Eileithyia or Ilithyiae or Ilithyia (; grc-gre, Εἰλείθυια; (''Eleuthyia'') in

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...

, also (''Eleuthia'') or (''Elysia'') in

Laconia Laconia or Lakonia ( el, Λακωνία, , ) is a historical and administrative region of Greece located on the southeastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. Its administrative capital is Sparta. The word '' laconic''—to speak in a blunt, c ...

and Messene, and (''Eleuthō'') in literature)Nilsson Vol I, p. 313 was the

Greek goddess A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities of de ...

childbirth Childbirth, also known as labour and delivery, is the ending of pregnancy where one or more babies exits the internal environment of the mother via vaginal delivery or caesarean section. In 2019, there were about 140.11 million births glob ...

and midwifery, and the daughter of

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label= genitive Boeotian Aeolic and Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label= genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek relig ...

and

Hera In ancient Greek religion, Hera (; grc-gre, Ἥρα, Hḗrā; grc, Ἥρη, Hḗrē, label=none in Ionic and Homeric Greek) is the goddess of marriage, women and family, and the protector of women during childbirth. In Greek mythology, she ...

. In the cave of

Amnisos Amnisos, also Amnissos and Amnisus (Greek: or ; Linear B: 𐀀𐀖𐀛𐀰 ''A-mi-ni-so''), is the current but unattested name given to a Bronze Age settlement on the north shore of Crete that was used as a port to the palace city of Knossos. I ...

(

) she was related with the annual birth of the divine child, and her cult is connected with ''Enesidaon'' (the earth shaker), who was the

chthonic The word chthonic (), or chthonian, is derived from the Ancient Greek word ''χθών, "khthon"'', meaning earth or soil. It translates more directly from χθόνιος or "in, under, or beneath the earth" which can be differentiated from Γῆ ...

aspect of the god

Poseidon Poseidon (; grc-gre, Ποσειδῶν) was one of the Twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and myth, god of the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 In pre-Olympian Bronze Age Greece, he was venerated as ...

. It is possible that her cult is related with the cult of

Eleusis Elefsina ( el, Ελευσίνα ''Elefsina''), or Eleusis (; Ancient Greek: ''Eleusis'') is a suburban city and municipality in the West Attica regional unit of Greece. It is situated about northwest from the centre of Athens and is part of i ...

. In his ''Seventh Nemean Ode'',

Pindar Pindar (; grc-gre, Πίνδαρος , ; la, Pindarus; ) was an Ancient Greek lyric poet from Thebes. Of the canonical nine lyric poets of ancient Greece, his work is the best preserved. Quintilian wrote, "Of the nine lyric poets, Pindar ...

refers to her as the maid to or seated beside the Moirai (Fates) and responsible for the creation of offspring. Her son was Sosipolis, who was worshiped at Elis.

Etymology

The earliest form of the name is the

Mycenaean Greek Mycenaean Greek is the most ancient attested form of the Greek language, on the Greek mainland and Crete in Mycenaean Greece (16th to 12th centuries BC), before the hypothesised Dorian invasion, often cited as the '' terminus ad quem'' for th ...

, ''e-re-u-ti-ja'', written in the

Linear B Linear B was a syllabic script used for writing in Mycenaean Greek, the earliest attested form of Greek. The script predates the Greek alphabet by several centuries. The oldest Mycenaean writing dates to about 1400 BC. It is descended from ...

syllabic script. Ilithyia is the latinisation of '. The etymology of the name is uncertain, but debated among scholars. R. S. P. Beekes suggests a not

Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Du ...

etymology, and Nilsson believes that the name is Pre-Greek.Nilsson Vol I, p. 313 19th-century scholars suggested that the name is Greek, derived from the verb ''eleutho'' ''()'', "to bring", the goddess thus meaning ''The Bringer''.

