Stephanus pagination

Volume 1, Page 142 of the 1578 Stephanus edition of Plato, showing the opening of Theaetetus

Stephanus pagination is the system of reference and organisation used in modern editions and translations of Plato (and less famously, Plutarch). Plato's (and Plutarch's) works are divided into numbers, and each number will be divided into equal sections a, b, c, d and e. As such, this system is often used to reference Plato - for example, Symposium 172a would refer the reader to the opening of Plato's Symposium.

This system of pagination is based on an edition of Plato by Henricus Stephanus (Henri Estienne). The numbers refer to page numbers in the various volumes of his edition of 1578. No work spans more than one volume; so, there are not multiple occurrences of the same page number for a single work. As there were multiple volumes, however, the numbers need to be used in conjunction with a title in order to make any sense, i.e. 172a by itself could refer to passages in several dialogues, but Symposium 172a refers only to one passage.

More specific citations often add line numbers, e.g. Symposium 209a5-9, but these generally refer to John Burnet's Oxford Classical Text, not to Estienne's line divisions.

Bekker numbers are the comparable system for the works of Aristotle.

Stephanus numbers

Volume 1

* (2a-16a) Euthyphro
* (17a-42a) Apology
* (43a-54e) Crito
* (57a-118a) Phaedo
* (121a-131a) Theages
* (132a-139a) Rival Lovers
* (142a-210d) Theaetetus
* (216a-268b) Sophist
* (271a-307c) Euthydemus
* (309a-362a) Protagoras
* (363a-376c) Hippias minor
* (383a-440e) Cratylus
* (447a-527e) Gorgias
* (530a-542b) Ion

Volume 2

* (11a-67b) Philebus
* (70a-100b) Meno
* (103a-135e) Alcibiades
* (138a-151c) 2nd Alcibiades
* (153a-176d) Charmides
* (178a-201c) Laches
* (203a-223b) Lysis
* (225a-232c) Hipparchus
* (234a-249e) Menexenus
* (257a-311c) Statesman
* (313a-321d) Minos
* (327a-354c) Republic I
* (357a-383c) Republic II
* (386a-417b) Republic III
* (419a-445e) Republic IV
* (449a-480a) Republic V
* (484a-511e) Republic VI
* (514a-541b) Republic VII
* (543a-569c) Republic VIII
* (571a-592b) Republic IX
* (595a-621d) Republic X
* (624a-650b) Laws I
* (652a-674c) Laws II
* (676a-702e) Laws III
* (704a-724b) Laws IV
* (726a-747e) Laws V
* (751a-785b) Laws VI
* (788a-824a) Laws VII
* (828a-850c) Laws VIII
* (853a-882c) Laws IX
* (884a-910d) Laws X
* (913a-938c) Laws XI
* (941a-969d) Laws XII
* (973a-992e) Epinomis

Volume 3

* (17a-92c) Timaeus
* (106a-121c) Critias
* (126a-166c) Parmenides
* (172a-223d) Symposium
* (227a-279c) Phaedrus
* (281a-304e) Hippias Major
* (309a-310b) Letter I
* (310b-315a) Letter II
* (315a-319e) Letter III
* (320a-321c) Letter IV
* (321c-322c) Letter V
* (322c-323d) Letter VI
* (323d-352a) Letter VII
* (352b-357d) Letter VIII
* (357d-358b) Letter IX
* (358b-358c) Letter X
* (358d-359c) Letter XI
* (359c-359e) Letter XII
* (360a-363e) Letter XIII
* (364a-372a) Axiochus
* (372a-375d) On Justice
* (376a-379d) On Virtue
* (380a-386b) Demodocus
* (387b-391d) Sisyphus
* (392a-406a) Eryxias
* (406a-410e) Clitophon
* (411a-416a) Definitions

External links

* Explanation for Quoting Plato: Stephanus references