Actor (mythology)
Encyclopedia
Actor is a very common name in Greek mythology
. Here is a selection of characters that share this name (which means 'leader', from the verb άγω: to lead or carry, to convey, bring):
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
. Here is a selection of characters that share this name (which means 'leader', from the verb άγω: to lead or carry, to convey, bring):
- Actor, a king of PhthiaPhthiaPhthia , Phthíē ) in ancient Greece was the southernmost region of ancient Thessaly, on both sides of Othrys Mountain. It was the homeland of the Myrmidones tribe, who took part in the Trojan War under Achilles....
, was said to be the son of King DeioneusDeioneusIn Greek mythology, Deioneus or Deion is a name attributed to the following individuals:*Son of Aeolus, king of Phocis, and father of Cephalus, Actor, Aenetus, Phylacus, Nisus and Asterodia....
of PhocisPhocisPhocis is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Central Greece. It stretches from the western mountainsides of Parnassus on the east to the mountain range of Vardousia on the west, upon the Gulf of Corinth...
and DiomedeDiomedeDiomede is the name of four women in Greek mythology.- Diomede of Lesbos :As written in Homer's Iliad, Diomede was a mistress of Achilles, taken up after the seizure of Briseis by King Agamemnon. Her father was Phorbas of Lesbos.- Diomede the Lapith :Diomede was a Lapith, and daughter of Lapithes...
, or of King MyrmidonMyrmidon (hero)In Greek mythology, Myrmidon was the eponymous ancestor of the Myrmidons.He was the son of Zeus and Eurymedusa, daughter of Cleitor of Arcadia or of the river god Achelous...
and Peisidice, daughter of AeolusAeolusAeolus was the ruler of the winds in Greek mythology. In fact this name was shared by three mythic characters. These three personages are often difficult to tell apart, and even the ancient mythographers appear to have been perplexed about which Aeolus was which...
. Some say that Actor died childless, but others say that he is the father of EurytionEurytionIn Greek mythology Eurytion , "widely-honoured", was a name attributed to six individuals....
, his successor. - Actor, son of DeioneusDeioneusIn Greek mythology, Deioneus or Deion is a name attributed to the following individuals:*Son of Aeolus, king of Phocis, and father of Cephalus, Actor, Aenetus, Phylacus, Nisus and Asterodia....
and DiomedeDiomedeDiomede is the name of four women in Greek mythology.- Diomede of Lesbos :As written in Homer's Iliad, Diomede was a mistress of Achilles, taken up after the seizure of Briseis by King Agamemnon. Her father was Phorbas of Lesbos.- Diomede the Lapith :Diomede was a Lapith, and daughter of Lapithes...
, daughter of XuthusXuthusIn Greek mythology, Xuthus was a son of Hellen and Orseis and founder of the Achaean and Ionian nations. He had two sons by Creusa: Ion and Achaeus and a daughter named Diomede.- Hesiod :...
, thus a brother of AsterodeiaAsterodiaIn Greek mythology, the name Asterodia refers to:*A daughter of Deion and Diomede.*A Caucasian nymph, daughter of Oceanus and Tethys, mother of Absyrtus by Aeetes.*One of the possible wives of Endymion....
, Aenetus, PhylacusPhylacusIn Greek mythology, Phylacus founded the city of Phylace, Thessaly. He was the son of Deioneus and Diomede, husband of Clymene , and the father of Iphiclus and Alcimede. His children and grandchildren are sometimes referred to by the patronymic Phylacides...
, and CephalusCephalusCephalus is an Ancient Greek name, used both for the hero-figure in Greek mythology and carried as a theophoric name by historical persons. The word kephalos is Greek for "head", perhaps used here because Cephalus was the founding "head" of a great family that includes Odysseus...
. This Actor married AeginaAegina (mythology)Aegina was a figure of Greek mythology, the nymph of the island that bears her name, Aegina, lying in the Saronic Gulf between Attica and the Peloponnesos. The archaic Temple of Aphaea, the "Invisible Goddess", on the island was later subsumed by the cult of Athena...
, daughter of the river god AsopusAsopusAsopus or Asôpos is the name of four different rivers in Greece and one in Turkey. In Greek mythology, it was the name of the gods of those rivers.-The rivers in Greece:...
, and had several children, among them MenoetiusMenoetiusIn Greek mythology, Menoetius referred to several different people:#A son of Iapetus and Clymene or Asia, and a brother of Atlas, Prometheus and Epimetheus, was killed by Zeus with a flash of lightning, in the fight of the Titans, and banished to Tartarus.#One of Hades' shepherds on Erythea...
. Menoetius was counted among the ArgonautsArgonautsThe Argonauts ) were a band of heroes in Greek mythology who, in the years before the Trojan War, accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to find the Golden Fleece. Their name comes from their ship, the Argo, which was named after its builder, Argus. "Argonauts", therefore, literally means...
