Ajax the Great is the son of Telamon, who was the son of Aeacus and grandson of Zeus, and his first wife Periboea. He is the cousin of Achilles, and is the elder half-brother of Teucer. His given name is derived from the root of "to lament", translating to "one who laments; mourner". Many illustrious Athenians, including Cimon, Miltiades, Alcibiades and the historian Thucydides, traced their descent from Ajax. On an Etruscan tomb dedicated to Racvi Satlnei in Bologna (5th century BC) there is an inscription that says, "aivastelmunsl" which means "[family] of Telamonian Ajax". In Homer's "Iliad" he is described as of
Telamon account recorded by Pherecydes of Leros, Telamon and Peleus were not brothers, but friends. This would accord with Peleus being the father of the other hero Achilles (called Pelides - i.e. son of Peleus - by Homer). According to this account, Telamon was the son of Actaeus and Glauce, with the latter being the daughter of Cychreus, king of Salamis; and Telamon married Periboea, daughter of King Alcathous of Megara. After killing their half-brother, Phocus, Telamon and Peleus fled Aegina. They made their way to the island of Salamis, where King Cychreus welcomed Telamon and befriended him. Telamon married Cychreus'