ancient women philosophers.

• Maitreyi (later Vedic period)
• Gargi Vachaknavi (born about 700 BC)
• Theano of Croton (6th century BC)
• Aristoclea of Delphi (6th century BC)
• Aspasia of Miletus (approx. 470–400 BC)
• Arete of Cyrene (4th century BC)
• Sosipatra of Ephesus (4th century BC)
• Hipparchia of Maroneia (4th century BC)
• Nicarete of Megara (flourished around 300 BC)
• Catherine of Alexandria (282–305)
• Ptolemais of Cyrene (3rd century BC)
• Aesara of Lucania (3rd century BC)
• Diotima of Mantinea (appears in Plato's Symposium)
• Ban Zhao (c. 35–100)^D2
• Xie Daoyun (before 340–after 399)
• Theodora (5th-6th century

Maitreyi ("friendly one"^[1]) was a Hindu philosopher who lived during the later Vedic period in ancient India. She is mentioned in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad^[2] as one of two wives of the Vedic sage Yajnavalkya; he is estimated to have lived around the 8th century BCE. In the Hindu epic Mahabharata and the Gṛhyasūtras, however, Maitreyi is described as an Advaita philosopher who never married. In ancient Sanskrit literature, she is known as a brahmavadini (an expounder of the Veda).

Maitreyi appears in ancient Indian texts, such as in a dialogue where she explores the Hindu concept of Atman (soul or self) in a dialogue with Yajnavalkya in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. According to this dialogue, love is driven by a person's soul, and Maitreyi discusses the nature of Atman and Brahman and their unity, the core of Advaita philosophy. This Maitreyi-Yajnavalkya dialogue is the topic of Sureshvara's varttika, a commentary.

Maitreyi is cited as an example of the educational opportunities available to women in Vedic India, and their philosophical achievements. She is considered a symbol of Indian intellectual women, and an institution is named in her honour in New Delhi.

Gargi, the daughter of sage Vachaknu in the lineage of sage Garga (c. 800-500 BCE) was named after her father as Gargi Vachaknavi. From a young age she evinced keen interest in Vedic scriptures and became very proficient in fields of philosophy. She became highly knowledgeable in the Vedas and Upanishads in the Vedic times and held intellectual debates with other philosophersGargi Vachaknavi (born about c. 8th century BCE) was an ancient Indian philosopher. In Vedic Literature, she is honored as a great natural philosopher,^[1][2] renowned expounder of the Vedas,^[3] and known as Brahmavadini, a person with knowledge of Brahma Vidya.^[4] In the Sixth and the eighth Brahmana of Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, her name is prominent as she participates in the brahmayajna, a philosophic debate organized by King Janakaof Videha and challenges the sage Yajnavalkya with perplexing questions on the issue of atman (soul).^[1][5] She is also said to have written many hymns in the Rigveda.^[6] She remained a celibate all her life and was held in veneration by the conventional Hindus.<sup>[7][8]  
Right from a young age, gargi Vachaknavi was very intellectual. She acquired knowledge of the Vedas and scriptures and became renowned for her proficiency in these fields of philosophy; she even surpassed men in her knowledge.[9]

Theano (/θɪˈænoʊ/; Greek: Θεανώ; fl. 6th-century BC), or Theano of Crotone,[1] is the name given to perhaps two Pythagorean philosophers. She has been called the pupil, daughter or wife of Pythagoras, although others made her the wife of Brontinus. Her place of birth and the identity of her father are just as uncertain, leading some authors to suggest that there</sup> was more than one person whose details have become merged (these are sometimes referred to as Theano I and Theano II).^[2] A few fragments and letters ascribed to her have survived which are of uncertain authorship.

Themistoclea was a priestess at Delph.

Themistoclea taught Pythagoras his moral doctrines:^[2]

Aristoxenus says that Pythagoras got most of his moral doctrines from the Delphic priestess Themistoclea.

Aspasia (/æˈspeɪʒiə, æˈspeɪziə, æˈspeɪʒə, æˈspeɪʃə/;^[1][2] Greek: Ἀσπασία; c. 470 BC^[3][4] – c. 400 BC)^[3][5] was an influential immigrant to Classical-era Athens who was the lover and partner of the statesman Pericles. The couple had a son, Pericles the Younger, but the full details of the couple's marital status are unknown. According to Plutarch, her house became an intellectual centre in Athens, attracting the most prominent writers and thinkers, including the philosopher Socrates. It has also been suggested that the teachings of Aspasia influenced Socrates. Aspasia is mentioned in the writings of Plato, Aristophanes, Xenophon, and others. Though she spent most of her adult life in Greece, few details of her life are fully known. Some scholars suggest that Aspasia was a brothel keeper and a prostitute. Aspasia's role in history provides crucial insight to the understanding of the women of ancient Greece. Very little is known about women from her time period. One scholar stated that, "To ask questions about Aspasia's life is to ask questions about half of humanity."^[6]

