WESTERN CANON OF HISTORIOGRAPHY IN HELLENISTIC ARMENIA – 2017-2 Albert A. Stepanian The western canon implied rational perception of history with a purpose formulated still by Herodotus as follows – to find out how, when and why (pw~§, potev, dia; tiv) happened important events of history [Herod., I, 1, 1].1 Efforts of Herodotus and his close contemporaries reformed the logographic genre of storytelling in an area of rationalistic study and explanation of the past. In accordance with this approach, the term iJstoriva was coined for denoting investigation in its proper sense.2 From this time, the image of historians gained a particular social significance since the investigation of the past (despite pure curiosity) pursued practical interests.
