DIONYSOS was the great Olympian god of wine, vegetation, pleasure and festivity.

The majority of Dionysos' children were only linked to him with the briefest of genealogical references. Most of these appear to have been assigned to his paternity in the founding myths of certain noble houses, in particular those associated with the prime wine-producing regions of Greece.

The consorts of the god, whose stories were elaborated upon in myth, are described on the Dionysos Loves pages.

"We [the peoples of the Roman Empire] have a number of Dionysi [gods identified with Dionysos].
The first [the Orphic Zagreus] is the son of Jupiter [Zeus] and Proserpine [Persephone];
the second [the Egyptian Osiris] of Nile - he is the fabled slayer of Nysa.
The father of the third [Phrygian Sabazios] is Cabirus; it is stated that he was king over Asia, and the Sabazia were instituted in his honour.
The fourth [the Thraco-Orphic Sabazios] is the son of Jupiter [Thrakian sky-god] and Luna [Bendis]; the Orphic rites are believed to be celebrated in his honour.
The fifth [the Theban Dionysos] is the son of Nisus [Zeus] and Thyone [Semele], and is believed to have established the Trieterid festival." - Cicero, De Natura Deorum 3.21-23

GENEALOGICAL LISTING

FAMILY NON-SPECIFIC LOCALE

LOVED: 1 - 2. Kronois, nymph; 3. Aphrodite
SIRED: 1. Kharites, goddesses of the graces; 2. Pasithea, goddess; 3. Hymenaios, god of marriage; 4. Methe, goddess of drunkenness; 5. Thysa, goddess of Bacchic revels

1 - 2) THE KHARITES incl PASITHEA Goddess of the Graces

"Thanks to him [Dionysos] ... the Kharis was born." - Greek Lyric II The Anacreontea Frag 38

"They say that thou [Hera], mother of Ares, dist with travail bear the holy choir of fair-tressed Kharites (Graces)." - Colluthus, Rape of Helen 174

"Of the love of Kronois [usually a title of Hera], from whose [Dionysos'] bed were born the three Kharites ever inseparable." - Nonnus, Dionysiaca 48.530

"I [Dionysos] will present you with the Kharites of divine Orkhomenos for servants, my daughters." - Nonnus, Dionysiaca 16.130

"Hypnos (Sleep) ... doing grace to Pasithea’s father, Dionysos." - Nonnus, Dionysiaca 15.87

"Pasithea’s mother, Hera the handmaid of wedded love." - Nonnus, Dionysiaca 31.103

"[Pasithea to Aphrodite:] 'I am tormented by the afflictions of Lyaios [Dionysos] my father ... ' She recounted all her father’s afflictions." - Nonnus, Dionysiaca 33.4

3) HYMENAIOS God of Marriage

"Comely, noble scion [Hymenaios, god of weddings] of Lyaeus [Dionysos] the thyrsus-bearer, now is the time to light thy torch of frayed pinewood." - Seneca, Medea 110

4) METHE Goddess of Drunkeness

"Thanks to him [Dionysos] Methe (Drunkeness) was brought forth." - Greek Lyric II The Anacreontea Frag 38

5) THYSA Goddess of Bacchic Revels

"And in the Palamedes [of Euripides] the Chorus says, 'Thysa, daughter of Dionysos, who on Ida rejoices with his dear mother in the Iakkhic revels of tambourines." - Strabo, Geography 10.3.13

FAMILY IN ATTIKA (SOUTHERN GREECE)

SIRED: 1. Keramaikos, Athenian lord

"The district of the Kerameikos (Of the Potters) has its name from the hero Keramos, he too being the reputed son of Dionysos and Ariadne." - Pausanias, Guide to Greece 1.3.1

NB The Kerameikos was the home of the Athenian pottery industry. The most important products of which were wine storage jars, and drinking cups.

FAMILY IN SIKYONIA (SOUTHERN GREECE)

SIRED: 1. Phlias, lord of Phlios; 2. Eurymedon, lord of Phlios

"Sikyon [king of Sikyon] had a daughter Khthonophyle ... she married Phlias, the son of Dionysos." - Pausanias, Guide to Greece 2.6.6

"Argonauts Assembled ... Phliasus, son of Father Liber [Dionysos] and Ariadne, daughter of Minos, from the city Phlius, which is in the Peloponnese. Others call him a Theban." - Hyginus, Fabulae 14

"Argonauts Assembled ... Eurymedon, son of Father Liber [Dionysos] and Ariadne, daughter of Minos, from Phlius." - Hyginus, Fabulae 14

NB The region of Phliasia was famed for its vineyards and wine.

