Who created the titans. Who are the titans from ancient Greek mythology? Beast-like giant - who is he

From ancient Greek mythology. According to the poet Hesiod (“Theogony”), the Titans are the children of Uranus (god of the sky) and Gaia (goddess of the earth), who rebelled against the gods of the Olympians, for which they were cast into Tartarus (hell, the underworld). Allegorically: people who are different... ... Dictionary of popular words and expressions

titans- >). Marble. 180 160 BC State museums. Berlin. /> Titans. Fragment of the eastern frieze of the Pergamon Altar: the battle of Zeus with the Titans (). Marble. 180 160 BC State museums. Berlin. Titans. Fragment of the eastern frieze of Pergamon... ... encyclopedic Dictionary « The World History»

- (foreign) fighters (great people, an allusion to the struggle of the Titans against Uranus). The Titanides are descendants of the Titans. Wed. It was quite difficult to understand what exactly she was afraid of from the modern titans of Russian thought. Leskov. The spirit of Mrs. Zhanlis. 5. Wed… … Michelson's Large Explanatory and Phraseological Dictionary (original spelling)

- (Titanes, Τιτα̃νες). The children of Uranus and Gaia are six sons and six daughters. They entered into a fight with Zeus for possession of the sky, but were defeated by him with the help of the Cyclopes and the hundred-armed giants and thrown into Tartarus. (Source: “A Brief Dictionary of Mythology and ... ... Encyclopedia of Mythology

The descendants of Titan of monstrous stature, possessing extraordinary strength, argued with Jupiter about the possession of the sky and were overthrown by his lightning into Tartarus. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. Chudinov A.N., 1910. TITANS in Greek. mythology... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

Titans- Titans. Fragment of the eastern frieze of the Pergamon Altar: the battle of Zeus with the Titans (on the right is their leader Porphyrion). Marble. 180 160 BC State museums. Berlin. TITANS, in Greek mythology, the sons of Uranus and Gaia, gods defeated by Zeus and... ... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary

In the myths of the ancient Greeks, children (6 sons and 6 daughters) and grandchildren of the sky god Uranus and the earth goddess Gaia. Under the leadership of Kronos, Uranus was deposed; after the overthrow of Kronos by Zeus, some of the titans rebelled against the Olympian gods, some joined... ... Historical Dictionary

TITANS, in Greek mythology, the sons of Uranus and Gaia, gods defeated by Zeus and cast into Tartarus... Modern encyclopedia

In Greek mythology, the sons of Uranus and Gaia, gods defeated by Zeus and cast into Tartarus. In later myths, titans are confused with giants... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

- (titanhV, Titanus) in Greek mythology, the children of Uranus (Heaven) and Gaea (Earth). Homer mentions two T. Iapetus and Kronos, who rebelled against Zeus and suffered severe punishment for that: hence the idea of ​​the Titans arose as the culprits of the existing in... ... Encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron

Books

• Titans
• Titans, Guinar Theo. Before you is the amazing universe of the Titans! Each of them consists of many parts, parts and elements. Each of them has its own history and unique origin. Try to find seven...

According to ancient Greek mythology, Uranus and Gaia were considered the most ancient generation of gods. The first personified the sky, and appeared from Chaos - the state of the world when there was nothing but Mist. She married Chaos and gave birth to Gaia and Uranus. Gaia personified the Earth and was older sister Uranus. Brother and sister entered into a marriage union, and from him children appeared - 6 gods and 6 goddesses. They were the titans - the ancient Greek gods of the second generation.

It should be said that there are many different interpretations of those distant mythological events. In this case, the version of Hesiod, an ancient Greek poet who lived in the 8th - 7th centuries BC, is presented. e. He said that the names of the sons or titans were: Ocean, Krios, Kay, Iapetus, Hyperion, Kronos. The daughters or Titanides were named: Tethys, Theia, Themis, Phoebe, Mnemosyne, Rhea.

The ocean personified the waters of the world's oceans. He married his sister Tethys and from him the daughters of the Oceanids and the river gods appeared. By nature, the Ocean was kind and peaceful. Krios married Eurybia, who was the daughter of the deity Pontus. The latter was considered the son of Gaia from a connection with Ether, personifying air. Kay married the Titanide Phoebe. From this marriage Leto and Asteria appeared. Leto subsequently became the mistress of Zeus and gave birth to Apollo and Artemis.

