Pallas 2 is a masculine name of Greek origin, borne by a Titan and several other figures in Greek mythology.
The name is probably derived from the Greek verb πάλλω (pallo), meaning "to brandish, to sway, to shake." This etymology reflects references to missile weapons—brandishing a spear or javelin—an apt association for a mythological character associated with warfare.
According to mythology, Pallas was a Titan, the son of Crius and Eurybia, and the brother of Astraeus and Perses. He married the Oceanid Styx, and together they were the parents of Zelus, Nike, Cratos, and Bia—the embodiments of zeal, victory, strength, and force respectively. In some accounts, Pallas was also the father of the giant Pallas who fought in the Gigantomachy; Athena is said to have flayed him and made her aegis from his skin. However, the name is also given to other divine beings in various sources.
Outside the family, the Greeks referenced a minor figure named Pallas, an Athenian youth slain by the hero Theseus while leading a rebellion. In Roman myth, Pallas is the name of the king of Arcadia, father of Evander, who helped Aeneas in Italy.
The name is sometimes connected to feminine forms like Pallas (as a epithet of Athena), though the masculine usage generally referred to these different male mythological figures.
Mythological Bearers
- Pallas the Titan — Son of Crius and Eurybia, husband of Styx, father of four divine personifications (Nike, Bia, Cratos, Zelus), a ally of Zeus.
- Pallas the Giant — One of the Gigantes (Homeric and Hesiodic), immovable in combat, slain and flayed by Athena whose aegis made his skin invulnerable.
- Pallas — An Athenian general, son of King Phemios and challenger of Aegeus then Theseus; defeated by Theseus in combat.
Cultural Significance
The Pallas root also appears in several mythological onomastics: relating to flame, and used in the Cretan and Greco-Roman period as names for Jupiter's servants. In astronomical contexts, it is most common in the asteroid Pallas discovered 1802, one of the two largest in the belt after Ceres.
In geography names, cities like the Missouri Pallas or tiny ancient ones appear.
- Principal name form: Pallas 2, key: _link
- cf. variant forms: Pallas