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Autochthon (ancient Greece)
In ancient Greece, the concept of autochthones (from Ancient Greek ''autos'' "self," and '' chthon'' "soil"; i.e. "people sprung from earth itself") means the indigenous inhabitants of a country, including mythological figures, as opposed to settlers, and those of their descendants who kept themselves free from an admixture of colonizing entities. In mythology, autochthones are those mortals who have sprung from the soil, rocks and trees. They are rooted and belong to the land eternally. Mythology Autochthons are reported in the mythology of the following regions: * Attica: Amphictyon, Cecrops I, Cranaus, Erichthonius, Periphas, Phlyus and ? Actaeus * Boeotia: Ogyges, Alalcomenes, ? Phlegyas, the Spartoi and the Ectenes * Crete: Cres, Lycastus and the Eteocretans * Peloponnese: Palaechthon and Argus Panoptes of Argos; Pelasgus and Phigalus of Arcadia; Lelex of Laconia; Aras of Phliasia; Aegialeus of Sicyon; and ? Orus of Troezen * Phocis: Castalius ...
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Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece () was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity (), that comprised a loose collection of culturally and linguistically related city-states and communities. Prior to the Roman period, most of these regions were officially unified only once under the Kingdom of Macedon from 338 to 323 BC. In Western history, the era of classical antiquity was immediately followed by the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine period. Three centuries after the decline of Mycenaean Greece during the Bronze Age collapse, Greek urban poleis began to form in the 8th century BC, ushering in the Archaic period and the colonization of the Mediterranean Basin. This was followed by the age of Classical Greece, from the Greco-Persian Wars to the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC, and which included the Golden Age of Athens and the Peloponnesian War. The u ...
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Spartoi
In Greek myth, dragon's teeth (, ''odontes (tou) drakontos'') feature prominently in the legends of the Phoenician prince Cadmus and in Jason's quest for the Golden Fleece. In each case, the dragons are present and breathe fire. Their teeth, once planted, would grow into fully armed warriors. Myths Cadmus and the Spartoi Cadmus, the bringer of literacy and civilization, killed the sacred dragon that guarded the spring of Ares. According to the '' Bibliotheca'', Athena gave Cadmus half of the dragon's teeth, advising him to sow them. When he did, fierce armed men, known as Spartoi (Ancient Greek: Σπαρτοί, literal translation: "sown en, from σπείρω, ''speírō'', "to sow"), sprang up from the furrows. Cadmus threw a stone among them, because he feared them, and they, thinking that the stone had been thrown by one of the others, fought each other until only five of them remained — Echion (future father of Pentheus), Udaeus, Chthonius, Hyperenor and Pelo ...
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Lelex
In Greek mythology, Lelex (; Ancient Greek: Λέλεξ, ''gen.'' Λέλεγος) may refer to the following personages: *Lelex (king of Sparta), the first king of Sparta. * Lelex (king of Megara), king of Megara. * Lelex, one of the Calydonian hunters, who was described as "the gray-haired hero Lelex". Coming from Narycus in Opuntian Locris, he was already a mature man during that hunt.Ovid, ''Metamorphoses'' 8.299 ff. Notes References * Pausanias, ''Description of Greece'' with an English Translation by W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., and H.A. Ormerod, M.A., in 4 Volumes. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1918Online version at the Perseus Digital Library* Pausanias, ''Graeciae Descriptio.'' ''3 vols''. Leipzig, Teubner. 1903.Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library * Pseudo-Apollodorus The ''Bibliotheca'' (Ancient Greek: ), is a compendium of Greek myths and heroic legends, genealogical tables and histories arranged in three bo ...
