In Greek mythology, Pandora was considered the first woman.
Hesiod presents Pandora as a woman fashioned by the gods and sent to humanity as part of Zeus’s punishment for Prometheus’s theft of fire. Different gods contribute qualities or gifts to her creation, which fits the meaning of her name, “all-gifted.” Her arrival is therefore part of a creation story about the origin of women and the beginning of human suffering.
The phrase “first woman” belongs to the mythic tradition, not to a historical or scientific account of human origins. Pandora is also sometimes described in later retellings as the first mortal woman, although ancient versions vary in how directly they classify her. The familiar English expression “Pandora’s box” comes from a later translation tradition; Hesiod’s original story describes a large storage jar rather than a box.
Pandora should not be confused with Eve, the first woman in the biblical creation story. They are separate figures from different traditions, though both stories have influenced later discussions of curiosity, responsibility, and the origins of human troubles.