In Greek mythology, who was the Minotaur’s mother?

In Greek mythology, Pasiphae was the Minotaur’s mother.

Pasiphae was a daughter of the sun god Helios and the wife of Minos, king of Crete. According to the myth, Poseidon sent Minos a magnificent white bull. When Minos failed to sacrifice it as promised, Poseidon caused Pasiphae to develop a desire for the animal.

Daedalus constructed a wooden cow so Pasiphae could approach the bull. Their union produced the Minotaur, a creature with a human body and a bull’s head. Minos then ordered Daedalus to build the Labyrinth to hide and contain the child.

The story is a mythological explanation for the Minotaur’s unusual parentage, not a historical account. Pasiphae also appears in other traditions as a powerful prophetic or magical figure. She is distinct from Europa, another woman associated with Crete and the ancestry of the Cretan royal family.