Walter Burkert Walter Burkert (; 2 February 1931 – 11 March 2015) was a German scholar of Greek mythology and cult. A professor of classics at the University of Zurich, Switzerland, he taught in the UK and the US. He has influenced generations of studen ...

believes that ''Eileithyia'' is the Greek goddess of birth and that her name is pure Greek.Walter Burkert (1985) '' Greek Religion''. Harvard University Press
p.171
/ref> However, the relation with the Greek prefix ' is uncertain, because the prefix appears in some pre-Greek

toponyms Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of '' toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...

like ' ( Eleutherna); therefore it is possible that the name is pre-Greek. Her name ' (''Elysia'') in

and Messene, probably relates her with the month ''Eleusinios'' and

. Nilsson also believes that the name "Eleusis" is pre-Greek.

Origins

According to F. Willets, the goddess shows a clear connection to a pre-existing Minoan goddess, as well as an earlier Neolithic concept. Eileithyia's guidance in childbirth may give influence of the first midwife. To

Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...

, she is "the goddess of childbirth". The ''

Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Ody ...

'' pictures Eileithyia alone, or sometimes multiplied, as the Eileithyiai:

Hesiod Hesiod (; grc-gre, Ἡσίοδος ''Hēsíodos'') was an ancient Greek poet generally thought to have been active between 750 and 650 BC, around the same time as Homer. He is generally regarded by western authors as 'the first written poet i ...

(c. 700 BC) described Eileithyia as a daughter of Hera by

(''Theogony'' 921)Hesiod'', Theogony'
912–923
—and the '' Bibliotheca'' (Roman-era) and

Diodorus Siculus Diodorus Siculus, or Diodorus of Sicily ( grc-gre, Διόδωρος ; 1st century BC), was an ancient Greek historian. He is known for writing the monumental universal history '' Bibliotheca historica'', in forty books, fifteen of which ...

(c. 90–27 BC) (5.72.5) agreed. Also, a poem at the

Greek Anthology The ''Greek Anthology'' ( la, Anthologia Graeca) is a collection of poems, mostly epigrams, that span the Classical and Byzantine periods of Greek literature. Most of the material of the ''Greek Anthology'' comes from two manuscripts, the ' ...

Book 6, mention Eileithyia as Hera's daughter. But Pausanias, writing in the 2nd century AD, reported another early source (now lost): "The

Lycia Lycia ( Lycian: 𐊗𐊕𐊐𐊎𐊆𐊖 ''Trm̃mis''; el, Λυκία, ; tr, Likya) was a state or nationality that flourished in Anatolia from 15–14th centuries BC (as Lukka) to 546 BC. It bordered the Mediterranean Sea in what is ...

n Olen, an earlier poet, who composed for the Delians, among other hymns, one to Eileithyia, styles her as ' the clever spinner', clearly identifying her with the ''Fate''s, thus making her older than

Cronus In Ancient Greek religion and mythology, Cronus, Cronos, or Kronos ( or , from el, Κρόνος, ''Krónos'') was the leader and youngest of the first generation of Titans, the divine descendants of the primordial Gaia (Mother Earth) an ...

." Pausanias
6.20.
/ref> Being the youngest born to

Gaia In Greek mythology, Gaia (; from Ancient Greek , a poetical form of , 'land' or 'earth'),, , . also spelled Gaea , is the personification of the Earth and one of the Greek primordial deities. Gaia is the ancestral mother—sometimes parthen ...

, Cronus was a Titan of the first generation and he was identified as the father of Zeus. Likewise, the meticulously accurate mythographer

(522–443 BC) also makes no mention of Zeus: Later, for the Classical Greeks, "She is closely associated with

Artemis In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Artemis (; grc-gre, Ἄρτεμις) is the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, care of children, and chastity. She was heavily identified with ...

and

," Burkert asserts, "but develops no character of her own". In the

Orphic Hymn Orpheus (; Ancient Greek: Ὀρφεύς, classical pronunciation: ; french: Orphée) is a Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet in ancient Greek religion. He was also a renowned poet and, according to the legend, travelled with Jason ...

to Prothyraeia, virginal Artemis is given an epithet relating to the goddess of childbirth, making the divine huntress also "she who comes to the aid of women in childbirth," Eileithyia is commonly in classical Greek art most often depicted assisting childbirth. Vase-painters, when illustrating the birth of

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of v ...

from Zeus' head, may show two assisting Eileithyiai, with their hands raised in the epiphany gesture.

