Diotima of Mantinea plays an important role in Plato's Symposium. Since our only source concerning her is Plato, we cannot be certain whether she was a real historical personage or merely a fictional creation. However, it should be noted that nearly all of the characters named in Plato's dialogues have been found to correspond to real people living in ancient Athens. Mantinea is a city in the central Peloponnese that was the site of two significant battles in Classical Greek history. ... ...

In Plato's Symposium, Socrates says that Diotima was a seer or priestess who had, in Plato's youth, taught him "the philosophy of love". Socrates also claims that she had succeeded in convincing the gods to postpone the pestilence that besieged Athens for ten years. A fresco taken from the north wall of the Tomb of the Diver featuring an image of a symposium The Symposium is a Socratic dialogue by the ancient Greek philosopher Plato, student of Socrates, focusing on Eros (love) and its place in the philosophic path. ... Socrates (Greek: Σωκράτης, invariably anglicized as , Sǒcratēs; 470–399 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher who is widely credited for laying the foundation for Western philosophy. ...

Plato was thought by most 19th and early 20th century scholars to have based Diotima on Aspasia, the mistress of Pericles, so impressed was he by her intelligence and wit. This question is far from resolved, however, and some scholars have argued convincingly that Diotima was a historical figure.^[1] Marble herm in the Vatican Museums inscribed with Aspasias name at the base. ... Pericles or Perikles (c. ...

• In dictionaries of philosophy, she is generally listed as "Diotima of Mantinea".
• Her name has often been used as a moniker for philosophical projects, journals, essay, etc.

Bibliography

• Navia, Luis E., Socrates, the man and his philosophy, pp. 30, 171. University Press of America ISBN 0-8191-4854-7.