The Titan Iapetus married Clymene, the daughter of Oceanus and Tethys. In this marriage Prometheus, Epimethea, Atlanta and Menoetia were born. It was assumed that Iapetus was the progenitor of the Aryan tribes. Hyperion married his sister Theia. From this marriage Helios, Selene and Eos were born. And finally, Kronos, who was Uranus’s youngest son. It was he who took a dominant position among the titans - the ancient Greek gods.

This was preceded by the nasty and suspicious character of Uranus. He was afraid that one of the children would destroy him and seize power. Therefore, he immediately sent the children born into the bowels of the Earth. Kronos was the last born, and Gaia's mother suggested that he castrate his father. He took the sickle and deprived his father of the opportunity to produce offspring while he was sleeping. The crime weapon was thrown into the sea in the northern part of the Peloponnese.

Titan Kronos deprives father Uranus of the ability to produce offspring

After this, all the titans - the ancient Greek gods - were released from the bowels of the Earth, and Kronos became the main one among them, since it was to him that everyone owed salvation. It is believed that it was under Kronos that a golden age began on Earth. But this god, like his father, had a bad character. He married his sister Rhea, and swallowed the children she bore him, because he was afraid that one of them would take away his power.

At first, Kronos swallowed his eldest daughter Hestia, and he liked it. After this, it was the turn of Demeter, Hera (the future wife of Zeus), Hades, and Poseidon. While living with Rhea, the leader of the Titans began a love affair with the nymph Philyra, who was the daughter of Ocean. From this connection came the centaur Chiron, who hated mere mortals and was drawn to drunkenness and scandals. Rhea soon began to suspect her husband’s infidelities, and he turned his mistress into a mare so that she could not tell anyone about their love affair. Kronos was such an unsightly and cruel person.

Meanwhile, Rhea became pregnant with Zeus. She decided to hide the baby from her carnivorous father, and therefore went to Crete and gave birth to him in a deep dungeon. She gave the stone to Kronos, saying that it was a newborn baby. The husband swallowed the stone, but immediately realized that he had been deceived. He began to look for the newborn, but the demons of the kureta began to interfere with the search. When infant Zeus cried, they created noise so that the bloodthirsty father could not hear the baby's cry.

Years passed, Zeus grew up and began a ten-year war with his father. This is a whole series of battles, which in ancient Greek mythology is called the “Titanomachy”. The final stage war has become complete victory Zeus. He emasculated the defeated father and forced him to vomit his swallowed children.

Kronos cast into Tartarus

After this, Kronos and those titans who supported him were cast into the abyss. Even the kingdom of the dead Hades was located above this gloomy dungeon, which was called Tartarus. And so that the titans - the ancient Greek gods could not free themselves, guards were placed near them. These were Hecatoncheires - hundred-armed and fifty-headed giants.

Zeus made Hera his wife and queen of all the gods. Demeter became the goddess of fertility and fields. Poseidon gained power over the sea, and Hades became a god in the kingdom of the dead. These gods are called Olympian gods, since Zeus established his residence on Mount Olympus. As for those titans and titanides who did not resist Zeus, they were not touched and were left among the celestials.

In ancient Greek mythology, the titans are the second generation of gods.

They are the children of Uranus (god of the Sky) and Gaia (goddess of the Earth). There were 6 Titans, and there were also 6 of their sisters (Titanides). They married each other and gave birth to a new generation of gods.

Ancient Greek mythology about the Titans

Sons Uranus And Gays: Ocean, Coy, Crius, Hyperion, Iapetus And Kronos. Daughters of Uranus and Gaia: Theia, Rhea, Themis, Mnemosyne, Phoebe And Tethys.
The most famous of them were Hyperion and Theia.
Titan Hyperion is the father of Helios (god of the Sun), Selene (goddess of the Moon) and Eos (goddess of the Dawn). Sometimes Hyperion is identified with Helios (including Homer).
Titanida Theia- eldest daughter of Uranus and Gaia.
had power over the world stream that washes the earth and the sea, giving rise to all rivers, springs, and sea currents. Shelter of the sun, moon and stars.

Ocean Statue
Author: I, QuartierLatin1968, from Wikipedia
The ocean is known for its peacefulness and kindness, respected by other gods. The ocean washes the border between the world of life and death, where the entrance to the underworld is located. The horse Pegasus was born near its waters.
Pegasus(stormy current) in ancient Greek mythology - a winged horse, a favorite of the muses. He flew with the speed of the wind, and could knock out springs with the blow of his hoof on the ground. Subsequently, Pegasus delivered thunder and lightning to Zeus on Olympus from Hephaestus, who made them.

