Otto Seeck

Otto Karl Seeck (2 February 1850 – 29 June 1921) was a German classical historian who is perhaps best known for his work on the decline of the ancient world.

He first began studying chemistry at the University of Dorpat but transferred to the University of Berlin to study classical history under Theodor Mommsen.

Seeck earned his doctorate from the University of Berlin in 1872 after writing his thesis on the Notitia Dignitatum,[1] a document enumerating the roles and responsibilities of administrative officials of the later Roman Empire c. 400 AD.

Seeck wrote many influential works on late antiquity and social Darwinism.

[4] Some of his monographs, including his influential 6-volume Geschichte des Untergangs der antiken Welt (History of the Decline of the Ancient World)—which set forth his beliefs concerning social Darwinism, later influencing Oswald Spengler—are still in print today.