What's in a name?

Aspasia

Aspasia has been described as a beautiful, intelligent and highly educated young woman who lived in Athens in ancient Greece circa 470 BC.

Aspasia was an exception to the normal young women of the 5th century where most women were not educated. Aspasia's knowledge and influence effected many great minds and thinkers. Through her coaching and mentoring, we have the works of Socrates, Plato and Pericles.

Aspasia was the partner of Pericles 'the Olympian' who later became leader of Athens. In ancient Greece women were meant to be unseen and unheard, yet Pericles consulted Aspasia as an equal and made no effort to prevent her mixing with important men. One commentator describes Aspasia as "a beautiful, independent, brilliantly witty young woman capable of holding her own in conversation with the best minds in Greece and of discussing and illuminating any kind of question. Pericles ability to orate is greatly credited to Aspasia and the intellectual influence she had over him. One of the great works attributed to her influence was the popular Funeral Oration by Pericles. It is reported that Aspasia was the driving force behind many of Pericles orations, political decisions and policies including the developments of the Acropolis and the Parthenon.

Aspasia seems to have been the only woman in classical Greece to have distinguished herself in the public sphere as a significant figure both politically and intellectually, although all of her work has survived only through the voices of the men that she influenced. Plato was greatly impressed and influenced by Aspasia's intellect and openly credited her for her contribution to the Funeral Oration. Another admirer was the great Socrates who openly credited Aspasia for Pericles being one of the great Greek orators and who also gave credit to her as being one of his own instructors of rhetoric.

It is believed that Aspasia opened an academy for the education of young women from good families.

Aspasia is not the only woman to have contributed to the development of philosophy; however, the men she influenced made it possible for her work to be recognised.

With these antecedents our business aims to continue to drive and influence learning, development, training, coaching and mentoring for today's world.