, and was the father of PatroclusPatroclusIn Greek mythology, as recorded in the Iliad by Homer, Patroclus, or Patroklos , was the son of Menoetius, grandson of Actor, King of Opus, and was Achilles' beloved comrade and brother-in-arms....
(Achilles'AchillesIn Greek mythology, Achilles was a Greek hero of the Trojan War, the central character and the greatest warrior of Homer's Iliad.Plato named Achilles the handsomest of the heroes assembled against Troy....
best friend or lover). - Actor, son of Zeus, descendant of PhrixusPhrixusIn Greek mythology, Phrixus or Frixos or Phryxus was the son of Athamas, king of Boiotia, and Nephele . His twin sister Helle and he were hated by their stepmother, Ino. Ino hatched a devious plot to get rid of the twins, roasting all of Boeotia's crop seeds so they would not grow. The local...
, was ruler of the MinyansMinyansAccording to Greek mythology and legendary prehistory of the Aegean region, the Minyans were an autochthonous group inhabiting the Aegean region...
of OrchomenusOrchomenus-Greek mythology:*Orchomenus, a king, the father of Elara*Orchomenus, one of the twenty sons of Lycaon*Orchomenus, son of Zeus and Isonoe, father of Minyas and Kyparissos*Orchomenus, a son of Athamas and Themisto-Ancient Greek geography:...
. He was father of AstyocheAstyocheThe name Astyoche or Astyocheia was attributed to the following individuals in Greek mythology.*Daughter of the river god Simoeis, mother of Tros by Erichthonius....
, who was seduced by the war-god AresAresAres is the Greek god of war. He is one of the Twelve Olympians, and the son of Zeus and Hera. In Greek literature, he often represents the physical or violent aspect of war, in contrast to the armored Athena, whose functions as a goddess of intelligence include military strategy and...
and bore him twin sons, named AscalaphusAscalaphusIn Greek mythology, two people share the name Ascalaphus/Askalaphos .#Son of Acheron and Orphne. Askalaphos was the orchardist of Hades. He told the other gods that Persephone had eaten a pomegranate in Hades. He was punished by being changed into an owl...
and IalmenusIalmenusIn Greek mythology, Ialmenus was a son of Ares and Astyoche, and twin brother of Ascalaphus. Together with his brother, he sailed with the Argonauts, was among the suitors of Helen and led the Orchomenian contingent in the Trojan War....
. These last two led the Minyan contingent to the Trojan WarTrojan WarIn Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, the king of Sparta. The war is among the most important events in Greek mythology and was narrated in many works of Greek literature, including the Iliad...
. - Actor, son of PhorbasPhorbasIn Greek mythology, Phorbas or Phorbaceus may refer to:*Phorbas, a prince of the Thessalian Phlegyes who emigrated to Elis in the Peloponnesos. Phorbas was the son of Lapithes and Orsinome, and a brother of Periphas. He assisted Alector, king of Elis, in the war against Pelops, and shared the...
and HyrmineHyrmineIn Greek mythology, Hyrmine was a daughter of Neleus, Nycteus, or, according to others, of Epeius and Anaxiroe, and sister of Alector . She was the wife of Phorbas and by him the mother of the Argonauts Augeas, Actor and Tiphys. The natural father of Augeas by her may have been Helios.-References:...
, thus a brother of AugeasAugeasIn Greek mythology, Augeas , whose name means "bright", was king of Elis and father of Epicaste. Some say that Augeas was one of the Argonauts....
. He was king of ElisElisElis, or Eleia is an ancient district that corresponds with the modern Elis peripheral unit...
, and founded the city of Hyrmina, which he named after his mother. This Actor married Molione and became by her father of the twins known as the Molionides, Eurytus and CteatusEurytus and CteatusEurytus and Cteatus were twin brothers in Greek Mythology. Named the Moliones or Molionides for their mother, Molione, they were the sons of either Actor or Poseidon and nephew of Augeas...
. - Actor, son of HippasusHippasus (mythology)In Greek mythology, Hippasus is the name of nine characters.*Hippasus, father of Hippomedon, by the nymph Ocyrrhoe, and also of Charops, Socus, Agelaus, and Pammon.*Hippasus, son of Eurytus...
, one of the ArgonautsArgonautsThe Argonauts ) were a band of heroes in Greek mythology who, in the years before the Trojan War, accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to find the Golden Fleece. Their name comes from their ship, the Argo, which was named after its builder, Argus. "Argonauts", therefore, literally means...
. - Actor, son of Oenops, brother of Hyperbius. He was among the defenders of the Borraean Gate at ThebesThebes, GreeceThebes is a city in Greece, situated to the north of the Cithaeron range, which divides Boeotia from Attica, and on the southern edge of the Boeotian plain. It played an important role in Greek myth, as the site of the stories of Cadmus, Oedipus, Dionysus and others...
when the Seven Against ThebesSeven Against ThebesThe Seven against Thebes is the third play in an Oedipus-themed trilogy produced by Aeschylus in 467 BC. The trilogy is sometimes referred to as the Oedipodea. It concerns the battle between an Argive army led by Polynices and the army of Thebes led by Eteocles and his supporters. The trilogy won...
attacked the city. - Actor, father of SthenelusSthenelusIn Greek mythology, Sthenelus was a name attributed to several different individuals.*Son of Perseus and Andromeda, and king of Mycenae.*Son of Capaneus and Evadne, he fought alongside Diomedes and the other Argives in the Trojan War and was one of the men who hid in the Trojan horse...
