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Who really said it

Know thyself

Not Socrates — an ancient Delphic maxim The Delphic maxim (Seven Sages of Greece) Inscribed at the Temple of Apollo, Delphi · attested by the 5th century BC
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“Know thyself” is one of the Delphic maxims carved in the forecourt of Apollo’s temple at Delphi, traditionally ascribed to the Seven Sages — Chilon of Sparta was most often credited, though ancient authors never agreed. Socrates repeatedly cited and probed it in Plato’s dialogues, which is why it clings to his name — but the maxim predates him and is not his coinage.

Last verified 8 Jul 2026 · how we verify · spot an error?

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Disputed credit — copy with the correction

“Know thyself” an ancient Delphic maxim inscribed at the Temple of Apollo at Delphi, traditionally ascribed to the Seven Sages of Greece; popularized by Socrates but not coined by him.

The slide-ready mistake: crediting this to Socrates. Use the credit shown above instead.

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Provenance

The source

Inscription
“Know thyself” (γνῶθι σεαυτόν)
Location
Pronaos of the Temple of Apollo, Delphi
Tradition
The Seven Sages of Greece (esp. Chilon of Sparta)
Translation
Standard English rendering of the ancient Greek maxim

γνῶθι σεαυτόν — “Know thyself.” One of three maxims (with “Nothing too much” and “Give a pledge and trouble is at hand”) displayed at the Temple of Apollo at Delphi.

In Plato’s Protagoras, the Seven Sages are said to have jointly dedicated the maxim at Delphi; Socrates elsewhere treats it as the god’s own charge to examine oneself.

Know thyself — origin, Delphi, and the Seven Sages

How we verified this

Public domain

The maxim is an ancient Greek inscription attested by the 5th century BC, and “Know thyself” is its long-standard English translation. Both the ancient text and the conventional two-word rendering are firmly in the public domain.

Fact-check

Often misattributed

Because Socrates made self-examination the heart of his philosophy and quotes the Delphic inscription in Plato’s dialogues, the two-word maxim is routinely pinned on him as if he coined it. He didn’t.

Socrates adopter, not author

Socrates repeatedly invokes the Delphic “Know thyself” in Plato (Charmides, Phaedrus, Alcibiades I), but the maxim was already inscribed at Delphi and ascribed to the Seven Sages before him.

Chilon of Sparta / the Seven Sages traditional

Chilon was the sage most often named as its author, but ancient sources disagreed; Plato’s Protagoras instead has the seven sages collectively dedicate it, and others attribute it to the oracle itself.

“Know thyself” is an anonymous ancient Delphic maxim older than Socrates — he popularized it, but did not write it.

Context

Why it sticks to Socrates

Socrates turned self-knowledge into a method. In Plato’s dialogues he treats the Delphic “Know thyself” as a divine charge to examine one’s own soul rather than chase external things — so the maxim became inseparable from his legacy.

But the words were carved in stone at Delphi before Socrates philosophized in the Athenian agora. Attributing the phrase to him confuses the thinker who made it famous with the anonymous ancient tradition that produced it.

He lived by it and argued about it — but he didn’t write it.

Read the full story

Three maxims were singled out at Delphi: “Know thyself,” “Nothing too much,” and “Give a pledge and trouble is at hand.”

Later writers piled up far longer lists of Delphic maxims, but these three are the ones consistently reported by ancient authors.

Explore

Filed under

More provenance-checked quotes on the same theme, each with its reuse status.

Wisdom Humility

Go further

Dig deeper

Trusted places to keep pulling the thread — primary archives, fact-checks, and scholarship. We show how we used each one before you leave.

Know thyselfen.wikipedia.org

Origin, Delphi inscription, Seven Sages attribution, and Socratic use
Delphic maximsen.wikipedia.org

The full set of maxims at Apollo’s temple and their traditional authorship
Know thyselfen.wikiquote.org

Sourced entry identifying it as a Delphic maxim from the temple forecourt
Michel de Montaigne and Socrates on ‘Know Thyself’thecollector.com

How Socrates and later thinkers used the Delphic maxim they did not invent
Maxims from the Delphic Oracledonaldrobertson.name

Overview of the Delphic maxims and their Stoic and Socratic reception
To Know One’s Selfquoteinvestigator.com

Quote Investigator on related ‘hard to know oneself’ sayings and their spread

The real source

An inscription, not a Socratic coinage

The Delphic maxims (Seven Sages of Greece)

Inscribed at Delphi · attested by the 5th century BC · ascribed to the Seven Sages

The Delphic maxims were a set of short ethical precepts displayed in the forecourt of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi, the seat of the Pythian oracle. Ancient tradition credited them to the legendary Seven Sages of Greece — Thales, Solon, Chilon and others of the 6th century BC — with Chilon of Sparta most often named for “Know thyself.” Modern scholars regard them as common proverbs that gained fresh authority from their prominent temple setting.

For writers & researchers

Cite this

Delphic maxim (Temple of Apollo, Delphi)

“Know thyself,” Delphic maxim inscribed in the pronaos of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi (attested by the 5th century BC); traditionally ascribed to the Seven Sages of Greece. Cf. Plato, Protagoras 343a-b.

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Quotle.info. “Who really said ‘Know thyself’?” Last verified 8 Jul 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/know-thyself

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