Telling The Tale of Trivia
When you break the word "trivia" down, you get "tri" and "via", meaning "three roads". How did "three roads" come to mean trivia? Let the Trivia Queen tell the story.

In ancient Greece, it was common to find statues of the god Hermes (messenger of Zeus) or the goddess Hecate (goddess of the sun, moon, and land of the dead) at the street corners. Hermes' name originated with the Greek word 'herma' meaning a stone cairn used to mark roads and pathways. The Greeks thought that Hermes would reside inside these piles of stones, protecting and guiding travelers. Hecate's job was to ensure that people didn't take the wrong road, so pillars were erected at crossroads to please her. The cairns and pillars built for Hecate and Hermes were also considered to be altars, so passersby could pay homage to the two gods as they passed by, hoping for a safe journey. Of course, any time roads and pathways meet, people also meet-- and they pass the time gabbing. With so many cairns and pillars handy, they could gab with each other and worship the gods at the same time. Altars and statues of Hermes and Hecate were so plentiful that Hecate became known as Trioditis, which is Greek for 'one who is worshipped where three roads meet.' In Latin she was known at Trivia, because 'tri' means three, and 'via' means road or way. Eventually trivia came to mean things of little importance that are likely to be heard where three roads meet.

I am happy you've come to our website to explore our collection of things of little importance. If you've come because you're an editor of a publication and would like a selection of trivia columns to liven up your pages, then allow me to introduce you to my wide variety of fascinating features. If you are interested in publishing your own unique paper dedicated to publishing insanely inane information, let me tell you about "Totally Trivia". If you're already a trivia fan and would like to feed your habit, I invite you get your fill here, and to buy a book. Whoever you are, before you leave, I hope to provide you with something worth gabbing about the next time you meet up with friends where three roads meet.  

-J. Spencer, Trivia Queen

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