A town in Boiotia noted for the worship of the goddess, Athene as Alalkomenean Athene.
Some translators chose to interpret Alalkomenean Athene as a reference to Athene the Guardian or Defender. However, the appellation Alalkomenean might stem from the worship of Athene at Alalkomenae, a town in Boiotia.
The geographer Strabo conjectured that the town of Alalkomenae was the birthplace of Athene. As proof, he points out the way in which Homer introduced Alalkomenae in the Iliad. Strabo sincerely believed Homer was never arbitrary and his phrasing of "Argive Hera and Alalkomenean Athene" was subtle but definitive. Since Argos was known to be the birthplace of Hera, it would follow that Alalkomenae was the birthplace of Athene. Also, the defenseless town with its humble temple was never destroyed or pillaged by warring factions because it was known to be a very sacred place.
| References: Homer, Iliad book 4, line 8; book 5, line 907 Strabo, Geography 9.2.36 |