In Greek mythology, Alcaeus (Ancient Greek: Ἀλκαῖος, from alke, "strength") was a son of Perseus and Andromeda, counted among the princes of the Perseid line. He is best known as the father of the hero Amphitryon, and through him the grandfather of the household into which Heracles was born. According to Diodorus Siculus, Heracles' own original name, Alcaeus, was given on account of his descent from this figure. Several other minor figures in Greek myth also bore the name Alcaeus.
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I.Family
Alcaeus was a son of Perseus and Andromeda, and thus a prince of the Perseid line ruling in the Argolid. He is best remembered as the father of Amphitryon, the foster-father of Heracles.
His wife is given differently across the sources. He is said to have married Astydameia, daughter of Pelops and Hippodamia; or Laonome, daughter of Guneus; or else Hipponome, daughter of Menoeceus. By her he became the father of Amphitryon and of the daughters Anaxo and Perimede.
These details are drawn from Hesiod's Shield of Heracles, the Bibliotheca of Apollodorus (2.4.5–6), Pausanias (8.14.2), and the scholia on Euripides' Hecuba.
II.Etymology
The name Alcaeus (Ἀλκαῖος, Alkaios) derives from the Ancient Greek word alke, meaning "strength." The same root underlies the patronymic-style name Alcides (Alkeides) borne by the hero Heracles before his renaming.
According to Diodorus Siculus, Alcaeus was in fact the original name of Heracles himself, given to the hero on account of his descent from Alcaeus, the son of Perseus.
III.Other figures of the name
Several other figures in Greek mythology also bore the name Alcaeus. One was a son of Heracles by a female slave of Iardanus; according to Diodorus Siculus he was also called Cleolaus, and the Heraclid dynasty in Lydia was descended from him.
Another Alcaeus was a Cretan, son of Androgeus and brother of Sthenelus. As a general of Rhadamanthus he was presented with the island of Paros, and was later given Thasus by Heracles.
A further Alcaeus was a Carian, son of Margasus and Phyllis, an ally of the Trojans who was killed by Meges in the Trojan War (Quintus Smyrnaeus 10.138 ff.).