Final answer:
The claim that Beethoven named his sonata 'Moonlight' is false; the nickname was coined by music critic Ludwig Rellstab after Beethoven's death.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that Beethoven gave the nickname Moonlight to his piano sonata, making it a programmatic work, is false. In reality, the name 'Moonlight Sonata' came from a music critic named Ludwig Rellstab. Several years after Beethoven's death, Rellstab compared the effect of the first movement to that of moonlight shining upon Lake Lucerne. Beethoven himself did not intend for the sonata to be programmatic or to depict a specific scene or mood. The sonata's official title is Piano Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp minor 'Quasi una fantasia', Op. 27, No. 2.