Laozi， also named Lao Tzu, with the family name as Li, given name as Er and respected name as Dan (commonly translated as " Old Master"), was a native of Kuxian County, Chu State (today’s Guoyang County, Anhui Province).
Laozi was a thinker during the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC) and the founder of the Taoist school of thought. He authored Lao Tzu, also called Tao Te King or The Way and Its Power, also known as the Laozi Five Thousand Characters.
Laozi's teachings had a profound impact on the development of Chinese philosophy, politics, literature, art, science, and religion. His ideas were carried forward by Zhuangzi and, together with Confucianism and Buddhism, formed the core of traditional Chinese thought and culture.