his two sons become consuls, but he was later executed by King Theodoric the Great on suspicion of having conspired with the Byzantine Empire. Events Odoacer defeats an attempt by Julius Nepos to recapture Italy, and has Julius killed; Odoacer also captured Dalmatia. ... Events Childebert I annexes Orléans and Chartres after the death of Chlodomer. ... Events Bernicia settled by the Angles Ethiopia conquers Yemen The Daisan river, a tributary of the Euphrates, floods Edessa and within a couple of hours fills the entire city except for the highest parts. ... Christian philosophy is a catch-all expression for a two-millennia tradition of rational thought that attempts to fuse the fields of philosophy with the religious teachings of Christianity. ... (5th century — 6th century — 7th century — other centuries) Events The first academy of the east the Academy of Gundeshapur founded in Persia by the Persian Shah Khosrau I. Irish colonists and invaders, the Scots, began migrating to Caledonia (later known as Scotland) Glendalough monastery, Wicklow Ireland founded by St. ... City motto: Senatus Populusque Romanus – SPQR (The Senate and the People of Rome) Founded 21 April 753 BC mythical, 1st millennium BC Region Latium Mayor Walter Veltroni (Democratici di Sinistra) Area  - City Proper  1290 km² Population  - City (2004)  - Metropolitan  - Density (city proper) 2,546,807 almost 4,000,000 1... For modern diplomatic consuls, see Consulate general. ... Events Births Deaths April 17 - Proclus, Neoplatonic philosopher Syagrius, King of the Romans in Soissons See also Intel 80487 Categories: 487 ... This article deals with the continental Ostrogoths. ... Events Anicius Manlius Severinus Boëthius is imprisoned on charges of conspiring against Theoderic. ... Theodoric the Great (454 - August 30, 526) was king of the East Goths, the Ostrogoths (488-526), ruler of Italy (493-526), and regent of the Visigoths (511-526). ... The Byzantine Empire (Native Greek names: ΡΩΜΑΝΙΑ Romania or ΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΑ ΡΩΜΑΙΩΝ Basileia Romaion) is the term conventionally used to describe the Greek-speaking Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centred at its capital in Constantinople. ...

Early Life

The exact birthdate of Boethius is unknown. However, it is generally placed at around AD 480, the same year of birth as St. Benedict. Boethius was born to a patrician family, with his father's line including two popes and several Roman emperors, and his mother's line also including emperors. This article is about Saint Benedict of Nursia, for other uses of the name Benedict see Benedict (disambiguation) Saint Benedict of Nursia (c. ... Patricians (patricii) were originally the elite caste in ancient Rome. ...

It is unknown where Boethius received his formidable education in Greek, as during his formative years, Theodoric the Great the Ostrogoth ruled Rome, and the cultural heritage of the West was waning. Historical documents are ambiguous on the subject, but Boethius may have studied in Athens, and perhaps Alexandria. A Boethius as proctor of the school in Alexandria circa AD 470 indicates that perhaps the younger Boethius received some grounding in the classics from his father or a close relative. In any case, his accomplishment in Greek was remarkable given the cultural climate of Rome at the time. Theodoric the Great (454 - August 30, 526) was king of the East Goths, the Ostrogoths (488-526), ruler of Italy (493-526), and regent of the Visigoths (511-526). ... This article deals with the continental Ostrogoths. ...

In addition to the difficulty associated with receiving a classical education at the time, the available education tended to focus on the literary, rather than the mathematical and scientific accomplishments of the West.

Nevertheless, around his twentieth birthday, Boethius was quite educated, and he caught the eye of Theodoric the Great, who commissioned the young Boethius to perform many roles. Theodoric the Great (454 - August 30, 526) was king of the East Goths, the Ostrogoths (488-526), ruler of Italy (493-526), and regent of the Visigoths (511-526). ...

Late Life

By 520, at the age of about thirty-five, Boethius had already been appointed by Theodoric the Great as magister officiorum, the head of all the government and court services, and therefore held a position of honor and distinction unavailable to many men even twice his age. Events February 20 - Epiphanius elected Patriarch of Constantinople. ... Theodoric the Great (454 - August 30, 526) was king of the East Goths, the Ostrogoths (488-526), ruler of Italy (493-526), and regent of the Visigoths (511-526). ...

Two of his sons were honored by Theodoric the Great, reflecting their father's prestige. Theodoric the Great (454 - August 30, 526) was king of the East Goths, the Ostrogoths (488-526), ruler of Italy (493-526), and regent of the Visigoths (511-526). ...

