Astarte’s family tree is not fixed in any single ancient text; her parentage, siblings, and children vary across the Canaanite, Phoenician, and Greek sources that mention her. The most commonly cited genealogy, from the Ugaritic texts, makes her the daughter of the sky god El and the sister of Anat and Baal, though other traditions link her to different divine parents or give her no parents at all.
Who Is Astarte?
Astarte was a major goddess of the ancient Near East, worshipped from the Bronze Age through the Hellenistic period. Her name appears in Ugaritic, Phoenician, Hebrew, and Greek inscriptions, and she was closely associated with fertility, sexuality, war, and the planet Venus. In many ways she resembles the Mesopotamian goddess Ishtar, and scholars generally see the two as related, though they were distinct deities in their own right. Astarte was particularly important in the coastal cities of Phoenicia, such as Sidon and Tyre, and her cult spread to Cyprus, Egypt, and Carthage.
Parentage in the Ugaritic Texts
The most detailed information about Astarte’s family comes from the Ugaritic tablets, discovered at the site of Ras Shamra in modern Syria. These texts, dating to around the 14th century BCE, name the high god El as the father of many deities, including Astarte. In the Baal Cycle, she appears as one of the daughters of El, alongside her sister Anat. Some passages also suggest that Asherah, El’s consort, was her mother, though this is not explicitly stated in every text. The Ugaritic material is fragmentary, so the exact relationship is not always clear, but the standard scholarly reconstruction places Astarte as a daughter of El and Asherah.
Alternative Parentage in Other Traditions
Not all ancient sources agree on Astarte’s parents. In the Phoenician history of Philo of Byblos, written in Greek around the 1st–2nd century CE but claiming to draw on much older Phoenician sources, Astarte is presented as the daughter of the sky god Uranus and the earth goddess Ge, and she is said to have ruled as queen with her brother Baal. This genealogy reflects a Hellenized version of Phoenician myth, where the old Semitic gods were equated with Greek deities. In some Greek sources, Astarte is identified with Aphrodite, and in that context she is sometimes said to have been born from the sea foam, though this is a Greek myth applied to her rather than an original Canaanite tradition.
Siblings and Consorts
Astarte’s siblings, like her parents, vary by source. In the Ugaritic texts, her most prominent sibling is Anat, the warrior goddess, and her brother is Baal, the storm god. Some scholars also include the god Mot, the deity of death, as a sibling, though the texts are less clear on this. In the Phoenician tradition preserved by Philo of Byblos, Astarte’s brothers include Baal and the god El, who is here her brother rather than her father. Her consort is often said to be Baal, and in some Ugaritic texts she is paired with him, though Anat is more commonly associated with Baal in that role. In later Phoenician religion, Astarte was worshipped alongside the god Eshmun, who was sometimes considered her son or her consort.
Children and Offspring
Astarte’s children are not well documented in most sources. In the Ugaritic texts, she does not have a clearly named child. In the Phoenician tradition, however, she is sometimes said to be the mother of Eshmun, a god of healing, and of the god Melqart, the patron deity of Tyre. These attributions appear in later Greek and Roman sources, which often rationalized Phoenician gods into genealogies. For example, the 5th-century BCE Greek historian Herodotus mentions that the temple of Aphrodite in Ashkelon was dedicated to the goddess whom he calls Aphrodite Urania, and later writers associated her with Astarte, but they do not give her a specific child. In the Hellenistic period, Astarte was sometimes identified with the Greek goddess Aphrodite, and through that identification she was said to be the mother of Eros, the god of love, though this is a Greek addition.
Astarte in the Bible and Ancient Israel
The Hebrew Bible mentions Astarte under the name Ashtoreth, a deliberate distortion of her name using the vowels of the Hebrew word for shame. She is condemned as a foreign goddess whose worship led the Israelites astray. In 1 Kings 11, King Solomon is said to have worshipped Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, alongside other foreign deities. The biblical texts do not provide a family tree for her, but they confirm that her cult was known and practiced in ancient Israel and Judah. The plural form Ashtaroth is used in several passages to refer to her images or to a group of goddesses, and the name appears in place names such as Ashtaroth in the Transjordan.
Connections to Ishtar and Inanna
Many readers wonder how Astarte relates to the Mesopotamian goddess Ishtar. The two share a common Semitic root, and their names are linguistically related: Ishtar is the Akkadian form, while Astarte is the Greek rendering of the Phoenician name. Both goddesses were associated with Venus, love, and war, and both had a complex mythology involving a descent to the underworld. However, they were worshipped in different regions and had different cults. Ishtar was the great goddess of Babylon and Assyria, while Astarte was venerated in the Levant and the Phoenician colonies. It is likely that Astarte developed from a similar Semitic deity, but she was not simply a copy of Ishtar; she had her own mythology and family connections.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who were Astarte’s parents?
In the Ugaritic texts, Astarte is the daughter of El, the chief god, and probably of Asherah, his consort. In the Phoenician history of Philo of Byblos, her parents are Uranus and Ge, the sky and earth deities. No single answer applies to all sources.
Was Astarte the same as Ishtar?
No, but they were closely related. Astarte and Ishtar share a common Semitic origin and many attributes, but they were distinct goddesses with different cults and myths. Astarte was worshipped in the Levant and Phoenician world, while Ishtar was the goddess of Mesopotamia.
Did Astarte have any children?
In most early sources, she does not have any children. In later Phoenician and Greek traditions, she is sometimes said to be the mother of Eshmun, Melqart, or Eros, but these are later attributions and not part of the older Ugaritic mythology.
Is Astarte mentioned in the Bible?
Yes, under the name Ashtoreth. The Hebrew Bible condemns her worship, and she is mentioned in connection with King Solomon and the Sidonians. The biblical writers deliberately distorted her name to make it sound like the Hebrew word for shame.
What was Astarte’s role in mythology?
Astarte was a goddess of fertility, sexuality, and war. She was also associated with the planet Venus. In the Ugaritic texts, she appears as a powerful warrior goddess, and in later Phoenician religion she was a major civic deity, especially in Sidon and Tyre.
Related
- Uni in Etruscan Mythology: Queen of the Gods
- Electra in Greek Mythology: Roles and Myths
- Bel in Mesopotamian Mythology: God, Title, and Cult
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