The Beauty of Durrës The Beauty of Durrës (also called The Beautiful Maiden of Durrës or The Belle of Durrës) is a polychromatic mosaic of the 4th century BC and is the most ancient and important mosaic discovered in Albania.BANK OF ALBANICoin with “The Beauty ...

, a large 4th-century B.C.E. mosaic shows the head figure of a woman, probably portrays the goddess Eileithyia.

Cult

As the primary goddess of childbirth along with

, Eileithyia had numerous shrines in many locations in Greece dating from Neolithic to Roman times, indicating that she was extremely important to pregnant women and their families. People would pray for and leave offerings for aid in fertility, safe childbirth, or give appreciation for a successful birth. Archaeological evidence of terracotta votive figurines depict children found at shrines, and holy sites dedicated to Eileithyia suggest that she was a kourotrophic divinity, whom parents would have prayed to for protection and care of their children. Midwives had an essential role in ancient Greek society, with women of all classes participating in the profession - many being slaves with only empirical training or some theoretical training in obstetrics and gynecology. More highly educated midwives, typically from higher classes, were referred to as ''iatrenes'' or doctors of women's diseases and would be respected as physicians. She was invoked by women in labour, to ease the pain of labour, and to further the birth.

Callimachus Callimachus (; ) was an ancient Greek poet, scholar and librarian who was active in Alexandria during the 3rd century BC. A representative of Ancient Greek literature of the Hellenistic period, he wrote over 800 literary works in a wide varie ...

recorded the hymn: She was strongly connected with the goddesses Artemis and Hekate, the latter of whom she shared strong chthonic elements to her cult.

Achaea

Pausanias described a sanctuary to the goddess in the city of Aigion, and the cult associated with it: "At Aigion n Akhaiais an ancient sanctuary of Eileithyia, and her image is covered from head to foot with finely-woven drapery; it is of wood except the face, hands and feet, which are made of Pentelic marble. One hand is stretched out straight; the other holds up a torch. One might conjecture that torches are an attribute of Eileithyia because the pangs of women are just like fire. The torches might also be explained by the fact that it is Eileithyia who brings children to the light." Aside from the sanctuary in the city of Aigion, Pausanias also noted that there were temples to the goddess in the towns of Boura and Pellene in Achaea.

Arcadia

Pausanias described two sanctuaries to the goddess in Arcadia, one in the town of Kleitor and the other one in Tegea. In Kleitor, she was worshipped as one of the most important deities, along with Demeter and Asklepios, and her sanctuary the most important one alongside the other two.

Argos

Offerings were often given to the goddess Eileithyia within the ten days following a child's birth Pausanias describes a sanctuary to her in the city of Argos, and the myth associated with it: "Near the Lords anctuary of the Dioskouroi at Argosis a sanctuary of Eilethyia, dedicated by Helene when, Theseus having gone away with Peirithous to Thesprotia, Aphidna had been captured by the Dioskouroi and Helen was being brought to Lakedaimon. For it is said that she was with child, was delivered in Argos, and founded the sanctuary of Eilethyia, giving the daughter she bore to Klytaimnestra, who was already wedded to Agamemnon." Pausanias noted a shrine to her i Mycenae, and an important shrine in Mases in Argolis: " t Mases, Argosthere is a sanctuary of Eileithyia within the wall. Every day, both with sacrifices and with incense, they magnificently propitiate the goddess, and, moreover, there is a vast number of votive gifts offered to Eileithyia. But the image no one may see, except, perhaps, the priestesses."

Athens

There were ancient icons of Eileithyia at Athens, one said to have been brought from Crete, according to Pausanias, who mentioned shrines to Eileithyia in

Tegea Tegea (; el, Τεγέα) was a settlement in ancient Arcadia, and it is also a former municipality in Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the Tripoli municipality, of which it is a municipal un ...

and Argos, with an extremely important shrine in Aigion. Eileithyia, along with Artemis and

Persephone In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Persephone ( ; gr, Περσεφόνη, Persephónē), also called Kore or Cora ( ; gr, Κόρη, Kórē, the maiden), is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. She became the queen of the underworld aft ...