. Sthenelus followed HeraclesHeraclesHeracles ,born Alcaeus or Alcides , was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, foster son of Amphitryon and great-grandson of Perseus...
in his campaign against the AmazonsAmazonsThe Amazons are a nation of all-female warriors in Greek mythology and Classical antiquity. Herodotus placed them in a region bordering Scythia in Sarmatia...
and was killed by them. - Actor, one of the companions of the exiled AeneasAeneasAeneas , in Greco-Roman mythology, was a Trojan hero, the son of the prince Anchises and the goddess Aphrodite. His father was the second cousin of King Priam of Troy, making Aeneas Priam's second cousin, once removed. The journey of Aeneas from Troy , which led to the founding a hamlet south of...
. He is probably the same who in another passage is called an AuruncanAurunciThe Aurunci were an Italic population which lived in southern Italy from around the 1st millennium BC. Of Indo-European origin, their language belonged to the Oscan group...
, and of whose conquered lance TurnusTurnusIn Virgil's Aeneid, Turnus was the King of the Rutuli, and the chief antagonist of the hero Aeneas.-Biography:Prior to Aeneas' arrival in Italy, Turnus was the primary potential suitor of Lavinia, daughter of Latinus, King of the Latin people. Upon Aeneas' arrival, however, Lavinia is promised to...
made a boast. This story seems to have given rise to the proverbial saying "Actoris spolium" ("the spoil of Actor"), for any poor spoil in general. - Actor, father of Echecles. His son married Polymele, mother of Eudorus by HermesHermesHermes is the great messenger of the gods in Greek mythology and a guide to the Underworld. Hermes was born on Mount Kyllini in Arcadia. An Olympian god, he is also the patron of boundaries and of the travelers who cross them, of shepherds and cowherds, of the cunning of thieves, of orators and...
. - Actor, a warrior in the army of the Seven Against ThebesSeven Against ThebesThe Seven against Thebes is the third play in an Oedipus-themed trilogy produced by Aeschylus in 467 BC. The trilogy is sometimes referred to as the Oedipodea. It concerns the battle between an Argive army led by Polynices and the army of Thebes led by Eteocles and his supporters. The trilogy won...
. He saw a chasm open in the earth that swallowed AmphiarausAmphiarausIn Greek mythology, Amphiaraus was the son of Oecles and Hypermnestra, and husband of Eriphyle. Amphiaraus was the King of Argos along with Adrastus— the brother of Amphiaraus' wife, Eriphyle— and Iphis. Amphiaraus was a seer, and greatly honored in his time...
. - Actor, a LapithLapithThe Lapiths are a legendary people of Greek mythology, whose home was in Thessaly, in the valley of the Peneus and on the mountain Pelion.They were an Aeolian tribe. Like the Myrmidons and other Thessalian tribes, the Lapiths were pre-Hellenic in their origins...
. He was killed by the CentaurCentaurIn Greek mythology, a centaur or hippocentaur is a member of a composite race of creatures, part human and part horse...
ClanisClanisClanis is a genus of moths in the Sphingidae family.-Species:*Clanis baratana - Brechlin, 1998*Clanis bilineata - *Clanis deucalion - *Clanis euroa - Rothschild & Jordan 1903...
. - Actor, son of AcastusAcastusAcastus is a character in Greek mythology. He sailed with Jason and the Argonauts, and participated in the hunt for the Calydonian Boar.-Biography:Acastus was the son of Pelias, then king of Iolcus, and Anaxibia ....
, was accidentally killed by Peleus while hunting. As a retribution, Peleus sent to Acastus some cows and sheep that had been killed by a wolf sent by ThetisThetisSilver-footed Thetis , disposer or "placer" , is encountered in Greek mythology mostly as a sea nymph or known as the goddess of water, one of the fifty Nereids, daughters of the ancient one of the seas with shape-shifting abilities who survives in the historical vestiges of most later Greek myths...
. - Actor and Eurythemis were in one source called parents of AncaeusAncaeusThe name Ancaeus or Ankaios is attributed to two heroes in Greek mythology. Both were among the Argonauts, and each met his death at the tusks of a boar. They are often confused with one another.-Ancaeus of Arcadia:...
and grandparents of AgapenorAgapenorAgapenor was in Greek mythology a leader of the Arcadians in the Trojan war. He was a son of Ancaeus, and grandson of Lycurgus. As king of the Arcadians he received sixty ships from Agamemnon, in which he led his Arcadians to Troy. He also occurs among the suitors of Helen...
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