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Arcadia (region)
Arcadia (; ) is a region in the central Peloponnese, Greece. It takes its name from the mythological character Arcas, and in Greek mythology it was the home of the gods Hermes and Pan. In European Renaissance arts, Arcadia was celebrated as an unspoiled, harmonious wilderness; as such, it was referenced in popular culture. The modern regional unit of the same name more or less overlaps with the historical region, but is slightly larger. History Arcadia was gradually linked in a loose confederation that included all the Arcadian towns and was named League of the Arcadians. In the 7th century BC, it successfully faced the threat of Sparta and the Arcadians managed to maintain their independence. They participated in the Persian Wars alongside other Greeks by sending forces to Thermopylae and Plataea. During the Peloponnesian War, Arcadia allied with Sparta and Corinth. In the following years, during the period of the hegemony of Thebes, the Theban general Epaminondas re ...
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Phigalus
In Greek mythology, Phigalus (Ancient Greek: Φίγαλος) was an Arcadian prince as one of the 50 sons of the impious King Lycaon Pausanias, 8.3.1, 5.7 & 39.2 either by the naiad Cyllene, Nonacris or by unknown woman. Otherwise, he was called an autochthon.Pausanias, 8.39.2 Mythology Phigalus was the reputed eponymous founder of the Arcadian town of Phigalia. In other account, the name of the town was derived from the dryad A dryad (; , sing. ) is an oak tree nymph or oak tree spirit in Greek mythology; ''Drys'' (δρῦς) means "tree", and more specifically " oak" in Greek. Today the term is often used to refer to tree nymphs in general. Types Daphnaie Thes ... Phigalia. During the reign of Phialus, son of Bucolion, the town was renamed as Phialia but eventually reverted to Phigalia later.Pausanias, 8.3.2, 5.7 & 39.2 Notes References * Dionysus of Halicarnassus, ''Roman Antiquities.'' English translation by Earnest Cary in the Loeb Classical Librar ...
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Pelasgus
In Greek mythology, Pelasgus (, ''Pelasgós'' means "ancient") was the eponymous ancestor of the Pelasgians, the mythical inhabitants of Greece who established the worship of the Dodonaean Zeus, Hephaestus, the Cabeiri, and other divinities. In the different parts of the country once occupied by Pelasgians, there existed different traditions as to the origin and connection of Pelasgus. Some ancient Greeks believed that he was the first man. Inachid Pelasgoí of Argos : In Argos, several Inachid kings were called Pelasgus: * Pelasgus, brother to Apis both sons of Phoroneus, is said to have founded the city of Argos in Peloponnesus, to have taught the people agriculture, and to have received Demeter, on her wanderings, at Argos, where his tomb was shown in later times. * Pelasgus, son of Triopas and Sois, and a brother of Iasus, Agenor, and Xanthus. According to Greek legends, he founded the sanctuary of Demeter in Argos and for this reason she was worshipped at this temple u ...
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Argos, Peloponnese
Argos (; ; ) is a city and former municipality in Argolis, Peloponnese (region), Peloponnese, Greece and is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, and the oldest in Europe. It is the largest city in Argolis and a major center in the same prefecture, having nearly twice the population of the prefectural capital, Nafplio. Since the 2011 local government reform it has been part of the municipality of Argos-Mykines, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit has an area of 138.138 km2. It is from Nafplion, which was its historic harbour. A settlement of great antiquity, Argos has been continuously inhabited as at least a substantial village for the past 7,000 years. A resident of the city of Argos is known as an Argive ( , ; ). However, this term is also used to refer to those ancient Greeks generally who assaulted the city of Troy during the Trojan War; the term is more widely applied by the Hom ...
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Argus Panoptes
Argus or Argos Panoptes (, "All-seeing Argos") is a many-eyed giant in Greek mythology. Known for his perpetual vigilance, he served the goddess Hera as a watchman. His most famous task was guarding Io, a priestess of Hera, whom Zeus had transformed into a heifer. Argus's constant watch, with some of his eyes always open, made him a formidable guardian. His eventual slaying by Hermes, on Zeus's orders, is a prominent episode in the myths surrounding him, and his eyes were then incorporated into the peacock's tail by Hera in his honor. Mythology Argus Panoptes () was the guardian of the heifer-nymph Io and the son of Arestor. According to Asclepiades, Argus Panoptes was a son of Inachus, and according to Cercops he was a son of Argus and Ismene, daughter of Asopus. Acusilaus says that he was earth-born ( autochthon), born from Gaia. Probably Mycene (in another version the son of Gaia) was a primordial giant whose epithet ''Panoptes'', "all-seeing", led to his being d ...
