Cornelius Nepos

Cornelius Nepos was a Roman biographer and historian, born around 110 BCE in Cisalpine Gaul (modern northern Italy), and is recognized as the earliest biographer to write in Latin. He was a close friend of Cicero, Atticus, and Catullus, and his principal work, De viris illustribus (On Famous Men), contained brief biographies of distinguished Romans and foreigners, though most of his writings are now lost.