LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Plato: Ariston
built 642 days ago
Plato (427-347 BCE) is the author of the Apology. He came from a wealthy Athenian family. His mother, Perictione, was a descendent of Solon, and his father, Ariston, was from a long lineage of the old kings of Athens (which was said to have originated with the Poseidon, the god of the seas). His two uncles, Critias and Charmenides, were leaders in the Rule of Thirty uprising against the Athenian democracy.
Source:
Plato was born in Athens, into a moderately well-to-do aristocratic family. His father was named Ariston and his mother Perictione. One of Plato's ancestors, Glaucon, was one of the best-known members of the Athenian nobility. Plato's own real name was "Aristocles" ... his nickname, Plato, originated from wrestling circles. Since Plato means "broad," it probably refers either to his physical appearance or to his wrestling stance or style.
Source:
Plato was born in Athens or Aegina in May or December in 428 or 427 BC. He was raised in a moderately well-to-do aristocratic family. His father was named Ariston, and his mother Perictione. His family claimed descent from the ancient Athenian kings, and he was related — though there is disagreement as to exactly how — to the prominent politician Critias. According to a late Hellenistic account by Diogenes Laertius, Plato's given name was Aristocles, whereas his wrestling coach, Ariston of Argos, dubbed him Platon, meaning broad on account of his robust figure. Diogenes mentions alternative accounts that Plato derived his name from the breadth (platutês) of his eloquence, or else because he was very wide (platus) across the forehead.
Source:
Plato was born to an aristocratic family in Athens. His father, Ariston, was believed to have descended from the early kings of Athens. Perictione, his mother, was distantly related to the 6th-century B.C. lawmaker Solon.
Source:
Little can be known about Plato's early life. According to Diogenes, whose testimony is notoriously unreliable, Plato's parents were Ariston and Perictione (or Potone--see D. L. 3.1). Both sides of the family claimed to trace their ancestry back to Poseidon ( D.L. 3.1). Diogenes' report that Plato's birth was the result of Ariston's rape of Perictione ( D.L. 3.1) is a good example of the unconfirmed gossip in which Diogenes so often indulges.
Source:
MORE ABOUT
Ariston