Geras

For the municipality in Austria, see Geras, Austria. For the political scientist, see Norman Geras. For the Egyptian former bishopric, see Gera (Egypt).

Geras, detail of an Attic red-figure pelike, ca. 480 BC–470 BC, Louvre

In Greek mythology, Geras /ˈdʒɪərəs/ (Ancient Greek: Γῆρας, romanized: Gễras) was the god of old age. It was considered a virtue whereby the more gēras a man acquired, the more kleos (fame) and arete (excellence and courage) he was considered to have. According to Hesiod, Gēras was a son of Nyx. Hyginus adds that his father was Erebus. He was depicted as a tiny shriveled-up old man. Gēras's opposite was Hebe, the goddess of youth. His Roman equivalent was Senectus. He is known primarily from vase depictions that show him with the hero Heracles; the mythic story that inspired these depictions has been entirely lost.

Geras' name is the root of the word "geriatric."