A: Aalu to Aztlan 15
Aditayas
Also known as the Daityas, offspring of Vishnu. Water-giants somewhat equiva-
lent to the Titans of Greek myth (like Atlas and the other kings of Atlantis), the
Aditayas are mentioned in Vishnu Purana and Mahabharata, two of the oldest and
most revered ancient Indian literary traditions. The latter work describes them as
the inhabitants of Tripura, the Triple City in the Western Ocean, doubtless the
Atlantic island of Poseidon (of the trident). The Aditayas were destroyed after
they engaged in a war that culminated in the sinking of Tripura, the same story
retold by Plato in his account of Atlantis.Aditi
In Indian myth, the mother of Vishnu, who conquered the Earth for the gods
and became the first Aditaya, or “Upholder” of the sky (the moral order of the
cosmos), and is therefore identified with Atlas. His offspring were the Aditayas
(or Daityas), who supported the heavens.
(See Aditayas, Atlas)Aegle
An Atlantis, or “Daughter of Atlas,” one of the Hesperides, a trio of divine sisters
who guarded the golden apples of eternal life in a sacred grove on Atlas’s island.
(See Garden of the Hesperides)Aegeon
In Greek myth, a Titan who carried civilization into the eastern Mediterranean,
which he named after himself: the Aegean Sea. Aegeon is associated with Atlantean
culture-bearers during the 12th century B.C. He was also known as Briareus.
(See Hecatoncheires)Aegyptus
In Greek myth, an early king of Egypt, from whom the country derived its
name. He was the grandson of Poseidon and Libya, which is to say his lineage was
Atlanto-African. Aegyptus was descended from Atlantean royalty who, on their
passage through the Nile Valley, married native North Africans.Aelian
Roman biologist (third century A.D.) and author of The Nature of Animals, in
which he reported, “The inhabitants of the shores of the Ocean tell that in former