Actaeus

For the trilobitoid, see Actaeus (genus).

File:Pergamon Altar - Telephus frieze - panel 25 (2).jpg

A relief on the interior Telephus frieze of the Pergamon Altar depicting Ajax killing Actaeus and Heloros.

Actaeus (Greek: Ἀκταῖος) was the first king of Attica, according to Pausanias. He was the father of Agraulus, and father-in-law to Cecrops, the first king of the city of Athens. Actaeus is said to have ruled over a city named Acte (Ἀκτή, Akte). The location of this city is uncertain, but given that Acte means "coast" or "promontory", one can speculate that this is a culture reference to local or native population groups inhabiting some coastal areas of the Attic promontory, perhaps sharing language, or ethnic ties. This concords with evidence from the archaeological record which attest widespread coastal settlement in the Neolithic period (OED ad. loc. cit. Attica). One tradition states that Actaeus gave Attica its name before it was changed to Cecropia by Cecrops, others claim that Atthis, a daughter of Cranaos, the second king of Athens, is Attica's namesake. Actaeus had a daughter – Agraulos, who was married to Cecrops, the first king of the city of Athens.

According to the Bibliotheca, on the other hand, Cecrops was the first king of Attica, and the three daughters were his own.

Another Actaeus is mentioned in Greek mythology as the father of Telamon, and grandfather of Ajax of Salamis.

Sources

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Regnal titles
Preceded by New creation	King of Athens	Succeeded by Cecrops I