In Greek mythology, Emathus, Emathius or Amathus (Ancient Greek:Ἥμαθος, Ἠμάθιος, Ἄμαθος), was son of Makednos, from whom Emathia (the Homeric name of Lower Macedonia) was believed to have derived its name.[1] The daughters of his brother Pierus, the Pierides, are sometimes called Emathides after him.[2] The Emathian or Emathius in Latin is a frequently used epithet in Latin poets for Alexander the Great.[3]
Emathus was apparently first called son of Makednos in Marsyas of Pella (c. 330 BC), who made Emathos and Pieros the eponymous founders of these two regions in Ancient Macedonia.[4] According to Solinus (9.10), Emathius was unrelated to and earlier than Makednos. He also says that while the country was still called Emathia, Orestes and Hermione arrived and had a son Orestis there, who founded an empire (also called Orestis) stretching to the Adriatic; this was some time before Makednos.
According to Stephanus of Byzantium, Brusos was a son of Emathius, from whom Brusis, a portion of Macedonia, was believed to have derived its name.[5] Galadrus, another son of Emathius, is likewise credited with giving his name to the city of Galadrai.[6]