Clotho (/ˈkloʊθoʊ/; Greek: Κλωθώ) is the youngest of the Three Fates or Moirai – including her sisters Lachesis and Atropos, in ancient Greek mythology. Her Roman equivalent is Nona. Clotho was responsible for spinning the thread of human life. She also made major decisions, such as when a person was born, thus in effect controlling people's lives. This power enabled her not only to choose who was born, but also to decide when gods or mortals were to be saved or put to death. For example, when Pelops was killed and boiled by his father, it was Clotho who brought him back to life.
As one of the three fates her contribution to mythology was immense. Clotho, along with her sisters and Hermes, was given credit for creating the alphabet for their people. Even though Clotho and her sisters were real goddesses, their representation of fate is more focused upon in Greek mythology. Thread represented human life and her decisions represented the fate of all people in society.
According to Hesiod's Theogony, Clotho and her sisters (Atropos and Lachesis) were the daughters of Erebus (Darkness) and Nyx (Night), though later in the same work (ll. 901-906) they are said to have been born of Zeus and Themis. Clotho is also mentioned in the tenth book of the Republic of Plato as the daughter of Necessity. In Roman mythology it was believed that she was daughter of Uranus and Gaia.