Hippys of Rhegium was a Greek historian from southern Italy, active in the late fifth or early fourth century BCE. He is considered one of the earliest historians of the western Greek world. Though the Suda identifies him as a contemporary of Darius I, this is likely an error, as his work shows knowledge of later events.
He wrote in the Doric dialect and gave the history of Magna Graecia its chronological and mythological framework, blending local traditions with broader Greek myth-history. His known work is the Sikelika or Italika, a history of Sicily and Italy. The text is lost and survives only in fragments and testimonia cited by later authors.
Hippys served later historians like Ephorus and Diodorus Siculus as a source. His methodology belongs to an early stage of Greek historical writing, situated between mythographic tradition and critical history. His use of the Doric dialect marks his work as part of a distinct regional tradition.
Available Works
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