Thales of Miletus (the so-called ‘Father of Science’) seems to be the first philosopher of the Greek tradition.
Now, obviously, he was wrong about nearly everything, but the leap from being silent to being wrong may have been humanity’s greatest step towards being more true.
I’d (idiosyncratically) consider Thales’ pupil Anaximander the first philosopher, as we understand ‘philosopher’ today, and consider Thales more the ur-scientist. From what little information remains about them, Anaximander’s doctrines were more traditionally metaphysical than Thales’, and he was a deeper and more systematic thinker; we also have a single line of actual prose from him, the oldest extant piece of philosophy in human history (excepting maybe some stuff from the Upanishads).
Thales of Miletus (the so-called ‘Father of Science’) seems to be the first philosopher of the Greek tradition.
Now, obviously, he was wrong about nearly everything, but the leap from being silent to being wrong may have been humanity’s greatest step towards being more true.
I’d (idiosyncratically) consider Thales’ pupil Anaximander the first philosopher, as we understand ‘philosopher’ today, and consider Thales more the ur-scientist. From what little information remains about them, Anaximander’s doctrines were more traditionally metaphysical than Thales’, and he was a deeper and more systematic thinker; we also have a single line of actual prose from him, the oldest extant piece of philosophy in human history (excepting maybe some stuff from the Upanishads).