Antikleia

Antikleia is an Ancient Greek feminine given name, best known as the mother of the legendary hero Odysseus in Greek mythology. The name is the feminine form of Antikles.

Etymology

Antikleia derives from the masculine Antikles, which is composed of the Greek elements anti (ἀντί) meaning "against, compared to, like" and kleos (κλέος) meaning "glory". The full meaning can be interpreted as "against fame" or "unfamous".

Mythological Background

In Greek mythology, Antikleia was a queen of Ithaca, wife of King Laërtes, and mother of Odysseus, the cunning hero of the Trojan War. However, some later sources, including a fragment of Aeschylus' lost tragedy The Judgment of Arms, suggest that Odysseus was actually fathered by the trickster Sisyphus, not Laërtes. According to their version, Autolycus—Antikleia's father and an infamous trickster himself—once stole Sisyphus' cattle; Sisyphus later seduced or raped Antikleia as revenge, leading to Odysseus' birth. Antikleia also had a daughter named Ctimene by Laërtes.

Antikleia plays a memorable role in Homer's Odyssey: when Odysseus visits the underworld, her ghost appears and gives him news about his family back in Ithaca. Her father Autolycus was the son of Hermes, the messenger god, and Amphithea, making Antikleia a descendant of the gods.

Name Variants

The name appears in Latinized form as Anticlea, particularly in mythological contexts.

• Meaning: Against fame
• Origin: Ancient Greek, from anti (against) and kleos (glory)
• Type: Feminine form of Antikles
• Usage regions: Greece, Greek mythology