Centaur Mythology

How did centaurs evolve, mythologically? Like many lower creatures, not immortal, gods, though not human, in the Greek mythology structure, it’s almost as if the historians are saying, “they could be anybody’s kids.” One theory, is that they are the children of Ixion and Nephele. Ixion, was the king of the Lapith tribe, or just the ruler of Thessaly in general, –the Lapiths in particular claimed that there’s was the region where centaurs evolved. Nephele is commonly believed to be the goddess of clouds, though specifically, she was an image of Hera, created by Zeus to trick Ixion. The story, is that Ixion tried to rape Hera; in his anger, Zeus created a likeness to Hera made of clouds, that was Nephele. When Ixion went to Nephele, they gave birth to the centaurs.

Another background mythology of the centaur race, is that they are instead the children of Centaurus, who was born deformed, though his twin brother Lapithus went on to establish the Lapith tribes of Thessaly. Centaurus and Lapithus were the children of the god Apollo and the nymph Stilbe. Because Centaurus was born deformed, he spent much of his time among the mares in Thessaly, and from coupling with them produced the centaur race.

Centaurus was also said to be the son of Ixion and Nephele, instead of the entire race of centaurs, –which, biologically makes more sense, but since this is mythology, it doesn’t count for much. In earlier versions of the story, Lapithus was not Centaurus’s twin. Later versions however, would make the warring races, the centaurs, and the Lapith tribes, cousins. Centaurs were said to particularly inhabit Magnesia and Mount Pelion in Thessaly, Mount Pholoe in Arcadia and the Malean peninsula in southern Laconia.