The Primordial Greek Gods

The first deity that existed, out of which came the first gods and goddesses (according to Hesiod); 'the "gap" or void of air spanning heaven and earth ... Late classical authors imagined it as a primordial mix of elements'

Chaos

Out of Chaos came:

Personification of the Earth: mother of Uranus (the Sky), and of all the Titans		Gaia
The deep abyss that was used as a dungeon of torment and suffering for the wicked and as the prison for the Titans		Tartarus
The personification of darkness (male)		Erebus
The personification of night (female)		Nyx

Some myths say that Eros also came out of Chaos; others say that he was the son of Aphrodite.

Son and husband of Gaia, and father of the Titans: the personification of the sky, or the heavens		Ouranos (Uranus)
Castrated by Cronus, the youngest and most ambitious of his sons, with a sickle shaped for the purpose by Gaia

The Titans

The Titans were giant deities of incredible strength. They comprised the first pantheon of Greek deities, ruling during the legendary Golden Age – when peace and harmony prevailed, and the earth provided food in abundance, meaning that people didn't have to work to feed themselves.

They were overthrown by Zeus, Hades, Poseidon, Hestia, Hera and Demeter – the children of Cronus.

The first twelve Titans were the sons and daughters of Gaia and Uranus.

Leader of the Titans; father of Zeus, Hades and Poseidon; ate his own babies to prevent them from overthrowing him; freed the children of Uranus and Gaia by castrating Uranus; known to the Romans as Saturn. Not to be confused with Chronos, the personification of time		Cronus (Kronos)
Wife of the above, and mother of Zeus; her name is also given to the second largest satellite of Saturn, and the American ostrich		Rhea

The unending stream of water that encircles the world, producing (along with his consort – see below) the rivers and the three thousand water nymphs		Oceanus
Consort of the above		Tethys
The Titan of light – an early sun god; father of Helios, Selene and Eos		Hyperion
Sister and consort of the above; mother of Helios, Selene and Eos		The(i)a
Personification of memory		Mnemosyne
Titan of justice and order; mother of the Fates and the Seasons		Themis
Father of Prometheus, Epimetheus, Menoetius and Atlas: sometimes associated with Japeth in the Bible (son of Noah and the progenitor of mankind)		Iapetus
Titan of intelligence, father of Leto		Coeus
Father of Pallas, the playmate of Athena whom she accidentally killed		Crius
Titan of the moon, mother of Leto		Phoebe

Selected Second–Generation Titans

Sons of Iapetus and Clymene (a water–nymph – see Oceanus):

The wisest Titan; name means "forethought"; gave mankind a number of gifts, including fire; tricked Zeus into allowing man to keep the best parts of the animals sacrificed to the gods; punished by being chained to a rock with an eagle tearing at his liver; rescued by Heracles		Prometheus
Prometheus's stupid brother; name means "afterthought"		Epimetheus
Led the Titans in battle against the Olympians, made to hold up the heavens on his back as a punishment		Atlas

Others:

Titaness of wisdom and knowledge, Zeus's first wife; turned into a fly and eaten by Zeus (when pregnant by him with Athena) to avoid a prophecy that her second child would replace Zeus; said to be the source of Zeus's wisdom

Metis

The Gigantes

The Gigantes were a race of great strength and aggression, though not necessarily of great size, known for their battle with the Olympian gods. According to Hesiod, the Giants were the offspring of Gaia (Earth), born from the blood that fell when Uranus (Sky) was castrated by his Titan son Cronus.

The word Gigantes (from which we get the English word 'giant') simply means 'earth–born'.

Two of the Gigantes are of interest because William Herschel chose to give their names to the two satellites of Saturn that he discovered. (For more details about the moons of Saturn, see below.)

Fought with Athena, who used her 'Gorgon shield' (her aegis) against him (according to Euripides); crushed by Athena under the island of Sicily (according to Apollodorus); according to Virgil, he was struck by Zeus's lightning bolt and buried under Mount Etna; named along with the Titans in Keats's Hyperion		Enceladus (en–SELL–uh–dus)
Killed by Hephaestus (according to Apollodorus); burnt to ashes by Zeus, with his thunderbolt (according to Euripides); others say he was killed by Ares; but several depictions in Greek art show Aphrodite as his opponent		Mimas

Astronomical Section

The planet Uranus is named after the father of the Titans, and Saturn is named after the Roman equivalent of Cronus who was the leader of the Titans. It's Saturn whose satellites are named after Titans – including Titan itself, Iapetus, Rhea, Tethys, Hyperion, and Phoebe.

There is one moon of Saturn that's named after a Titan whom we haven't yet mentioned:

Primarily known from Homer's Iliad, where she tends to the wounds suffered by her daughter Aphrodite; one source describes her as an ancient wife of Zeus

Dione

One other Titan with an astronomical connection:

Accidentally killed by Athene, who took on his name as an epithet – a name subsequently given to an asteroid, hence an element (atomic number 46), hence (for obscure reasons) a theatre

Pallas

© Haydn Thompson 2017–21