Pegasus on the Opera House in Poznan (Poland)
- the wife of her brother Ocean, with whom she gave birth to 3 thousand sons - river streams and 3 thousand daughters - oceanids.

Tethys (ancient Roman mosaic)
- brother and husband of the Titanide Phoebe, who gave birth to Leto and Asteria. Kay participated in the Titanomachy and was thrown into Tartarus by Zeus along with his brothers.
Titanomachy- the wars of the titans, the battle of the Olympian gods with the titans, which lasted for 10 years in Thessaly between two camps of deities long before the existence of the human race. The Olympians won with the help of the Cyclops and Hecatoncheires.

Peter Paul Rubens "Fall of the Titans". Royal Museums of Fine Arts (Brussels).
Kay is the god-incarnation of the celestial axis around which clouds rotate and Helios (Sun) and Selene (Moon) walk across the heavens.
Titan Kronos- the youngest son of the first god Uranus and the goddess Gaia. Initially considered the god of agriculture, and later, in the Hellenistic period, identified with the god of time Chronos. He was the ruler of Olympus, and then overthrown and imprisoned in Tartarus.

P. Rubens "Saturn"
According to ancient Greek mythology, Uranus, afraid of being killed by one of his children, returned them back to the bowels of the earth. Therefore, Gaia persuaded Kronos, the last born, to castrate Uranus. Kronos did this and became the supreme god.

D. Vasari and G. Cristofano “The Castration of Uranus by Crohn” (XVI century)
A golden age began under him. Kronos was afraid of Uranus's prediction that one of his children born to him by Rhea would overthrow him, and therefore swallowed them one by one. So he swallowed Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades and Poseidon. From the union of Kronos with the nymph Philira (whom he later, fearing Rhea's jealousy, turned into a mare), a centaur was born Chiron.

Chiron teaches Achilles how to play the lyre

Unlike most other centaurs, who were famous for their violence, tendency to drink and hostility towards people, Chiron was wise and kind. He lived on Mount Pelion. He was a student of Apollo and Artemis, he himself taught many heroes: Jason (for whose journey he made the first celestial globe), as well as the Dioscuri, Achilles, whom he fed with lion meat, possibly Orpheus and others. He taught the medical art of Asclepius and Patroclus, and the hunting art of Actaeon.
Rhea, pregnant with Zeus, not wanting to lose last child, gave birth to him in a deep cave in Crete and hid him there, and gave Kronos a stone to swallow. When Kronos realized that he had been deceived, he began to look for Zeus all over the earth, but could not find him. Grown-up Zeus began a war with his father. After a ten-year war, Kronos was overthrown by Zeus and imprisoned in Tartarus (the deepest abyss under the kingdom of Hades).
But first, Zeus freed the brothers and sisters from the womb of Kronos, forcing Kronos to vomit the children he had swallowed, and reigned over the world, making his brothers and sisters Olympian gods ( Hestia– goddess hearth and home, Geru- wife and queen of the gods, Demeter- goddess of fields and fertility, Aida- god of the underworld of the dead and Poseidon- god of the seas).
When Kronos castrated Uranus with a sickle, furies and giants were born from the blood of Uranus. Furies in ancient Roman mythology - goddesses of revenge (in ancient Greek mythology they correspond Erinyes).

Adolphe William Bouguereau "The Repentance of Orestes, or Orestes Pursued by the Erinyes" (1862). Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk (Virginia)
Author: unknown, from Wikipedia
In later myths, titans are identified with giants.
The Titans were archaic deities whose veneration dates back to an era remote even for the ancient Greeks themselves. All together, the Titans most likely were the personification of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, i.e. uncontrollable natural forces, and were defeated by the Olympian gods, who protected peace and order. The sons of the first titans were also called titans - Atlanta, Promethea And Helios.

Cyclops

According to ancient Greek mythology, the children of Uranus and Gaia, along with the Titans, were the Cyclopes. Cyclopes (Cyclopes)- divine beings (or separate people) – three one-eyed giants: Arg("Shining") Bronte(“Thunder”) and Sterop(“Shining”)
Immediately after birth, the Cyclops were tied up and thrown into Tartarus by their father. They were freed by the Titans after the overthrow of Uranus, but were again chained by Kronos.
When Zeus began to struggle with Kronos for power, he, on the advice of their mother Gaia, led the Cyclops out of Tartarus so that they would come to the aid of the Olympian gods in the war against the Titans. The Cyclops forged Zeus' peruns (thunders and lightning), which he threw at the Titans. They forged a helmet for Hades, a trident for Poseidon, and taught Hephaestus and Athena crafts.
After the end of the war of the titans, the Cyclops continued to serve Zeus - forging the weapon of the Thunderer.