Arete of Cyrene (/əˈriːtiː/; Greek: Ἀρήτη; fl. 5th–4th century BC) was a Cyrenaic philosopher who lived in Cyrene, Libya. She was the daughter of Aristippus of Cyrene.^[1]

Arete learned philosophy from her father, Aristippus, who had himself learned philosophy from Socrates. Arete, in turn, taught philosophy to her son - Aristippus the Younger - hence her son was nicknamed "Mother-taught" (Greek: μητροδίδακτος).^[2]

Arete reportedly took over the leadership of the School of Cyrene upon her father's death. Her existence is recorded in several historic sources that were written after her death. She is mentioned by Diogenes Laërtius, Strabo, Aelius, Clement of Alexandria, Theodoret of Cyrus, Aristocles and in the Suda. Diogenes records that among her pupils were Theodorus the Atheist and Anniceris.^[3] While no credible historic source has survived on Arete's teachings, the tenets of the School of Cyrene which her father founded are known. It was one of the first to advance a systematic view on the role of pleasure and pain in human life. The Cyrenaics argued that discipline, knowledge, and virtuous actions are more likely to result in pleasure. Whereas negative emotions, such as anger and fear, multiplied pain. Towards the end of Socrates' Protagoras it is reasoned that the "salvation of our life" depends upon applying to pleasures and pains a "science of measurement". The School of Cyrene provided one of the first approaches to hedonism, which surfaced again in 18th and 19th century Europe and was advanced by thinkers such as Jeremy Bentham.^[4]

Sosipatra of Ephesus (Greek: Σωσιπάτρα) was a Neoplatonist philosopher and mystic who lived in the first half of the 4th century CE. The story of her life is told in Eunapius' Lives of the Sophists.

 She was born in Ephesus. When she was five years old, two men came to work on her father's estate. When they produced a bounteous harvest beyond all expectation, they persuaded him to hand Sosipatra, and his estate, over to their care. The father was told to leave home for five years, during which Sosipatra was educated by the two men in ancient Chaldean wisdom. When the father returned, Sosipatra was radiant in her beauty, and was said to have possessed extraordinary psychic and clairvoyant abilities. It is implied that the two men were supernatural beings.

Hipparchia of Maroneia (/hɪˈpɑːrkiə/; Greek: Ἱππαρχία ἡ Μαρωνεῖτις; fl. c. 325 BC) was a Cynic philosopher, and wife of Crates of Thebes. She was born in Maroneia, but her family moved to Athens, where Hipparchia came into contact with Crates, the most famous Cynic philosopher in Greece at that time. She fell in love with him, and, despite the disapproval of her parents, she married him. She went on to live a life of Cynic poverty on the streets of Athens with her husband.

Little survives of her own philosophical views, but like most Cynics, her influence lies in the example of her life, choosing a way of life which was usually considered unacceptable for respectable women of the time. The story of her attraction to Crates, and her rejection of conventional values, became a popular theme for later writers.

Nicarete or Nicareta of Megara (Greek: Νικαρέτη, Nikarétē) was a philosopher of the Megarian school who flourished around 300 bc. She is stated by Athenaeus to have been a hetaera of good family and education, and to have been a disciple of Stilpo.^[1] Diogenes Laërtius states that she was Stilpo's mistress, though he had a wife.^[2]

Saint Catherine of Alexandria, or Saint Catharine of Alexandria, also known as Saint Catherine of the Wheel and The Great Martyr Saint Catherine (Coptic: Ϯⲁⲅⲓⲁ Ⲕⲁⲧⲧⲣⲓⲛ, Greek: ἡ Ἁγία Αἰκατερίνη ἡ Μεγαλομάρτυς – translation: Holy Catherine the Great Martyr) is, according to tradition, a Christian saint and virgin, who was martyred in the early 4th century at the hands of the pagan emperor Maxentius. According to her hagiography, she was both a princess and a noted scholar, who became a Christian around the age of 14, converted hundreds of people to Christianity, and was martyred around the age of 18. More than 1,100 years following her martyrdom, Saint Joan of Arc identified Catherine as one of the Saints who appeared to her and counselled her.^[

The Eastern Orthodox Church venerates her as a Great Martyr and celebrates her feast day on 24 or 25 November (depending on the regional tradition). In Catholicism she is traditionally revered as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. In 1969 the Roman Catholic Church removed her feast day from the General Roman Calendar;^[5] however, she continued to be commemorated in the Roman Martyrology on 25 November.^[6] In 2002, her feast was restored to the General Roman Calendar as an optional memorial.Saint Catherine of Alexandria, or Saint Catharine of Alexandria, also known as Saint Catherine of the Wheel and The Great Martyr Saint Catherine (Coptic: Ϯⲁⲅⲓⲁ Ⲕⲁⲧⲧⲣⲓⲛ, Greek: ἡ Ἁγία Αἰκατερίνη ἡ Μεγαλομάρτυς – translation: Holy Catherine the Great Martyr) is, according to tradition, a Christian saint and virgin, who was martyred in the early 4th century at the hands of the pagan emperor Maxentius. According to her hagiography, she was both a princess and a noted scholar, who became a Christian around the age of 14, converted hundreds of people to Christianity, and was martyred around the age of 18. More than 1,100 years following her martyrdom, Saint Joan of Arc identified Catherine as one of the Saints who appeared to her and counselled her.^[4]