FAMILY IN ELIS (SOUTHERN GREECE)

LOVED: 1. Physkoa, lady of Orthia in Elis
SIRED: 1. Narkaios, priest of Dionysos at Olympia

"Physkoa they say came [to Olympia] from Elis in the Hollow, and the name of the parish where she lived was Orthia. She mated they say with Dionysos, and bore him a son called Narkaios. When he grew up he made war against the neighboring folk, and rose to great power, setting up moreover a sanctuary of Athena surnamed Narkaia. They say too that Narkaios and Physkoa were the first to pay worship to Dionysos [in Elis]." - Pausanias, Guide to Greece 5.16.7

FAMILY IN AITOLIA (CENTRAL GREECE)

LOVED: 1. Althaia, queen of Kalydon
SIRED: 1. Deianeira, princess of Kalydon

"Oineus ... married Thestios’ daughter Althaia, he was the father of ... Deianeira, whose father some say was Dionysos." - Apollodorus, The Library 1.64

"Liber [Dionysos] lay with Althaea, who became mother of Dejanira." - Hyginus, Fabulae 129

"In the Dionysian tribe [those claiming descent from the god] there are distinct families: the Althaian from Althaia, who was the wife of Dionysos and daughter of Thestios; the family of Deianeira also, from her who was the daughter of Dionysos and Althaia, and wife of Herakles." - Theophilus, To Autolycus 7

FAMILY IN NAXOS (GREEK AEGEAN)

LOVED: 1. Ariadne, princess of Krete (abandoned on Naxos)

"Dionysos fell in love with Ariadne, and kidnapped her [from Naxos], taking her off to Lemnos where he had sex with her, and begat Thoas, Staphylos, Oinopion, and Peparethos." - Apollodorus, The Library E1.9

"Some say that Ariadne actually had sons by Theseus, Oinopion and Staphylos, and among these is Ion of Khios ... Some of the Naxians also have a story of their own ... they say, [Ariadne] was married to Dionysos in Naxos and bore him Staphylos and his brother [Oinopion]." - Plutarch, Lives Theseus 20.1

The sons of Dionysos and Ariadne became kings of the islands of the North Aegean: Thoas in Lemnos, Staphylos in Thasos, Peparethos in Peparethos and the, and Oinopion in Khios.

FAMILY IN THASOS (GREEK AEGEAN)

SIRED: 1. Staphylos, king of Thasos; Phanos, lord of Thasos?

"The Argonauts: … Phanos and Staphylos, sons of Dionysos." - Apollodorus, The Library 1.113

"Staphylos, the beloved of Dionysos, lived on Thasos; and because of this Thasian wine is distinctive." - Suidas 'Enekheis" (quoting Aristophanes, Plutus 1020)

NB The island of Thasos was an important producer of wines.

FAMILY IN KHIOS (GREEK AEGEAN)

SIRED: 1. Oinopion, king of Khios

"Maro, whose father, it is said, Hesiod relates to have been Euanthes the son of Oinopion, the son of Dionysos." - Hesiod, Catalogues of Women Frag 86 (from Eustathius on Homer 1623)

"Oinopion son of Dionysos and Ariadne." - Greek Lyric II Anacreon, Frag 505e (Scholiast on Aratus)

"Dionysos fell in love with Ariadne, and kidnapped her [from Naxos], taking her off to Lemnos where he had sex with her, and begat ... Oinopion." - Apollodorus, The Library E1.9

"Some say that Ariadne actually had sons by Theseus, Oinopion and Staphylos, and among these is Ion of Khios, who says of his own native city:- 'This, once, Theseus's son founded, Oinopion' ...
Some of the Naxians also have a story of their own ... they say, [Ariadne] was married to Dionysos in Naxos and bore him Staphylos and his brother [Oinopion]." - Plutarch, Lives Theseus 20.1

"To Oinopion, the son of Minos’s daughter Ariadne, he [Rhadamanthys] gave [the island of] Khios." - Diodorus Siculus, Library of History 5.79.1

"The Khians were the first to learn how to plant and tend vines from Oinopion, son of Dionysos, who also was the founder of that island-state." - Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae 1.26b-c

NB The island of Khios was famed for its vineyards and wines.

FAMILY IN LEMNOS (GREEK AEGEAN)

SIRED: 1. Thoas, king of Lemnos; 2. Euneus, king of Lemnos

"And she [presumably Ariadne] bare [presumably to Dionysos] a son Thoas." - Hesiod, Catalogues of Women Frag 85 (from Choeroboscus 1.123)

"Dionysos fell in love with Ariadne, and kidnapped her [from Naxos], taking her off to Lemnos where he had sex with her, and begat Thoas, Staphylos, Oinopion, and Peparethos." - Apollodorus, The Library E1.9

"Dionysos ... his son Thoas ... [by] Minos’ daughter, the fair young Ariadne." - Apollonius Rhodius, Argonautica 4.425

"Dionysos ... his bride divine [Ariadne], Minos' child far-famous ... [their] son Thoas." - Quintus Smyrnaeus, Fall of Troy 4.430

"In the Dionysian tribe there are distinct families ... [each of these] families have their names [from a founding son of Dionysos] ... the family of Ariadne, from Ariadne, daughter of Minos and wife of Dionysos ... the Thoantian, from Thoas, son of Dionysos ... the Euainian, from Euneus, son [usually great-grandson] of Dionysos." - Theophilus, To Autolycus 7

NB Lemnos was a wine-producing island.

