PHILOSOPHER

Gemistus Pletho

1355 - 1452

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Georgios Gemistos Plethon (Greek: Γεώργιος Γεμιστὸς Πλήθων; Latin: Georgius Gemistus Pletho c. 1355/1360 – 1452/1454), commonly known as Gemistos Plethon, was a Greek scholar and one of the most renowned philosophers of the Late Byzantine era. He was a chief pioneer of the revival of Greek scholarship in Western Europe. As revealed in his last literary work, the Nomoi or Book of Laws, which he circulated only among close friends, he rejected Christianity in favour of a return to the worship of the classical Hellenic gods, mixed with ancient wisdom based on Zoroaster and the Magi. In 1438–1439 he reintroduced Plato's ideas to Western Europe during the Council of Florence, in a failed attempt to reconcile the East–West schism. Read more on Wikipedia

His biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. Gemistus Pletho is the 189th most popular philosopher (up from 316th in 2019), the 177th most popular biography from Türkiye (up from 303rd in 2019) and the 15th most popular Turkish Philosopher.

Gemistus Pletho was a Byzantine philosopher who promoted the idea of a return to paganism. He was also a teacher of emperor Manuel II Palaeologus.

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Among PHILOSOPHERS

Among philosophers, Gemistus Pletho ranks 189 out of 1,267. Before him are Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Claude Adrien Helvétius, Jean Baudrillard, Sextus Empiricus, José Ortega y Gasset, and Bernard Bolzano. After him are Pierre Gassendi, Pierre Bayle, Kabir, Apollonius of Tyana, Ernest Renan, and Nicolas Malebranche.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1355, Gemistus Pletho ranks 1. After him are Thomas of Woodstock, 1st Duke of Gloucester, Mircea I of Wallachia, Gülçiçek Hatun, Konstantin Dejanović, Theodore I Palaiologos, Manuel Chrysoloras, Melchior Broederlam, Konrad von Jungingen, Dorothea of Bulgaria, Isabella of Castile, Duchess of York, and Henry the Mild, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg. Among people deceased in 1452, Gemistus Pletho ranks 1. After him are Munjong of Joseon, Ciriaco de' Pizzicolli, and Švitrigaila.

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In Türkiye

Among people born in Türkiye, Gemistus Pletho ranks 177 out of 1,347. Before him are Baldwin II, Latin Emperor (1217), Andronikos II Palaiologos (1259), Giorgos Seferis (1900), Justin II (520), Clement of Ohrid (840), and Zosimus (460). After him are Alaeddin Pasha (1250), Sabbatai Zevi (1626), Evliya Çelebi (1611), Artemisia I of Caria (-500), John II Komnenos (1087), and Süleyman Demirel (1924).

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Among PHILOSOPHERS In Türkiye

Among philosophers born in Türkiye, Gemistus Pletho ranks 15. Before him are Gregory of Nazianzus (329), Ibn Taymiyyah (1263), Anaximenes of Miletus (-585), Chrysippus (-281), Proclus (412), and Posidonius (-135). After him are Apollonius of Tyana (15), Xenocrates (-396), Michael Psellos (1018), Bias of Priene (-600), Cleanthes (-330), and Arcesilaus (-315).

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