Klantids

The Klantids, or Klantidae, is a name found in ancient Greek sources referring to a relatively obscure or legendary Greek people or clan. The term appears in only a small number of passages, and there is no broad agreement about their precise location, time period, or role in myth and history.

Etymology and identification of the group are uncertain. The ethnonym is generally thought to derive from an eponymous figure named Klantos or from a place-name connected with that lineage. Because the surviving references are sparse and often late, the exact significance of the Klantids remains unclear, and they are not tied to a well-established historical or geographical context.

In the extant literature, references to the Klantids are typically genealogical or toponymic rather than narrative. They are not central figures in major myths, and detailed information about their customs, leaders, or deeds does not survive. As a result, modern scholars treat the Klantids as a fragmentary or possibly ambiguous designation that may reflect local traditions, scribal transmission, or attempts to categorize disparate groups under a single lineage.

Scholarly opinion on the Klantids varies. Some view them as representing a genuine but poorly documented early Greek tribe, while others regard the name as a scholastic or erroneous appellation arising from textual corruption or misinterpretation. The absence of reliable, detailed evidence means that the Klantids remain a minor and enigmatic element within the broader Greek ethnographic and mythographic tradition.

See also: Ethnography of ancient Greece; List of ancient Greek tribes.