According to modern scholarship, the legend of Catherine was probably based on the life and murder of the Greek philosopher Hypatia, with reversed roles of Christians and pagans.^[7]


Ptolemais of Cyrene (Ancient Greek: Πτολεμαῒς ἡ Κυρηναία) was a harmonic theorist, author of Pythagorean Principles of Music (Πυθαγορικὴ τῆς μουσικῆς στοιχείωσις). She lived perhaps in the 3rd century BC, and "certainly not after the first century AD."^[1]

Almost nothing is known about her life; her work is known only from references in Porphyry's commentary on Ptolemy's Harmonics.^[2] She shares the same place of origin (Cyrene, Libya) as Arete of Cyrene (a female philosopher of the Cyrenaic school, whose doctrines included Pythagorean elements) and Eratosthenes (whose many interests included music theory).^[3] She is one of several women writers associated with Pythagoreanism.

Aesara of Lucania (Greek: Αἰσάρα Aisara; 4th or 3rd century BC) was a Pythagorean philosopher who wrote On Human Nature, of which a fragment is preserved by Stobaeus.

Aesara is known only from a one-page fragment of her philosophical work titled On Human Nature preserved by Stobaeus.^[1] Lucania, where she came from, was an ancient district of southern Italy and part of Magna Graecia where many Pythagorean communities existed. It has been conjectured that her name is a variation on the name Aresa, who, according to one minor tradition, was a daughter of Pythagoras and Theano.^[2] A male writer from Lucania called Aresas is also mentioned by Iamblichus in his Life of Pythagoras.^[3]

Diotima of Mantinea (/ˌdaɪəˈtaɪmə/; Greek: Διοτίμα; Latin: Diotīma) was a philosopher^[1] and priestess circa 440 B.C.E. who plays an important role in Plato's Symposium. Her ideas are the origin of the concept of Platonic love.

The name Diotima means Zeus Honor, either in the active sense of a woman who honors Zeus, or in the passive sense of a woman honored by Zeus.^[2]

She was said to be from the Peloponnesian city of Mantinea, which allied itself with Sparta during the Peloponnesian War. The Greek form of this place, Mantinike, notably appears to contain the root "mantis", meaning "prophet, seer", and strongly suggests that Diotima was herself a prophetess, or at least somehow associated with prophecy. Diotima Mantinike thus would sound like "Diotima from Prophet-victory". Socrates provides additional significant information for his fellow symposiasts about Diotima Mantinike that hints at her victorious prophetic powers.^[2]

Since the only contemporaneous source concerning her is Plato, doubts have been raised about whether she was a real historical personage or merely a fictional creation; however, nearly all of the characters named in Plato's dialogues have been found to correspond to real people living in ancient Athens.^[3]

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. However, Aspasia appears under her own name in Plato's dialogue Menexenus, and some scholars have convincingly argued that Plato did not use false names: therefore, Diotima could be a historical figure.^[4]

A bronze relief circa 340 B.C.E. depicting Diotima and Socrates, as well as writings from the second through the fifth centuries A.D., refer to Diotima as a real person. The suggestion that she was a fictional creation was not introduced until the 16th century, probably based on the fact that she was a woman.^[1]

Ban Zhao (Chinese: 班昭; Wade–Giles: Pan Chao; 45 – c. 116 CE), courtesy name Huiban (惠班), was the first known female Chinese historian. She completed her brother Ban Gu's work on the history of the Western Han, the Book of Han. She also wrote Lessons for Women, an influential work on women's conduct. She also had great interest in astronomy and mathematics and wrote poems, commemorative writings, argumentations, commentaries, essays and several longer works,^[1] not all of which survive. She became China's most famous female scholar^[2] and an instructor of Taoist sexual practices for empire family.^[3]

ie Daoyun (謝道韞, before 340-after 399) was a Chinese poet, writer, scholar, calligrapher and debater of the Eastern Jin Dynasty.
Her uncle Xie An enjoyed spending time with his nieces and nephews and would quiz them on literature and philosophy. She outperformed her siblings and cousins during the tests her uncle set.^[1] Later, she would defend her uncle against the criticism of Huan Xuan.

Theodora of Emesa was a member of an intellectual group of Neoplatonists in late fifth and early sixth century Alexandria, and a disciple of Isidore. Damascius dedicated his Life of Isidore, also known as the Philosophical History, to Theodora, having written it at her request.^[1]