Philo of Larissa

Philo of Larissa
Φίλων ὁ Λαρισσαῖος
Bornc. 159 B.C
Larissa
Diedc. 84 B.C
Rome
SchoolAcademic skepticism
InstitutionsAcademy (scholarch)

Philo of Larissa (Greek: Φίλων ὁ Λαρισσαῖος Philon ho Larissaios; 159/8–84/3 BC[1]) was a Greek philosopher. It is very probable that his actual name was Philio - with a second iota.[2] He was a pupil of Clitomachus, whom he succeeded as head of the Academy. During the Mithridatic Wars which would see the destruction of the Academy, he travelled to Rome where Cicero heard him lecture. None of his writings survive. He was an Academic sceptic, like Clitomachus and Carneades before him, but he offered a more moderate view of skepticism than that of his teachers, permitting provisional beliefs without certainty.

  1. ^ Woodruff, Paul (2019). "Ancient Scepticism" from Nicholas D. Smith's "The Philosophy of Knowledge: A History, Volume 1". Bloomsbury Academic. p. 210. ISBN 978-1-4742-5827-2.
  2. ^ K. Fleischer, Philo or Philio of Larissa?, in: CQ 72 (2022), pp. 222-232.