In Greek mythology, Laertes (/leɪˈɜːrtiːz/; Greek: Λαέρτης, Laértēs Greek pronunciation: [laː.ér.tɛːs]; also spelled Laërtes) was the father of Odysseus, an Argonaut, and a participant in the hunt for the Calydonian Boar. His title was King of the Cephallenians, an ethnic group who lived both on the Ionian islands and on the mainland, which he presumably inherited from his father Arcesius and grandfather Cephalus. His realm included Ithaca and surrounding islands, and perhaps even the neighboring part of the mainland of other Greek city-states.