If you had a list of numbers in column A, with the corresponding name
in column B, then you could use a VLOOKUP formula to return the name
for a given number. For example, if you had the following info
starting in A1:

Number | Name
1 John Smith
2 Jane Doe
3 John Doe
4 Mark Smith
5 Michael Doe


So if you wrote "3" in cell E1 and wanted to return the corresponding
name, this formula would do it:

=VLOOKUP(E1,A1:B6,2,FALSE)

--JP

On Nov 26, 7:22 am, Ferdy wrote:
I am creating an excel file where I want to enter a number in a column which
will make a persons name appear in the next column, the numbers and names
having already being set up in a table. How would I set up the table and make
the name cell cross ref with the number in the previous cell.
I have defined number variables before but not text strings.