Danaan

Danaan is an ancient ethnonym used in Greek literature to refer to the Greek people, particularly the coalition of Greek states that fought at Troy. The term is often encountered in the plural as Danaans and is traditionally linked to Danaus (Danaoi), a legendary ancestor in Greek myth. In Homeric works, Danaans are one of several designations for the Greek forces, alongside terms such as Achaeans and Argives.

In classical epic, the Danaans represent a historical or mytho-historical Greek identity rather than a precise political unit. The English rendering Danaan appears in translations of Homer and other ancient Greek texts, but modern scholarship more commonly uses Danaans or Achaeans to describe the same group.

Separately, the form appears in Irish mythology via the Tuatha Dé Danann, the People of the Goddess Danu. In this context, Danann denotes a legendary race associated with the goddess Danu and the mythical pre-Christian rulers of Ireland. Although the names share the root, the Greek and Irish strands are distinct traditions, and the Irish use is not a direct continuation of the Hellenic ethnonym.

Today, Danaan is primarily encountered in classical studies and literary translations of ancient Greek texts. It remains a historical term that illustrates how epic poetry named and described ancient Greek peoples, rather than a term in common contemporary usage. See also Danaans, Achaeans, Tuatha Dé Danann.