D. Flaxman “Odysseus and the Cyclops Polyphemus”
The Cyclopes were interrupted by Apollo after Zeus struck Apollo's son Asclepius with a perun (and it was the Cyclopes who forged this perun). Hephaestus took their place in the Perun forge.

Polyphemus
Author: Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein, from Wikipedia
According to one of the versions, reflected in Homer’s Odyssey, the Cyclops made up an entire people. Among them, the most famous is the ferocious son of Poseidon Polyphemus, whom Odysseus deprived of his only eye.
The Scythian people of the Arimaspians were also considered one-eyed.
Where could the myth of the Cyclopes come from?
Paleontologist Otenio Abel in 1914 suggested that in ancient times there were dwarf elephants (their skulls were found), the central nasal opening in the elephant’s skull could be mistaken for a giant eye socket. These elephants were found precisely on the Mediterranean islands of Cyprus, Malta, Crete, Sicily, Sardinia, the Cyclades and the Dodecanese.

Hecatoncheires

Hecatonchires(from ancient Greek “hundred, hundred” and “hand”) - 100-armed and 50-headed giants, personification of the elements, according to Hesiod, sons of the god Uranus and the goddess Gaia: Briareus(Egeon), Cott And Gies. Immediately after birth, Uranus put them in chains and plunged them into the bowels of the Earth, and Zeus freed them for the war with the Titans. During the Titanomachy of the Hecatoncheires, they were called to help by the Olympian gods, and they opposed the Titans, bringing victory to the gods.
Later they guard the titans in Tartarus. Most likely, in fact, these were people who lived in the city of Storuchye in Chaonia.

Titans, Titanides

(Greek)- gods of the first generation, children of Uranus and Gaia (Heaven and Earth), six brothers (Ocean, Coy, Crius, Hyperion, Iapetus and Kronos) and six Titanide sisters (Tethys, Theia, Mnemosyne, Phoebe, Rhea, Themis) , as well as their children. T. supported Kronos, who castrated and overthrew Uranus. They married sister Titanids and Oceanids - Oceanus on Tethys (they gave birth to 3000 Oceanids), Coy on Phoebe (children - Leto and Asteria), Crius on Eurybia (children - Astraeus, Pallant and Persus), Hyperion on Theia (children - Helios , Selene, Eos), Iapetus on Clymene (children - Prometheus, Epimetheus, Atlas, Menoetius), Kronos on Rhea (children - Hera, Hestia, Hades, Demeter, Poseidon, Zeus). After the overthrow of Kronos by Zeus, T. rebelled against the new Olympian gods. The Olympians won with the help of the Cyclops and Hecatoncheires, which they freed from Tartarus. The defeated T. were thrown into Tartarus, and the Hecatoncheires became their guards.

author Chernyavsky Andrey Vladimirovich

Titans The Titans are the gods of the first generation, born from the marriage of the earth Gaia and the sky Uranus; their six brothers (Hyperion, Iapetus, Coy, Crius, Kronos, Oceanus) and six Titanide sisters (Mnemosyne, Rhea, Theia, Tethys, Phoebe, Themis), who married each other and gave birth to a new generation

From the book Encyclopedic Dictionary (T-F) author Brockhaus F.A.

Titans Titans (titanhV, Titanus) - in Greek mythology, the children of Uranus (Heaven) and Gaia (Earth). Homer mentions two T. - Iapetus and Cronus, who rebelled against Zeus and suffered severe punishment for that: hence the idea of ​​the Titans arose as the culprits of the hatred existing in the world and

From the book Great Soviet Encyclopedia (TI) by the author TSB

From the book Encyclopedic Dictionary of Catchwords and Expressions author Serov Vadim Vasilievich

Titans From ancient Greek mythology. According to the poet Hesiod (“Theogony”), the Titans are the children of Uranus (god of the sky) and Gaia (goddess of the earth), who rebelled against the Olympian gods, for which they were cast into Tartarus (hell, the underworld). Allegorically, people distinguished by talent and strength mind,

Much in modern world world is built on models given by philosophers, scientists and poets ancient Greece. The culture of the Hellenes excited the minds of artists and writers for many years after the gods who turned into people stopped roaming the roads of Greece. Despite the popularity of Greek mythology, not all of its characters are equally well known. The Titans, for example, did not receive as much fame as the Olympian gods.

