Who is the mother of Hermes?

Who is the mother of Hermes? Maia.

In Greek mythology, Maia is one of the seven Pleiades, daughters of the Titan Atlas and the Oceanid Pleione. She is associated with Mount Cyllene in Arcadia, where she lived in a cave and gave birth to Hermes after Zeus visited her secretly. Maia is therefore Hermes's mother, while Zeus is his father.

The best-known account appears in the Homeric Hymn to Hermes. It describes Maia as a secluded figure who cared for her rapidly maturing infant. On the very day of his birth, Hermes escaped, stole cattle belonging to his half-brother Apollo, and created the first lyre from a tortoise shell. Maia initially refused to believe Apollo's accusation, adding a comic family dimension to the story.

Maia is sometimes confused with the Roman goddess Maia, but the traditions are closely connected: Roman writers identified the Greek Maia with a Roman deity and associated Hermes with Mercury. Hermes's parentage remains the same in the standard mythological tradition.