Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities of ...

, the name Astacus (

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

: Ἄστακος) may refer to: *Astacus of Thebes, a descendant of the

Spartoi In Greek mythology, Spartoi (also Sparti or Spartae) (Ancient Greek: Σπαρτοί, literal translation: "sown en, from σπείρω, ''speírō'', "to sow") are a mythical people who sprang up from the dragon's teeth sown by Cadmus and were ...

, and the

eponym An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

of the city

Astacus ''Astacus'' (from the Greek , ', meaning "lobster" or "crayfish") is a genus of crayfish found in Europe and western Asia, comprising three extant (living) species and three extinct fossil species. Due to the crayfish plague, crayfish of this ...

, characterized as "a noble and proud man". One of his sons,

Melanippus :''The name Melanippus is the masculine counterpart of Melanippe.'' In Greek mythology, there were eleven people named Melanippus (): *Melanippus, one of the sons of Agrius and possibly Dia, daughter of King Porthaon of Calydon. Along with his b ...

, was one of the principal defenders of Thebes in the war of the

Seven against Thebes The Seven against Thebes were seven champions in Greek mythology who made war on Thebes. They were chosen by Adrastus, the king of Argos, to be the captains of an Argive army whose purpose was to restore Oedipus' son Polynices to the Theban ...

and fell against

Tydeus Tydeus (; Ancient Greek: Τυδεύς ''Tūdeus'') was an Aetolian hero in Greek mythology, belonging to the generation before the Trojan War. He was one of the Seven against Thebes, and the father of Diomedes, who is frequently known by the pa ...

. His other three sons, Ismarus, Leades, and Amphidicus (or Asphodicus), were credited with killing Hippomedon,

Eteoclus In Greek mythology, Eteoclus (Ancient Greek: Ἐτέοκλος) was the son of Iphis. Mythology Eteoclus participated in the war on Thebes by the Seven against Thebes, and was occasionally included on the list of the seven leaders. In Euripide ...

and

Parthenopaeus In Greek mythology, Parthenopaeus or Parthenopaios (; Ancient Greek: Παρθενοπαῖος, ''Parthenopaîos'') was one of the Seven against Thebes, a native of Arcadia, described as young and outstandingly good-looking, but at the same time ...

respectively.Apollodorus, 3.6.8 Yet other two sons of his, Erithelas and

Lobes Lobe may refer to: People with the name * Lobe (surname) Science and healthcare * Lobe (anatomy) * Lobe, a large-scale structure of a radio galaxy * Glacial lobe, a lobe-shaped glacier * Lobation, a characteristic of the nucleus of certain ...

, were said to have founded Hypoplacian Thebes. *Astacus, a son of

Poseidon Poseidon (; grc-gre, Ποσειδῶν) was one of the Twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and myth, god of the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 In pre-Olympian Bronze Age Greece, he was venerated as a ch ...

and the

nymph A nymph ( grc, νύμφη, nýmphē, el, script=Latn, nímfi, label=Modern Greek; , ) in ancient Greek folklore is a minor female nature deity. Different from Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature, are ty ...

Olbia Olbia (, ; sc, Terranoa; sdn, Tarranoa) is a city and communes of Italy, commune of 60,346 inhabitants (May 2018) in the Italy, Italian insular province of Sassari in northeastern Sardinia, Italy, in the historical region of Gallura. Called '' ...

ous founder of

Bithynia Bithynia (; Koine Greek: , ''Bithynía'') was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor (present-day Turkey), adjoining the Sea of Marmara, the Bosporus, and the Black Sea. It bordered Mysia to the sout ...

. *Astacus, a son of

Hermes Hermes (; grc-gre, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travellers, thieves, merchants, and orato ...

and (?) Astabe, a daughter of

Peneus In Greek mythology, Peneus (; Ancient Greek: Πηνειός) was a Thessalian river god, one of the three thousand Rivers (Potamoi), a child of Oceanus and Tethys. Family The nymph Creusa bore him one son, Hypseus, who was King of the La ...

; he was father of Iocles (or

Oicles In Greek mythology, Oicles or Oecles (; grc, Οἰκλῆς), also Oicleus or Oecleus (; Οἰκλεύς), was the father of the seer Amphiaraus. He accompanied Heracles on his campaign against Troy. Family According to Homer's ''Odyssey'', Oicl ...

?) and through him grandfather of

Hipponous In Greek mythology, Hipponous (Ancient Greek: Ἱππόνοος) referred to several people: *Hipponous, the Olenian father of Capaneus and Periboea by Astynome. He was son of Iocles, grandson of Astacus and great-grandson of Hermes and Astabe ...

.Scholia on

Euripides Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian of classical Athens. Along with Aeschylus and Sophocles, he is one of the three ancient Greek tragedians for whom any plays have survived in full. Some ancient scholars ...

, ''

Phoenician Women ''The Phoenician Women'' ( grc, Φοίνισσαι, ''Phoinissai'') is a tragedy by Euripides, based on the same story as Aeschylus' play ''Seven Against Thebes''. It was presented along with the tragedies ''Hypsipyle'' and ''Antiope.'' With this ...

'' 133

Notes

References

Aeschylus Aeschylus (, ; grc-gre, Αἰσχύλος ; c. 525/524 – c. 456/455 BC) was an ancient Greek tragedian, and is often described as the father of tragedy. Academic knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier Gree ...

, translated in two volumes. 1. ''Seven Against Thebes'' by Herbert Weir Smyth, Ph. D. Cambridge, MA. Harvard University Press. 1926
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.Greek text available from the same website
* Apollodorus, ''The Library'' with an English Translation by Sir James George Frazer, F.B.A., F.R.S. in 2 Volumes, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1921. ISBN 0-674-99135-4
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.Greek text available from the same website
*

Herodotus Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known for ...

, '' The Histories'' with an English translation by A. D. Godley. Cambridge. Harvard University Press. 1920
Online version at the Topos Text Project.Greek text available at Perseus Digital Library
*

Stephanus of Byzantium Stephanus or Stephan of Byzantium ( la, Stephanus Byzantinus; grc-gre, Στέφανος Βυζάντιος, ''Stéphanos Byzántios''; centuryAD), was a Byzantine grammarian and the author of an important geographical dictionary entitled ''Ethni ...

, ''Stephani Byzantii Ethnicorum quae supersunt,'' edited by August Meineike (1790-1870), published 1849. A few entries from this important ancient handbook of place names have been translated by Brady Kiesling
Online version at the Topos Text Project.
{{Greek myth index Children of Poseidon Children of Hermes Demigods in classical mythology Theban characters in Greek mythology