Editing Medea (section)

== Genealogy and divinity ==
[[File:Herkulaneischer Meister 001.jpg|thumb|126px|Medea in a fresco from [[Herculaneum]]]]
Medea is a direct descendant of the sun god [[Helios]] (son of the [[Titan (mythology)|Titan]] [[Hyperion (mythology)|Hyperion]] and [[Titan (mythology)|Titaness]] [[Theia]]) through her father King Aeëtes of Colchis. According to [[Hesiod]] (''[[Theogony]]'' 956–962), Helios and the Oceanid [[Perse (mythology)|Perseis]] produced two children, [[Circe]] and [[Aeëtes]].<ref>Hesiod, ''Theogony'' 956–962</ref> Aeëtes then married the Oceanid [[Idyia]] and Medea was their child. From here, Medea's family tree becomes a little more complicated and disputed. By some accounts{{Who|date=July 2024}}, Aeëtes and Idyia only had two daughters, Medea and [[Chalciope of Colchis|Chalciope]] (or Chalkiope). There was one son, [[Absyrtus]] (or Apsyrtus), who was the son of Aeëtes through Asterodea. This would make him a half-brother to Medea herself. According to others, Idyia gave birth to Medea and Apsyrtus while Asterodea gave birth to Chalciope. Even with the two differing accounts, it is known that Medea has a sister and a brother. 

As she becomes older, Medea marries Jason and together they have children. The number and names of their children are questioned by scholars. Depending on the account, it is two to fourteen children. In his play, ''Medea'', Euripides mentions two unnamed sons.<ref>Euripides, ''Medea''</ref> According to other accounts, her children were "[[Mermerus and Pheres|Mermerus]], [[Pheres]] or Thessalus, Alcimenes and Tisander, and according to others, she had seven sons and seven daughters, while others mention only two children, [[Medus]] (some call him [[Polyxenus]]) and [[Eriopis]], or one son [[Argus (Greek myth)|Argos]]."<ref>{{Cite book|last=Smith|first=William|url=http://name.umdl.umich.edu/acl3129.0001.001|title=A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.|date=2005}}</ref> No matter the number of children, Medea eventually leaves Jason in Corinth, and marries the King of Athens ([[Aegeus]]) and bears him a son. While with him, it is questioned if that was when she had her son Medeius, who goes on to become the ancestor of the Medes by conquering their lands.

Understanding Medea's genealogy helps define her divinity. By some accounts, like the ''Argonautica'', she is depicted as a young, mortal woman who is directly influenced by the Greek gods Hera and Aphrodite.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Apollonius|first=Rhodius|title=The Argonautica|url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/830/830-h/830-h.htm|access-date=2021-11-12|website=Project Gutenberg|language=en}}</ref> While she possesses magical abilities, she is still a mortal with divine ancestry. Other accounts, like Euripides's play ''Medea'', focus on her mortality. Hesiod's ''Theogony'' places her marriage to Jason on the list of marriages between mortals and divine, suggesting that she is predominantly divine.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Hesiod, Theogony|url=https://chs.harvard.edu/primary-source/hesiod-theogony-sb/|access-date=2021-11-12|website=The Center for Hellenic Studies|language=en-US}}</ref> She also has connections with [[Hecate]],<ref name=":022">{{Cite book|last=Griffiths|first=Emma|title=Medea|publisher=Routledge|year=2006|location=London: New York}}</ref> the goddess of magic, which could be one of the main sources from which she draws her magical ties. Although distinct from the [[Titans|Titan]] known as [[Perses (Titan)|Perses]], who is known for fathering [[Hecate]], the goddess of witchcraft, [[Diodorus Siculus]] in his ''[[Bibliotheca historica]]'' made Perses of Colchis the father of Hecate by an unknown mother; Perses' brother Aeëtes then married Hecate and had Medea and Circe by her.<ref>[[Diodorus Siculus]], ''[[Bibliotheca historica|Historic Library]]'' [https://topostext.org/work/133#4.45.1 4.45.2]</ref>