Who are the Titans?

In ancient Greek mythology, it is customary to distinguish three generations of gods.

1. Gods of the first generation - ancestors, which do not have personification, the embodiment of such comprehensive concepts as earth, night, love.
2. The gods of the second generation are called titans. To understand who is which titan in the minds of the ancient Greeks, you need to understand that they are an intermediate link between completely personified Olympians and the embodiment of truly global concepts. The closest assessment would be “the personification of elemental forces.”
3. The gods of the third generation are Olympians. The closest and most understandable to people, interacting with them directly.

Who are the Titans in Greek mythology?

The second generation of the gods of ancient Hellas is an intermediate one, taking away power from their parents, but ceding it to their children. In both cases, the initiator of the revolution was the companion of the supreme god of the generation. Gaia, the wife of Uranus, was angry with her husband because he imprisoned her children, the hundred-armed giants Hecatoncheires. Only Cronus (Kronos), the youngest and most cruel of the titans, responded to his mother’s entreaties to overthrow his father; in order to gain supreme dominion he had to castrate Uranus’s sickle. Interestingly, after seizing power, Cronus again imprisoned the Hecatoncheires.

Fearing a repetition of the situation, the titan tried to hedge his bets by swallowing the children born to his wife, Rhea. At some point, the Titanide got tired of her husband's cruelty, and she saved youngest son, Zeus. Sheltered from her cruel father, the young god survived, managed to save his brothers and sisters, win the war and become the ruler of Olympus. Although the reign of Kronos is called the golden age in myths, titanium in mythology is the personification of chaotic, ruthless forces, and the transition to the wise and humane Olympian gods is a completely logical consequence of the development and humanization of the culture of the ancient Greeks.

Titans - mythology

Not all the titans of ancient Greece were overthrown during the war, some of them took the side of the Olympians, so in some cases, the titan is the god of Olympus. Here are some of them:

• Metis raised young Zeus in Crete;
• Themis, who became the goddess of correct behavior (later justice) on Olympus;
• Prometheus and Epimetheus, brothers who played important role in the war of gods and titans.

The fight of the Olympian gods with the titans

After Zeus grew up and freed his brothers and sisters from the womb of Kronos with the help of poisoned nectar, he found it possible to challenge his cruel parent. This battle lasted for ten years, where neither side had an advantage. Finally, the hecatoncheires, freed by Zeus, intervened in the duel between the titans and the gods; their help turned out to be decisive, the Olympians won and overthrew into Tartarus all the titans who did not agree with the power of the new gods.

These events aroused the interest of many ancient Greek poets, but the only work that has been completely preserved to this day is Hesiod’s Theogony. Modern scientists suggest that the war of the gods and the titans reflected the struggle between the religions of the indigenous population of the Balkan Peninsula and the Hellenes who invaded their territory.

Titans and Titanides

Researchers identify twelve elder titans, six male and six female. Titans:

• Cronus, who later personified time;
• Ocean;
• Krios;
• Kay, symbolizing the celestial axis;
• Iapetus, according to some assumptions, the ancestor of the Aryans;
• Hyperion is the sun god.

Titanides:

• Themis;
• Tethys, the female embodiment of the sea;
• Theia, goddess of the Moon;
• Mnemosyne, memory;
• Phoebe.

Now it is difficult to say exactly what titanium or titanide looks like according to the ideas of the ancient Greeks. In the images that have reached us, they are presented either anthropomorphically, like the Olympians, or in the form of monsters, only vaguely similar to people. In any case, their characters were also humanized, like the characters of the third generation of gods. According to the ideas of the ancient Greeks, the Titans and Titanides more than once entered into marriages with each other and with other representatives of Greek mythology. Children from such marriages, born before the Titanomachy, are considered junior titans.

Titans and Atlanteans

In ancient Greek myths, all losers are punished, no matter who they are - titans, first-generation gods or mere mortals. Zeus punished one of the titans, Atlas, by forcing him to support the vault of heaven. Later, he helped Hercules get the apples of the Hesperides, thereby completing the 12th labor. Atlas was considered the inventor of astronomy and natural philosophy. Perhaps that is why the mysterious, enlightened, never found Atlantis was named after him.