Since we deal with this on a daily basis in Genealogy, I thought you might enjoy this little tidbit of trivia. Lee Cagle Moore, OK What was Plato's last name? The Answer: Plato is a towering figure in the history of philosophy, a pillar of Western thought. So why do we so informally call him by his first name? Or is it his last name? Actually, his real name may not even have been 'Plato,' which is thought to be a nickname. He had a wide forehead-- possibly the first great thinker who really looked smart-- and was apparently dubbed with the Greek word for "broad," plautus. As for his last name, people in ancient Greece didn't have any. They were referred to by their given name and the name of their father. So the man we know as Plato would have been Plato, son of Ariston. (Main source: WHY THINGS ARE & WHY THINGS AREN'T by Joel Achenbach) ___________________________________________________________________ Get the Internet just the way you want it. Free software, free e-mail, and free Internet access for a month! Try Juno Web: http://dl.www.juno.com/dynoget/tagj.