, is often shown carrying torches to bring children out of darkness and into light: in

Roman mythology Roman mythology is the body of myths of ancient Rome as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans. One of a wide variety of genres of Roman folklore, ''Roman mythology'' may also refer to the modern study of these representa ...

her counterpart in easing labor is Lucina ("of the light"). Pausanias noted: :" ear the Prytaneion or Town Hall of Athensis a temple of Eileithyia, who they say came from the Hyperboreans to Delos and helped Leto in her labour; and from Delos the name spread to other peoples. The Delians sacrifice to Eileithyia and sing a hymn of Olen. But the Kretans suppose that Eileithyia was born at Amnisos in the Knossian territory

n Krete N, or n, is the fourteenth letter in the Latin alphabet The Latin alphabet or Roman alphabet is the collection of letters originally used by the ancient Romans to write the Latin language. Largely unaltered with the exception of exten ...

and that Hera was her mother. Only among the Athenians are the wooden figures of Eileithyia draped to the feet. The women told me that two are Kretan, being offerings of Phaidra aughter of the mythical King Minos of Krete and that the third, which is the oldest, Erysikhthon n early king of Athensbrought from Delos."

Corinth

Pausanias noted a sanctuary in Corinth: "When you have turned from the Akrokorinthos t Korinthosinto the mountain road you see the Teneatic gate and a sanctuary of Eileithyia."

Crete

The Cave of Eileithyia near

, the harbor of

Knossos Knossos (also Cnossos, both pronounced ; grc, Κνωσός, Knōsós, ; Linear B: ''Ko-no-so'') is the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete and has been called Europe's oldest city. Settled as early as the Neolithic period, the na ...

, mentioned in the ''

Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the '' Iliad'', ...

'' (xix.189) in connection with her cult, was accounted the birthplace of Eileithyia. In the river nearby also named Amnisos, lived nymphs that were sacred to Eileithyia named Amnisades and Amnisabes. The Cretan cave has stalactites suggestive of the goddess' double form (Kerenyi 1976 fig. 6), of bringing labor on and of delaying it, and votive offerings to her have been found establishing the continuity of her cult from Neolithic times, with a revival as late as the Roman period. Here she was probably being worshipped before Zeus arrived in the Aegean, but certainly in Minoan–Mycenaean times. The goddess is mentioned as Eleuthia in a

fragment from Knossos, where it is stated that her temple is given an amphora of honey.Walter Burkert (1985) '' Greek Religion''. Harvard University Press
p.26
/ref> In the cave of

(Crete) the god ''Enesidaon'' (the "earth shaker", who is the chthonic

) is related with the cult of Eileithyia. She was related with the annual birth of the divine child. The goddess of nature and her companion survived in the Eleusinian cult, where the following words were uttered: "Mighty Potnia bore a strong son." In classical times, there were shrines to Eileithyia in the Cretan cities of Lato and Eleutherna and a sacred cave at Inatos. At a sanctuary in Tsoutsouros Inatos, two small terracotta figures, one breastfeeding and the other pregnant, have been dated to the 7th century.

Delos

According to the Homeric Hymn III to Delian Apollo, Hera detained Eileithyia, who was coming from the Hyperboreans in the far north, to prevent Leto from going into labor with Artemis and Apollo, since the father was her husband Zeus. Hera was jealous of Zeus's affairs and tended to enact revenge upon the women. The other goddesses present at the birthing on Delos had sent

Iris Iris most often refers to: *Iris (anatomy), part of the eye *Iris (mythology), a Greek goddess * ''Iris'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants * Iris (color), an ambiguous color term Iris or IRIS may also refer to: Arts and media Fictional ent ...

to bring Eileithyia forth. As she stepped upon the island, the birth began. This hymn is contradicted by

Theogony The ''Theogony'' (, , , i.e. "the genealogy or birth of the gods") is a poem by Hesiod (8th–7th century BC) describing the origins and genealogies of the Greek gods, composed . It is written in the Epic dialect of Ancient Greek and contain ...

, where Apollo and Artemis are born before Hera's marriage to Zeus, and therefore neither Hera or Eileithyia are mentioned interfering with the birth of the twins. On Delos, a shrine was dedicated to Eileithyia, and was worshipped in a mid-winter festival the named ''Eileithyaea''. It was said by

that the hymn sung during festival was the same as that sung by nymphs at Apollo's birth. This cult likely goes back to the Archaic period, and the cult was associated with other local Delian childbirth deities associated with Artemis, Opis and Arge.

