Erebus

Erebos
Protogenos of Darkness
General Information
Species	God
Gender identity	Male
Aliases	Skotos (Σκοτος)
Relationships
Parents	According to Hesiod Khaos According to Orphism Chronus
Siblings	According to Hesiod Nyx According to Orphism Aether and Khaos
Spouses	Nyx
Children	According to Hesiod Aether Hemera According to Damascius and Acusilaus Aether Eros Metis According to Orphism Eros
Enemies	Aether and Hemera
Languages
Elliniká(Greek)	Έρεβος (Érevos)
Hellēnikḗ(Ancient Greek)	Ἔρεβος (Érebos)

Erebus
Primagenus of Darkness
General Information
Species	God
Gender identity	Male
Aliases	Scotus
Relationships
Parents	Caligine and Chaos
Siblings	Nox, Ether, and Dies
Spouses	Nox
Children	According to Cicero Ether Dies Amor Dolus Metus Labor Invidentia Fatum Senectus Mors Tenebrae Miseria Quarella Gratia Fraus Pertinacia the Parcae the Hesperides the Somnia According to Hyginus Fatum Senectus Mors Letum Continentia Somnus the Somnia Amor Lysimeles Epiphron Hedymeles? Porphyrion Epaphus Discordia Miseria Petulantia Nemesis Euphrosyne Amicita Misericordia Styx the Parcae the Hesperides

This article is about the deity. For the Location in the Underworld/Hades, see Erebos (Hades).

In Greek and Roman mythology, Erebus (or Erebos) (Ancient Greek: Ἔρεβος) was the Protogenos of darkness and the brother and consort of Nyx. He was the son of Khaos and his name became associated with a region in the Underworld, Erebos.

Etymology

In Ancient Greek, Érebos (Ἔρεβος) means "deep darkness, shadow" or "covered". It also is cognate with Sanskrit rájas, Gothic riqis, and Old Norse røkkr.. All these words are originated from Proto-Indo-European *h₁régʷos.

In Latin, the word for darkness is Tenebrae; this would be the logical translation for them to use for the Greek Erebos but instead Latin poets use Scotus which is the Latin transliteration of the Greek Skotos (Σκοτος). Skotos or Scotus is the Greek word for "black" and was used by the poet Alcman to refer to Erebos. Even still, the prominent Latin poets like Ovid, Cicero, and Hyginus still use Erebus to refer to the primordial god of darkness and not use their Latin word for the figure. Interesting still is Cicero in his De Natura Deorum states that Tenebrae is the son of Erebus and Nox.

Mythology

Greek Mythology

In Hesiod's Theogony, it states that Erebus and Nyx came (or birthed) from Chaos, and with his sister Nyx became the father of Aether and Hemera. Aside from the Greek creation myth, of Hesiod's Theogeny, there isn't much, if at all, in terms of mentions of Erebus; the exception being mentions of a region in the underworld as previously mentioned, Erebos.

The few statements that we have of Erebus from ancient authors are scant. The Neoplatonist Damascius attributes to Acusilaus (6th century BC) a cosmogony in which Chaos is the first principle, after which comes Erebus and Nyx, and from this pair are then born Aether, Eros, and Metis. According to a hymn by the poet Antagoras (3rd century BC), one of the possible parentages of Eros is Erebus and Nyx. The philosopher Philodemus records that in the work On the Gods by one "Satyros", Erebus is the first of five rulers of the gods, and is succeeded as sovereign by Chaos (though others have suggested this figure may be Eros).

As we can gleam from here Eros has an association with Erebos either as his successor and or son which contradicts Hesiod's account as Eros is born alongside Chaos, Gaia, and Tartarus. Those poets might have been influenced by Orphism because of their association with Eros.

Orphism

In a cosmogony given by Aristophanes in his play The Birds (414 BC), which is often believed to be a parody of an Orphic theogony, Erebus is one of the first deities to exist, alongside Chaos, Night, and Tartarus. At the beginning of creation, Night lays a "wind-egg" in the "boundless bosom of Erebus", from which springs golden-winged Eros.

Other mentions of Erebus come from scant Orphic Fragments, In Orphic fragment 54 it states that Chronos gave birth to Aether, Khaos, and Erebos. This fragment is also referred to as the Hieronyman Theogony in Damascius' De principiis, in which he elaborates further and says that Erebus, alongside Aether and Chaos, is the offspring of Chronos (Time), who has the form of a serpent.

Roman Mythology

In Roman myth, he is still called Erebus but has different parentage and offspring. In Cicero's De Natura Deorum he states the following:

“	Quod si ita est, Caeli quoque parentes di habendi sunt, Aether et Dies, eorumque fratres et sorores, qui a genealogis antiquis sic nominantur, Amor Dolus Metus Labor Invidentia Fatum Senectus Mors Tenebrae Miseria Querella Gratia Fraus Pertinacia Parcae Hesperides Somnia, quos omnis Erebo et Nocte natos ferunt.	”
–De Natura Deorum, Cicero

In English it states: "And if so, the parents of Caelus, the Aether and the Day, must be held to be gods, and their brothers and sisters, whom the ancient genealogists name Amor (Love), Dolus (Guile), Metus (Fear), Labor (Toil), Invidentia (Envy), Fatum (Fate), Senectus (Old Age), Mors (Death), Tenebrae (Darkness), Miseria (Misery), Querella (Lamentation), Gratia (Favour), Fraus (Fraud), Pertinacia (Obstinacy), the Parcae, the Hesperides, the Somnia: all of these are fabled to be the children of Erebus and Nox."

In Hyginus' Fabulae he states the following in his preface:

“	Ex Caligine Chaos: ex Chao et Caligine Nox Dies Erebus Aether. Ex Nocte et Erebo Fatum Senectus Mors Letum †Continentia Somnus Somnia <Amor> id est Lysimeles, Epiphron †dumiles Porphyrion Epaphus Discordia Miseria Petulantia Nemesis Euphrosyne Amicitia Misericordia Styx; Parcae tres, id est Clotho Lachesis Atropos; Hesperides, Aegle Hesperie †aerica.	”
–Fabulae, Hyginus

In English it states: "From Caligine (Mist) (was born) Chaos; from Chaos and Caligine: Nox, Dies, Erebus, Aether. From Nox and Erebus: Fatum (Fate), Senectus (Old Age), Mors (Death), Letum (Dissolution), Continentia (Continence), Somnus (Sleep), the Somnia (Dreams), Amor (Love) — that is, Lysimeles (Thoughtfulness), Epiphron (Prudence), dumiles {?}, Porphyrion, Epaphus {?}, Discordia (Discord), Miseria (Misery), Petulantia (Petulance), Nemesis, Euphrosyne, Amicita (Friendship), Misericordia (Compassion), Styx; the three Parcae, namely, Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos; the Hesperides, Aegle, Hesperie, {?}aerica."

The incomplete word "dumiles" has scholars interpret it as Hedymeles (Sweet Song). The figure of Epaphus that is quoted here is confusing as another figure named Epaphus is the son of Zeus and Io; both of these figures do not relate to each other. Lastly, The incomplete word "aerica" has scholars interpret it as Erythea.

The figures that Cicero and Hyginus have in common are Fatum, Senectus, Mors, Miseria, the Parcae, the Hesperides, and the Somnia. The difference between the two accounts is that Cicero makes Ether and Dies as children of Erebos and Nox as opposed to Hyginus' account as siblings and the different accounts of children that the other author didn't have.

References

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