Her Origins May Be Traced To Other More Ancient Goddesses

According to legend, Aphrodite fell in love with Anchises and had a son named Aeneas with him. Aeneas was one of Troy's fiercest fighters, helping many civilians flee the Greeks after the city fell. After that, Aeneas went far and wide until he arrived at the site where Rome was established. He was the ancestor of the two founders of Rome, Remus and Romulus.

Aphrodite's religion in ancient Greece appears to have been influenced (at least in part) by more ancient Near Eastern deities such as Sumer and the Akkadians. The goddesses Inanna (Sumerian) and Itar (Akkadian) were significant deities in the Mesopotamian pantheon, and their devotion lasted for millennia before the arrival of the Ancient Greeks. These gods would subsequently inspire the religion of the Goddess Astarte in Phoenicia, who was worshiped from the Bronze Age until classical antiquity. These ancient gods were linked to battle, justice, and political authority, in addition to love, beauty, and sex. In the ether, they were usually identified with Venus, the morning and evening star.