Who's Who: Ancient Greeks Trivia Quiz

Answer: Odysseus

Odysseus, king of Ithaca, was a hero from the Trojan War. When the Greeks at Troy became discouraged after ten unsuccessful years of fighting, Odysseus developed the strategy for using the great horse to enter Troy. After securing the victory, it took him another ten years and many adventures before returning home to his faithful wife, Penelope.

Answer: Plato

Although Plato is best known as the student of Socrates and a philosopher/teacher, he originally thought he would become involved in the politics of Athens. He became disillusioned with Athenian democracy, however, and called it the tyranny of the common people. He believed that children who displayed virtue should be chosen at an early age to be educated to rule.

Answer: Pericles

Within the Athenian limited democracy, there was only one position that was voted by the people - the office of general. Each general held office for one year, but could be reelected as many times as the people would vote for him. Pericles, elected more than thirty times, gave his name to one of the most brilliant times in human history. Democracy flourished, as well as the arts and architecture, and Athens became the center of the Greek world during the Age of Pericles.

Answer: Pheidippides

When the Persians were assembling their army near Marathon, Pheidippides was sent to Sparta to request help, running approximately 150 miles in two days! When the Athenians emerged victorious from the battle, he ran an additional 25 miles to announce the victory, "We have won"!, before he collapsed and died. The modern marathon race is held in his honor.

Answer: Democritus

The early Greeks were very interested in finding the primal stuff of which all things were made. Water, air, fire, and earth were among the elements that were suggested. Democritus, however, was the closest to the atomic theory, which is commonly believed today.

Answer: Herodotus

Known as the "Father of History", Herodotus published an account of the origins of the Greco-Persian Wars, which he called "Histories". He spent his life traveling, collecting "personal inquiries", recording stories he heard along with myths and legends, and made notes of everything he saw.

While some throughout time have doubted the truth of his writing, modern archaeologists have confirmed at least some of his observations.

Answer: Aesop

A fable is a short tale which is used to teach a moral lesson. Aesop usually featured animals or inanimate objects that were given human qualities and had the ability to speak to teach the lesson. His famous fables include "The Tortoise and the Hare" and "The Lion and the Mouse".

Answer: Leonidas

As the Persian army, whose estimated size is somewhere between 70,000 to 300,000, made its way through Greece, Leonidas, with a much smaller army of 300 Spartans and a few thousand others, prepared to defend the Thermopylae mountain pass. The Spartans' heroic struggle against great odds is well known, and the hero cult of Leonidas survived for centuries at Sparta.

Answer: Aeschylus

Although few of his original plays have survived the centuries, Aeschylus is regarded as the first European dramatist whose plays have been preserved. He not only participated in Athenian politics, but also was one of the victorious Athenians who fought at the famous Battle of Marathon and the sea Battle of Salamis. According to ancient sources, his plays were frequents winners of the prestigious Festival of Dionysis.

Answer: Phidias

Considered by many to be the greatest ancient Greek sculptor, Phidias not only sculpted the statue of Zeus at Olympia, but also the statue of Athena that was in the Parthenon. In addition, he was one of the architects of the Acropolis rebuilding project that took place during the Golden Age of Athens.

In the 1950s an excavation at Olympia revealed the workshop of Phidias; a cup was found that was inscribed, "I belong to Phidias".