Herodotus, a Greek, born in Asia Minor nearly five hundred years before Christ, is called the father of history and geography. He tells us that in his time the earth was thought to consist of the coast regions of the Mediterranean Sea, extending rather vaguely north and south, and bounded on the west by the Atlantic Ocean and on the east by the great Persian Empire. The word _Mediterranean_ is made up of two Latin words meaning "the middle of the earth." Eratosthenes, a Greek geographer who was born on the northern coast of Africa about three centuries before Christ, wrote a geographical treatise in which he announced his belief that the earth was in the form of a sphere revolving on its own axis. He succeeded in convincing only a few, however, that his theory was right. The next great geographer was Strabo, born in the northeast part of Asia Minor in the year 64 B.C. He was a great traveler and observer, and wrote a work on geography that has come down to us. The parts dealing with his own observations are especially valuable. The great traveler of mediæval times was Marco Polo, an Italian, born in Venice in 1254 A.D. He traveled widely, had many adventures, and published an account of his travels. His experiences were a great stimulus to geographical inquiry and discovery. About this time also the mariners' compass was introduced into Europe. Civilization seems to be indebted to the Chinese for the compass, for it is mentioned by them as an instrument of navigation as early as the third or fourth century after Christ. With the advent of the compass, seamen were no longer compelled to hug the shore; they acquired more daring to sail the open sea, and geographical exploration was correspondingly widened.