Works

Boëthius's most recognized work is the Consolation of Philosophy, which he wrote in prison in Pavia while awaiting his execution. Boëthius also translated some of Aristotle's works on logic from Greek into Latin, and until the 12th century they were the only significant portions of Aristotle available in that language. This early printed book has many hand-painted illustrations depicting Lady Philosophy and scenes of daily life in fifteenth-century Ghent (1485) Consolation of Philosophy (Latin: Consolatio Philosophiae) is a philosophical work by Boethius written in about the year 524 AD. It has been described as the single most important... Church San Michele in Pavia Pavia (the ancient Ticinum) (population 71,000) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 35 km south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. ... Aristotle (sculpture) Aristotle (Greek: Αριστοτέλης Aristotelēs) (384 BC – March 7, 322 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher. ... Logic (from ancient Greek λόγος (logos), originally meaning the word, or what is spoken, but coming to mean thought or reason) is most often said to be the study of arguments, although the exact definition of logic is a matter of controversy amongst philosophers (see below). ... Latin is the language originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. ... (11th century - 12th century - 13th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 12th century was that century which lasted from 1101 to 1200. ...

Boëthius also wrote a commentary on the Isagoge by Porphyry, in which he discusses the nature of the species: whether they are subsistent entities which would exist whether anyone thought of them, or whether they exist as ideas alone. This work started one of the most vocal controversies in medieval philosophy. Taken more generally the question of the ontological nature of universal ideas became known as the problem of universals. (For other meanings of Porphyr, see Porphyry) Porphyry (c. ... Medieval philosophy is the philosophy of Western Europe in the era now known as medieval or the Middle Ages, the period roughly extending from the fall of the Roman Empire to the Renaissance. ... This article is about the philosophical meaning of ontology. ... The problem of universals is a conventional term given to what is in fact a nest of intertwined problems, some within the domain of cognitive psychology, others within that of epistemology, still others within ontology. ...

Boëthius was indeed a polymath, composing treatises on mathematics and music as well as the works named above. He is also credited with some theological treatises, although the true extent of his Christian belief is in doubt. He has been called the last of the Romans and the first of the scholastic philosophers. Despite the use of his mathematical texts in the Universities, it is his final work, the Consolation of Philosophy, that assured his posterity to the Middle Ages and beyond. It was translated into Anglo-Saxon by King Alfred, and into later English by Chaucer and Queen Elizabeth; many manuscripts survive and it was extensively edited, translated and printed throughout Europe from the late 15th century onwards. Many commentaries on it were compiled and it has been one of the most influential books in European culture. No complete bibliography has ever been assembled but it would run into thousands of items. Leonardo da Vinci A polymath (also known as a polyhistor) is a person who excels in multiple fields, particularly in both arts and sciences. ... Theology is literally reasonable discourse concerning God (Greek θεος, theos, God, + λογος, logos, word or reason). By extension, it also refers to the study of other religious topics. ... Scholastic redirects here. ... This early printed book has many hand-painted illustrations depicting Lady Philosophy and scenes of daily life in fifteenth-century Ghent (1485) Consolation of Philosophy (Latin: Consolatio Philosophiae) is a philosophical work by Boethius written in about the year 524 AD. It has been described as the single most important... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ... Note: This page contains IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. ... Alfred (849? – 26 October 899) (sometimes spelt Ælfred) was king of England from 871 to 899, though at no time did he rule over the whole of the land. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Chaucer: Illustration from Cassells History of England, circa 1902 Geoffrey Chaucer (c. ... Elizabeth I Queen of England and Ireland Queen of France, nominal title Elizabeth I (September 7, 1533–March 24, 1603) was Queen of England and Queen of Ireland from November 17, 1558 until her death. ... World map showing location of Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ... (14th century - 15th century - 16th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500. ... The Culture of Europe might better be described as a series of overlapping cultures of Europe. ...

See also

• sesquitertium

Sesquitertium refers to the improper rational fraction It is a superparticular number. ...

External links

• A 10th century manuscript of Institutio Arithmetica is available online from Lund University, Sweden (http://laurentius.lub.lu.se/volumes/Mh_1/)
• The Geoffrey Freudlin 1885 edition of the Arithmetica, from the Cornell Library Historical Mathematics Monographs (http://historical.library.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/cul.math/docviewer?did=cdl274&seq=3)

Bibliography

• The Consolation of Philosophy (Latin, from Wikisource).
• On Arithmetic (Latin, from Wikisource).
• On Music (Latin, from Wikisource).

References

• Marenbon, John (2003). Boethius. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0195134079