THE few facts known about the life of Dionysius are virtually all given us by the author himself. At the close of the preface to the Roman Antiquities (chap. 8) he announces himself as Dionysius, the son of Alexander, and a native of Halicarnassus. He also informs us (chap. 7) that he had come to Italy at the time when Augustus Caesar put an end to the civil war in the middle of the 187th Olympiad (late in 30 B.C. or in 29), and that he had spent the following twenty-two years in acquainting himself with the language and the literature of the Romans, in gathering his materials, and in writing his History. The preface is dated (chap. 3) in the consulship of Nero and Piso (7 B.C.), and the first part, at least, of the work must have been published at that time. It is generally assumed that the entire History appeared then; but in Book VII. (70, 2) Dionysius refers to Book I. as having been already published. This leaves it an open question in how many instalments and at what intervals he issued the work. We do not know the exact date of his birth; but two casual statements in the History enable us to fix it within certain limits. He cites the disastrous campaign of Crassus against the Parthians as an event of his own lifetime (ii. 6, 4); and in describing the erection of the original Capitol he states that the new edifice, ‘built in the days of our fathers,’ stood on the same foundations as the old (iv. 61, 4). The first of these passages shows that he was born at least as early as 53, and perhaps as early as 54 or 55, since the reference may very well be to the whole Parthian expedition. The second allusion is more indefinite. The new Capitol, begun by Sulla shortly after the burning of the old structure in 83, was formally dedicated by Catulus in 69; nevertheless, as late as the beginning of 62 Caesar, in bringing charges of embezzlement against Catulus, claimed that many parts of the temple were still but half finished and accordingly wished to have Pompey entrusted with the completion of the work. We do not know how much justification there was for Caesar’s action, though it is evident that it was primarily a political move; in any case, he was unsuccessful, and Catulus’ name remained on the pediment of the temple. Whether Dionysius knew of Caesar’s charges or attached any importance to them we can only conjecture. Egger, taking these charges seriously, argued that Dionysius must have been born after 63; yet it is just as natural to believe that the historian dated the temple by the official dedication. The two passages, then, give as extreme limits for the date of Dionysius’ birth 69 and 53, with some possibility of the narrower limits of 62 and 55. Modern scholars have generally assumed a date between 60 and 55, from the feeling that Dionysius must have been a fairly young man when he came to Rome and undertook to master a new language and literature. The only other reference in an ancient author to the time when Dionysius lived is even more indefinite than those just quoted. Strabo (ca. 63 B.C. — ca. 21 A.D.), in speaking of Halicarnassus, names, as authors who claimed that city as their birthplace, Herodotus, Heracleitus the poet, and, ‘in our time,’ Dionysius the historian (xiv. 2, 16).
Halicarnassus had declined greatly in importance after the time of Maussolus, and finally suffered grievously at the hands of the pirates not far from the time when Dionysius was born. It was given a new lease of life by Quintus Cicero while he was serving as governor of Asia (61-58), if we may believe the enthusiastic tribute paid him by his brother. Such was the city in which Dionysius apparently spent his youth and early manhood. Whether he composed any of his rhetorical treatises while still residing there is uncertain; but it is generally held that they were all written at Rome.
In Rome Dionysius was a teacher of rhetoric, probably giving private lessons; in one of his treatises addressed to a pupil he refers to ‘our daily exercises.’ From these shorter works, which took the form of letters addressed to friends, patrons or pupils, we learn the names of a number of his friends and associates; but unfortunately they are, with one or two exceptions, otherwise unknown to us. Aelius Tubcro may have been the historian and jurist who was consul in 11 B.C., the same historian who is praised in the Antiquities (i. 80, 1). Melitius Rufus, a pupil, and his father, whom Dionysius calls a most valued friend, were evidently Romans. Cn. Pompcius Geminus may well have been a Greek, in spite of his name; Ammaeus also was probably a Greek, and so almost certainly were Demetrius and Zeno. Caecilius of Calacte, who is styled a dear friend, was a rhetorician and historian of whom a good deal is known In the introduction to the History (chap. 7) Dionysius states that he gained some of his information orally from most learned men (Romans by implication) with whom he came in contact. It would be interesting indeed to know the names of some of these men and how intimately he associated with them; but, with the possible exception of Aelius Tubero, he nowhere names a contemporary Roman author, although he pays tribute to the many excellent works that were being produced in his day, — histories, speeches and philosophical treatises, — by both Romans and Greeks. From the circumstance that he gives particular credit to the ruling classes of Rome for the recent purification of literary taste, Roberts suggests that he may have been ‘influenced more directly... by the Roman men of affairs with whom (or with whose sons) his vocation brought him into contact than by any Roman man of letters.’ One avowed purpose in writing his History was to make a grateful return to Rome for the education and other advantages he had enjoyed there; and this certainly suggests that he felt he had been made welcome in Rome.
We have no information regarding the date of his death. If he was the author of the summary of his History in five books which Photius (Cod. 84) attributes to him, he doubtless wrote this after the publication of the large work, and so must have lived for some little time at least after 7 B.C. There are several passages in his shorter works in which he promises to discuss this or that topic ‘if I have the time,’ or ‘if it is possible,’ or ‘if Heaven keeps us safe and sound.’ These have sometimes been taken to indicate that he was already an old man or in poor health; but it is by no means necessary to put such a construction upon his words.