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Palaechthon
In Greek mythology, Palaechthon or Palaichthon () was the father of Pelasgus, king of Argos and eponym of the Pelasgians. Aeschylus In '' The Suppliants'', Aeschylus (5th century BC) writes that: : For I am Pelasgus, offspring of Palaechthon, whom the earth brought forth, and lord of this land; and after me, their king, is rightly named the race of the Pelasgi, who harvest the land.Aeschylus, ''Suppliant Women'' 250 ff ' Palaechthon is not mentioned outside of this passage by Aeschylus, who seems to have invented him.Hard, p. 538. Note References * Aeschylus Aeschylus (, ; ; /524 – /455 BC) was an ancient Greece, ancient Greek Greek tragedy, tragedian often described as the father of tragedy. Academic knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier Greek tragedy is large ..., translated in two volumes. 2. ''Suppliant Women'' by Herbert Weir Smyth, Ph. D. Cambridge, MA. Harvard University Press. 1926Online version at the Perseus Digital Lib ...
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Peloponnese
The Peloponnese ( ), Peloponnesus ( ; , ) or Morea (; ) is a peninsula and geographic region in Southern Greece, and the southernmost region of the Balkans. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmus of Corinth land bridge which separates the Gulf of Corinth from the Saronic Gulf. From the late Middle Ages until the 19th century, the peninsula was known as the Morea, a name still in colloquial use in its demotic form. The peninsula is divided among three administrative regions: most belongs to the Peloponnese region, with smaller parts belonging to the West Greece and Attica regions. Geography The Peloponnese is a peninsula located at the southern tip of the mainland, in area, and constitutes the southernmost part of mainland Greece. It is connected to the mainland by the Isthmus of Corinth, where the Corinth Canal was constructed in 1893. However, it is also connected to the mainland by several bridges across the canal, including two submers ...
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Eteocretan Language
Eteocretan ( from , lit. "true Cretans", itself composed from ἐτεός ''eteós'' "true" and Κρής ''Krḗs'' "Cretan") is the pre-Greek language attested in a few alphabetic inscriptions of ancient Crete. In eastern Crete, about half a dozen inscriptions have been found, which, though written in Greek alphabets, are clearly not Greek. These inscriptions date from the late 7th or early 6th century down to the 3rd century BC. The language, which so far cannot be translated, is probably a survival of a language spoken on Crete before the arrival of the proto-Greek language and is probably derived from the Minoan language preserved in the Linear A inscriptions of a millennium earlier. Since that language remains undeciphered, it is not certain that Eteocretan and Minoan are related, although this is probable. Ancient testimony suggests that the language is that of the Eteocretans (meaning 'true Cretans'). The term ''Eteocretan'' is sometimes applied to the Minoan language (or ...
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Lycastus
Lycastus (Λύκαστος) may refer to: *Lycastus, a Cretan king and son of Minos I and Itone. He was the husband of Ida, daughter of Corybas, and by her father of Minos II. *Lycastus, twin brother of Parrhasius, whose parents were Ares and Phylonome, daughter of Nyctimus and Arcadia. Their mother was seduced by Ares in the guise of a shepherd; in fear of her father's wrath, she cast the newborn twins into the river Erymanthus. They did not drown and were washed into the hollow of an oak tree, where a she-wolf found and suckled them, giving up her own cubs. The twins were then adopted and raised by a shepherd named Gyliphus, and eventually succeeded to the throne of Arcadia. Their story is closely parallel, and is cited as such by Pseudo-Plutarch, to that of Romulus and Remus. *Lycastus, lover of Eulimene, who unsuccessfully attempted to save his loved one from being sacrificed. *Lycastus, an autochthon, eponym of the town Lycastus in Crete, which might as well have b ...
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