Hermogenes (Greek: Ἑρμογένης; 5th/4th century BCE) was a son of Hipponicus, and a brother of the wealthy Callias. He is introduced by Plato in his dialogue Cratylus as one of the interlocutors, and maintains that all the words of a language were formed by an agreement of people among themselves. Diogenes Laërtius[1] states that he was one of the teachers of Plato, but no other writer mentions this, and it is further clear from the Cratylus, that Hermogenes was not a man either of talent or learning, and that he scarcely knew the elements of philosophy. Although he belonged to the great family of Callias, he is mentioned by Xenophon as a man of very little property; this might mean that Hermogenes was an illegitimate son of Hipponicus. Plato,[2] on the other hand, suggests that he was unjustly deprived of his property by Callias, his brother.[3]
This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology by William Smith (1870).