FAMILY IN PEPARETHOS (GREEK AEGEAN)

SIRED: 1. Peparethos, king of Peparethos

"Dionysos fell in love with Ariadne, and kidnapped her [from Naxos], taking her off to Lemnos where he had sex with her, and begat Thoas, Staphylos, Oinopion, and Peparethos." - Apollodorus, The Library E1.9

NB The island of Peparethos was an exporter of (low quality) wine.

FAMILY IN PALLENE, THRAKE (NORTH OF GREECE)

LOVED: 1. Pallene, princess of Sithonia-Pallene

FAMILY IN KIKONIA, THRAKE (NORTH OF GREECE)

SIRED: 1. Maron, priest of Dionysos in Kikonia

"In the Dionysian tribe there are distinct families ... [each of these] families have their names [from a founding son of Dionysos] ... the Maronian, from Maron, son of Ariadne and Dionysos [actually his great-grandson, son of Euanthes, son of Oinopion, son of Dionysos]." - Theophilus, To Autolycus 7

FAMILY IN KARIA (ANATOLIA)

SIRED: 1. Staphylos, king of Bubastos

"The Argonauts: … Phanos and Staphylos, sons of Dionysos." - Apollodorus, The Library 1.113

"Dionysos fell in love with Ariadne, and kidnapped her [from Naxos], taking her off to Lemnos where he had sex with her, and begat Thoas, Staphylos, Oinopion, and Peparethos." - Apollodorus, The Library E1.9

"From the Lyrkos of Nikainetos and the Kaunos of Apollonios Rhodios [two Alexandrian Greek poets C3rd BC]: ... [Lyrkos] arrived at Bybastos [in Karia, Anatolia], he was entertained by Staphylos, the son of Dionysos, who received him in the most friendly manner and enticed him to much drinking of wine." - Parthenius, Love Romances 1

"In the Dionysian tribe there are distinct families ... [each of these] families have their names [from a founding son of Dionysos] ... the family of Ariadne, from Ariadne, daughter of Minos and wife of Dionysos ... the Staphylian, from Staphylos, son of Dionysos." - Theophilus, To Autolycus 7

"Staphylos, the beloved of Dionysos, lived on Thasos; and because of this Thasian wine is distinctive." - Suidas 'Enekheis" (quoting Aristophanes, Plutus 1020)

FAMILY IN MYSIA (ANATOLIA)

LOVED: 1. Aphrodite, goddess of love; 1. Unnamed Nymphe, of Lampsakos
SIRED: 1. Priapos, vegetation god of Lampsakos

"The inhabitants [of the town of Priapos in Mysia] felt an impulse to worship the god [Priapos] because he was called the son of Dionysos and a Nymphe; for their country is abundantly supplied with the vine." - Strabo, Geography 13.1.12

"By the people of Lampsakos he [Priapos] is more revered than any other god, being called by them a son of Dionysos and Aphrodite." - Pausanias, Guide to Greece 9.31.2

FAMILY IN BITHYNIA OR PHRYGIA (ANATOLIA)

LOVED: 1. Nikaia, Phrygian nymph; 2. Aura, Phrygian titanis
SIRED: 1. Telete, goddess of initiation; 2. Iakkhos, god of the mysteries; 3. Sabazios, Phrygian god

1) TELETE Goddess of Initiation Rites

"Now lined with the divine dew, the seed of Lyaios [Dionysos], she [Nikaia] carried a burden in her womb ... From the marriage of Bromios [Dionysos] a god-sent girl grew to flower, whom she named Telete (Consecration), one ever rejoicing in festivals, a night-dancing girl, who followed Dionysos, taking pleasure in clappers and the bang of the double oxhide." - Nonnus, Dionysiaca 16.392

2 - 3) IAKKHOS-SABAZIOS Mystery and Phrygian gods

"They say that Sabazios and Dionysos are the same ... But Mnaseas of Patrai [poet C3rd BC] says that Sabazios is the son of Dionysos." - Suidas s.v. Saboi

"O Bakkheios Hermes [probably Iakkhos], progeny divine of Dionysos, parent of the vine, and of celestial Aphrodite, Paphian queen, dark-eyelashed Goddess, of a lovely mien." - Orphic Hymn 57 to Chthonian Hermes

"A babe came quickly into the light [born by the Titanis Aura to Dionysos] ... the womb of Aura was loosened, and twin children [ Iakkhos & his brother] came forth of themselves." - Nonnus, Dionysiaca 48.848

NB Iakkhos in Nonnus appears to be identified with the Phrygian god Sabazios.

