In Greek mythology, Clotho is the Moirai who spins the thread of life. Her spinning begins the symbolic thread representing a person's life and destiny.
Clotho works alongside her two sisters, Lachesis and Atropos. Lachesis measures or assigns the portion of life, while Atropos cuts the thread when life ends. Together, the three Fates represent the beginning, course, and conclusion of human existence. Their names help explain their roles: Clotho is associated with spinning, Lachesis with allotment, and Atropos with that which cannot be turned or changed.
The Moirai were powerful figures because fate could apply even to gods. Ancient sources give different accounts of their parentage. Hesiod's Theogony presents them in one passage as daughters of Nyx, or Night, and elsewhere as daughters of Zeus and Themis. Plato's Republic instead connects them with Ananke, the personification of necessity.
Clotho is sometimes confused with Lachesis because both are associated with the thread. The key distinction is simple: Clotho spins it, Lachesis measures it, and Atropos cuts it.