Quiz Monkey
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Quiz Monkey |
| Mythology |
| The Titans |
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In Greek mythology, the Titans - also known as the Elder Gods - ruled the earth before they were overthrown by the Olympians. Their leader was Cronos, or Cronus, who was dethroned by his son Zeus. Most of the Titans fought with Cronos against Zeus and were punished by being banished to Tartarus (the abyss that lies beneath Hades).
| Spirit of the Earth, mother of all the Titans (and of Uranus, according to Hesiod) |
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Gaea (Gaia) |
| Spirit of the Heavens (skies), husband of Gaea, father of the Titans |
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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 Gaea by castrating Uranus; known to the Romans as Saturn. Not to be confused with Chronos, the personification of time. |
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Cronus (Kronos) |
| Wife of Cronos, mother of Zeus; name also given to the second largest satellite of Saturn, and the American ostrich |
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Rhea |
| The unending stream of water that encircles the world, producing (along with his wife Tethys) the rivers and the three thousand water nymphs |
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Oceanus |
| Wife of Oceanus |
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Tethys |
| The Titan of light – an early sun god |
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Hyperion |
| Wife of Hyperion; mother of Helios, Selene and Eos |
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Thea |
| Personification of memory |
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Mnemosyne |
| Titan of justice and order; mother of the Fates and the Seasons |
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Themis |
| Father of Prometheus, Epimetheus, Menoetius and Atlas |
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Iapetus |
| Titan of intelligence, father of Leto |
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Coeus |
| Father of Pallas, the playmate of Athena whom she accidentally killed |
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Crius |
| Titan 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 |
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Pallas |
| Titan of the moon, mother of Leto |
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Phoebe |
| 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 |
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Prometheus |
| Prometheus's stupid brother; name means "afterthought" |
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Epimetheus |
| Brother of Prometheus and Epimetheus; led the Titans in battle against the Olympians, made to hold up the heavens on his back as a punishment |
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Atlas |
| 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 |
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Metis |
| Mother of Aphrodite (according to Homer in the Iliad) |
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Dione |
| Astronomical note: the planet Uranus is named after the father of the Titans, and Saturn is named after the Roman equivalent of Cronos who was the leader of the Titans. It's Saturn whose satellites are named after Titans – including Titan itself, Iapetus, Rhea, Tethys, Dione, Hyperion, and Phoebe. Mimas and Enceladus (after whom William Herschel named the two satellites of Saturn that he discovered) were Gigantes (Giants); the Gigantes were the children born of Gaea from the blood of Uranus, after he was castrated by Cronus. Enceladus was named along with the Titans in Keats's Hyperion, but the inclusion of Mimas is less easily explained. |
© Haydn Thompson 2017