DIONYSOS & THE NOBLE HOUSES OF GREECE (HISTORICAL)

A number of historical Greek royal and noble families claimed descent from Dionysos. His various mythical sons were the founders and namesakes of these houses, such as the Thoantian (for Thoas), the Staphylian (for Staphylos) and the Maronian (for Maron) .

The ancestry of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt was also traced back to Dionysos (over 25 generations):
Dionysos -- Deianeira --- Hyllos -- Kleodemos -- Aristomakhos -- Temenos -- Keisos -- Maron -- Thestros -- Akous -- Aristomidas -- Karanos -- Koinos -- Tryimmas -- Perdikkhas -- Phillippos -- Aeropos -- Alketas -- Amyntas -- Bokros -- Meleagros -- Arsinoe -- Lagos Ptolemy Soter -- Ptolemy Euergetes -- Ptolemy Philopater 

"Satyros [ancient Greek historian], also giving a history of the Alexandrine families, beginning from Philopator, who was also named Ptolemy, gives out that Bakkhos [Dionysos] was his progenitor; wherefore also Ptolemy was the founder of this family. Satyros then speaks thus: That Deianeira was born of Bakkhos and Althaia, the daughter of Thestios; and from her and Herakles the son of Zeus there sprang, as I suppose, Hyllos; and from him Kleodemos, and from him Aristomakhos, and from him Temenos, and from him Keisos, and from him Maron, and from him Thestros, and from him Akous, and from him Aristomidas, and from him Karanos, and from him Koinos, and from him Tyrimmas, and from him Perdikkhas, and from him Philippos, and from him Aeropos, and from him Alketas, and from him Amyntas, and from him Bokros, and from him Meleagros, and from him Arsinoe, and from her and Lagos Ptolemy Soter, and from him and Arsinoe Ptolemy Euergetes, and from him and Berenike, daughter of Maga, king of Kyrene, Ptolemy Philopator. Thus, then, stands the relationship of the Alexandrine kings to Bakkhos. And therefore in the Dionysian tribe there are distinct families: the Althaian from Althaia, who was the wife of Dionysos and daughter of Thestios; the family of Deianeira also, from her who was the daughter of Dionysos and Althaia, and wife of Herakles; - whence, too, the families have their names: the family of Ariadne, from Ariadne, daughter of Minos and wife of Dionysos, a dutiful daughter, who had intercourse with Dionysos in another form; the Thestian, from Thestios, the father of Althaia; the Thoantian, from Thoas, son of Dionysos; the Staphylian, from Staphylos, son of Dionysos; the Euainian, from Eunous, son [great-grandson] of Dionysos; the Maronian, from Maron, son [great-grandson] of Ariadne and Dionysos; - for all these are sons of Dionysus." -Theophilus, To Autolycus 7
[NB this passage is from an early Christian scholar's critique of paganism]

"Attalos [King of Pergamon C3rd BC]. The Pythia was proved right about him, for in delivering an oracle to Attalos the Great she said, 'Be of good heart, bull-horned one.' [called bull-horned since the Attalides claimed descent from Dionysos]." - Suidas "Attalos"

"Bakkhidês: The son of Dionysos [or descendant]." - Suidas "Bakkhides"

Sources:

• Hesiod, Catalogues of Women - Greek Epic C8th-7th BC
• Greek Lyric II Anacreontea, Fragments - Greek Lyric BC
• Greek Lyric II Terpadder, Fragments - Greek Lyric C7th BC
• Apollodorus, The Library - Greek Mythography C2nd BC
• Apollonius Rhodius, The Argonautica - Greek Epic C3rd BC
• Parthenius, Love Romances - Greek Mythography C1st BC
• The Orphic Hymns - Greek Hymns BC
• Quintus Smyrnaeus, Fall of Troy - Greek Epic C4th AD
• Strabo, Geography - Greek Geography C1st BC - C1st AD
• Pausanias, Guide to Greece - Greek Geography C2nd AD
• Diodorus Siculus, The Library of History - Greek History C1st BC
• Plutarch, Lives - Greek Historian C1st-2nd AD
• Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae - Greek Cullinary Guide C3rd AD
• Hyginus, Fabulae - Latin Mythography C2nd AD
• Cicero, De Natura Deorum - Latin Philosophy C1st BC
• Seneca, Medea - Latin Tragedy C1st AD
• Theophilus, To Autolycus - Chrisitan Scholar C2nd AD
• Colluthus, The Rape of Helen - Greek Epic C5th-6th AD
• Nonnos, Dionysiaca - Greek Epic C5th AD
• Suidas - Byzantine Lexicographer C10th AD