Αιτωλος
The son of Endymion and a Nymph, Aetolus was king of Elis in the Peloponnese. His brothers and sisters were Paeon, Epeius, Eurydice (or Eurypyle), Naxos and Pisus. In order to settle which of his sons should success him Endymion decided to make them run a race against each other at Olympia and to nominate the winner as the future king. Epeius was the winner. Paeon fled to Macedonia. Aetolus stayed in the Peloponnese and succeeded to the throne on Epeius' death, but as he had killed Apis the king of the country he was forced by his victim's sons to go into exile. He went north of the Gulf of Corinth to the mouth of the river Achelous. There, having been received as a guest by Dorus, Laodocus and Polypoetes, he killed them and seized the throne, after first driving out the Curetes. The country was named Aetolia after him. He married Pronoe, daughter of Phorbas, by whom he had two sons, Pleuron and Calydon. (See Endymion, Elis and Table 24).
{E2 DICTIONARY OF CLASSICAL MYTHOLOGY}
Table of Sources:
- Apollod. Bibl. 1, 7, 6f
- Paus. 5, 1, 2ff.
- schol. on Pind. Ol. 1, 28
- Conon, Narr. 14