[1] It is named after the Greek mythological Ananke, the personification of necessity, and the mother of the Moirai (Fates) by Zeus.

Ananke did not receive its present name[9] until 1975;[10] before then, it was simply known as Jupiter XII.

The diagram illustrates Ananke's orbit in relation to other retrograde irregular satellites of Jupiter.

The eccentricity of selected orbits is represented by the yellow segments (extending from the pericentre to the apocentre).

[15][16] In the visible spectrum, Ananke appears neutral to light-red (colour indices B-V=0.90 V-R=0.38).