Illyrius (Ancient Greek: Ἰλλυριός, Illyriós) is the son of Cadmus and Harmonia, who eventually ruled Illyria and became the eponymous ancestor of the Illyrians.[1] Illyrius/Illyriós/Illyri is a name known in different stories found in ancient Greek mythology.
Ancient Greek writers used the name "Illyrian" to describe peoples between the Liburnians and Epirus.[4] Fourth-century BC Greek writers clearly separated the people along the Adriatic coast from the Illyrians, and only in the 1st century AD was "Illyrian" used as a general term for all the peoples across the Adriatic.[5] Writers also spoke of "Illyrians in the strict sense of the word"; Pomponius Mela (43 AD) the stricto sensu Illyrians lived north of the Taulantii and Enchele, on the Adriatic shore;[6]Pliny the Elder used "properly named Illyrians"[5] (Illyrii proprii/proprie dicti) for a small people[5] south of Epidaurum,[5] or between Epidaurum (now Cavtat) and Lissus (now Lezhë).[6] In the Roman period, Illyricum, a term which signified a broader region than Illyria, was used for the area between the Adriatic and Danube.[4][7]
Origins of Illyrius as eponymous progenitor of the Illyrian people
Grimal, Pierre (1996). The Dictionary of Classical Mythology. Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN0-631-20102-5.
Lewis, D. M.; Boardman, John; Hornblower, Simon; Ostwald, M. (1994). The Cambridge Ancient History, Volume 6: The Fourth Century BC. Cambridge University Press.
Wilkes, John J. (1995). The Illyrians. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing. ISBN0-631-19807-5.