Definition: Hecuba, daughter of Dymas king of Phrygia or Cisseus, was the wife of King Priam of Troy and the mother of Cassandra, Paris, Hector, Deiphobus, and others. She produced 19 of Priam's 50 sons. Hecuba stays mainly in the background in the Iliad, but is of increased importance in Euripides.
Before her son Paris was born, Hecuba had what turned out to be a prophetic vision that was interpreted to mean she would give birth to the destruction of Troy.
Hecuba saw the death of her husband and most of her children, as well as the sack of her home -- Troy. Hecuba may have been turned over to Odysseus or another of the Achaean leaders after the sack of Troy.
Hecuba is a character in Euripides' tragedies Hecuba and Trojan Women.
Pronunciation: hek'-yu-buh or hek'-a-bee
Alternate Spellings: Hecabe, Hekabe, Hecube, Hekuba, Hekube
