Tectamus (James Knowles (1845) A Pronouncing and Explanatory Dictionary of the English Language; The name is derived from tectainomai "to build", "plan", from tecton, "carpenter", "builder".Robert Graves. The Greek Myths (1960)) was a king of Crete and hero of ancient Hellenic mythology. He was also called Tectaphus,Stephanus of Byzantium, s.v. Dōrion Teutamus (), Tectauus () and Tectaeus ().
Name Joseph Vendryes had suggested that the name Teutamus, after the legendary Pelasgian founder, may contain the Proto-Indo-European root ('tribe, people').Vendryes, Joseph. "Teutomatos". In: Comptes rendus des séances de l'Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres, 83e année, N. 5, 1939. p. 478. [DOI: https://doi.org/10.3406/crai.1939.77232] ; www.persee.fr/doc/crai_0065-0536_1939_num_83_5_77232 Later scholars proposed a relation of Pelasgian Teutamus with similar names that appear in Italy in later times.Briquel, Dominique. Les Pélasges en Italie. Recherches sur l'histoire de la légende (Monographie). Rome: Ecole française de Rome, 1984. p. XVIII. (Bibliothèque des Écoles françaises d'Athènes et de Rome, 252) [DOI: https://doi.org/10.3406/befar.1984.1217] ; www.persee.fr/doc/befar_0257-4101_1984_mon_252_1
Genealogy Tectamus was the son of Dorus and grandson of Hellen. He married Cretheus’s daughter who gave birth to his son Asterion.
Mythology According to Diodorus Siculus, Tectamus invaded Crete together with a horde of Aeolian and Pelasgian settlers and became the island's king.Diodorus Siculus, 4.60.2 It was the third of the tribes that migrated to Crete. According to another version, Tectamus was a chief of Dorians and Achaeans.Diodorus Siculus, 5.80.2
In later Greek historiography Historian Ctesias wrote of a king of "Assyrian" provenance named Teutamus, and this historical personage appears in an epic tale involving Memnon, son of Eos.Petit, Thierry. "Amathousiens, Éthiopiens et Perses". In: Cahiers du Centre d'Études Chypriotes. Volume 28, 1998. p. 77. [DOI: https://doi.org/10.3406/cchyp.1998.1340] ; www.persee.fr/doc/cchyp_0761-8271_1998_num_28_1_1340
Notes
References
Diodorus Siculus, The Library of History translated by Charles Henry Oldfather. Twelve volumes. Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann, Ltd. 1989. Vol. 3. Books 4.59–8. Online version at Bill Thayer's Web Site Graves, Robert, The Greek Myths: The Complete and Definitive Edition. Penguin Books Limited. 2017.