# Atlantis is South America **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 28, 2002, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621 "2002-03-28T20:50:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![The\_Lord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@The\_Lord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Lord)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2002, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621/1 "2002-03-28T20:50:28Z")
I recently saw a documentary on Discovery about Atlantis. A scientist says he has found proof that Atlantis could have been in South America (for example “atl” means water, and “antis” means copper in Incan, I think). The only problem is, I didn’t see the documentary from the beginning, and what I can’t figure out is how could the Greek writer (I can’t remember his name) from about 2000 years ago, write about a civilizations in America, long before Columbus, or the Vikings got there? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Lord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@The\_Lord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Lord)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2002, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621/2 "2002-03-28T20:56:30Z")
I recently saw a documentary on Discovery about Atlantis. A scientist says he has found proof that Atlantis could have been in South America (for example “atl” means water, and “antis” means copper in Incan, I think). The only problem is, I didn’t see the documentary from the beginning, and what I can’t figure out is how could the Greek writer (I can’t remember his name) from about 2000 years ago, write about a civilizations in America, long before Columbus, or the Vikings got there? ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2002, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621/3 "2002-03-28T21:19:32Z")
I think the name you are looking for is Plato. And to answer your question, he didn’t write about a civilization in South America. Atlantis was either an Island in the Mediterranian or Aegean. There is also the possibility that Atlantis was just a made up place to help Plato further one of his lessons. Did the show you watch mention Graham Hancock? If it did, that is your short cut clue to knowing that you are about to be hearing BS. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2002, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621/4 "2002-03-28T21:21:10Z")
I don’t know how many times I’m going to have explain this. Atlantis’ Nucleonic energy reactor overloads Atlantis sinks Altantis preserved by orgone generators, drifts with current Atlantis rises and anchors itself Inca civilization has nothing to do with it. All Inca culture was the result of Viracocha, a renegade Tau Cetian. ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2002, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621/5 "2002-03-28T21:37:18Z")
Is the ol’ omniscience failing? d&r ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2002, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621/6 "2002-03-28T21:47:30Z")
I think the name you are looking for is Plato. And to answer your question, he didn’t write about a civilization in South America. Atlantis was either an Island in the Mediterranian or Aegean. There is also the possibility that Atlantis was just a made up place to help Plato further one of his lessons. Did the show you watch mention Graham Hancock? If it did, that is your short cut clue to knowing that you are about to be hearing BS. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2002, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621/7 "2002-03-28T22:00:11Z")
There was a guy that was looking for evidence of heretofore undiscovered ancient civilization, possibly, Atlantis being in South America, based on something he thought was a dried-up canal. Turned it was some kind of 19th or 20th century runoff pond or something, the theory went bust. Saw a show about this on public television last year, I believe. Sorry for the lack of a cite. Think it might be related to [this site about Bolivia](http://www.geocities.com/webatlantis/) ---
**Author:** ![Bromley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4da419/32.png) [@Bromley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bromley)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2002, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621/8 "2002-03-28T22:05:06Z")
I like to point out that what **adam yax** says about it being in the Med or Aegean is one possible interpretation (and possibly the most likely), but it is not actually what Plato wrote. The wierd thing is that he writes of a war, which the Greeks win (and have forgotten about - the Egyptians have to remind him about it). Now, if we’re talking about Atlantis=South America/Central America/Cuba etc., I find it hard to believe that they launch an invasion from there into Greece without first securing a sizable base on the European/African side of the Atlantic. This is quite an easy one to get info on with a google. Items that you might want to look for, which _might_ indicate pre-Columbus (and Lief Erikson) contact with the Americas are: 1. Cocaine/nicotine mummies. 2. Statues in America with apparent negroid features. 3. American carvings of bearded men. 4. Quetzalcuatl. I’m not presenting these as proofs, but merely as items that might help your googling. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2002, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621/9 "2002-03-28T22:32:47Z")
All I’ve got to say is that Atlantis sure moves around, a lot. Just a couple of weeks ago we were looking at “evidence” that [Atlantis is Antarctica](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=104296&highlight=atlantis) ---
**Author:** ![DAVEW0071](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e19b73/32.png) [@DAVEW0071](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DAVEW0071)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2002, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621/10 "2002-03-28T22:59:34Z")
You’re all wrong. Atlantis is in the sump pump in my basement. ---
**Author:** ![manhattan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manhattan/32/7_2.png) [@manhattan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/manhattan)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2002, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621/11 "2002-03-28T23:36:08Z")
**Cecil Adams** on [Atlantis](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a5_069.html) . ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2002, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621/12 "2002-03-28T23:54:10Z")
This thread is brought to you by the nifty **merge threads** function. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2002, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlantis-is-south-america/100621/13 "2002-03-29T00:03:35Z")
Atlantis is not South America. Atlantis is fiction. :wally