Eretriam

Archaeologists uncovered a sanctuary dedicated to Eileithyia at

Eretria Eretria (; el, Ερέτρια, , grc, Ἐρέτρια, , literally 'city of the rowers') is a town in Euboea, Greece, facing the coast of Attica across the narrow South Euboean Gulf. It was an important Greek polis in the 6th and 5th centur ...

. The sanctuary had been placed in the northwestern section of a gymnasium.

Messene

Pausanias noted that "The Messenians have a temple erected to Eileithyia t Messene, Messeniawith a stone statue."

Olympia

On the Greek mainland, at Olympia, an archaic shrine with an inner

cella A cella (from Latin for small chamber) or naos (from the Greek ναός, "temple") is the inner chamber of an ancient Greek or Roman temple in classical antiquity. Its enclosure within walls has given rise to extended meanings, of a hermit's or ...

sacred to the serpent-savior of the city ('' Sosipolis'') and to Eileithyia was seen by the traveler Pausanias in the 2nd century AD (''Greece'' vi.20.1–3); in it, a virgin-priestess cared for a

serpent Serpent or The Serpent may refer to: * Snake, a carnivorous reptile of the suborder Serpentes Mythology and religion * Sea serpent, a monstrous ocean creature * Serpent (symbolism), the snake in religious rites and mythological contexts * Serp ...

that was "fed" on honeyed barley-cakes and water—an offering suited to Demeter. The shrine memorialized the appearance of a crone with a babe in arms, at a crucial moment when Elians were threatened by forces from Arcadia. The child, placed on the ground between the contending forces, changed into a serpent, driving the Arcadians away in flight, before it disappeared into the hill.

Paros

Eileithyia had a cult south of the Mount Kounados on the Cycladic Island of

Paros Paros (; el, Πάρος; Venetian: ''Paro'') is a Greek island in the central Aegean Sea. One of the Cyclades island group, it lies to the west of Naxos, from which it is separated by a channel about wide. It lies approximately south-east of ...

, where a cave with a natural spring functioned as an informal sanctuary. Numerous artifacts have been found, such as pottery, bronze pieces, and marble plaques, which indicate use of the site from the

Geometric period Geometric art is a phase of Greek art, characterized largely by geometric motifs in vase painting, that flourished towards the end of the Greek Dark Ages, . Its center was in Athens, and from there the style spread among the trading cities of th ...

to the

Roman period The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post- Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediter ...

. It has been theorized that the site was used for prayers for both female and male fertility, based on the type of offerings that have been found.

Sparta

There was a sanctuary dedicated to Eileithyia near the Sanctuary of Artemis Orthia, which Pausanias noted: "Not far from Orthia he temple of Artemis in Sparta, Lakedaimonis a sanctuary of Eileithyia. They say that they built it, and came to worship Eileithyia as a goddess, because of an oracle from Delphoi."Pausanias, Description of Greece 3. 17. 1

Genealogy

Notes

References

* Baur, Paul Victor Christopher, 1872. (1902). ''Eileithyia''. University of Missouri, 1902. * Beekes, R. S. P., ''Etymological Dictionary of Greek'', Brill, 2009. * Burkert, Walter, ''Greek Religion'', 1985. * Bury, R. G., The Symposium of Plato. Cambridge. W. Heffer and Sons. 1909
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
*

. Works. A.W. Mair. London: William Heinemann; New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons. 1921
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
* Gantz, Timothy, ''Early Greek Myth: A Guide to Literary and Artistic Sources'', Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996, Two volumes: (Vol. 1), (Vol. 2). * Graves, Robert, ''The Greek Myths'', 1955. *

Herodotus Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria (Italy). He is known fo ...

, ''The Histories'' ''with an English translation by A. D. Godley''. Cambridge.

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the retir ...

. 1920
Online Version at the Perseus Digital Library
*

, ''

'', in ''The Homeric Hymns and Homerica with an English Translation by Hugh G. Evelyn-White'', Cambridge, Massachusetts., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1914
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
* ''

, Homeric Hymn to Apollo, in The Homeric Hymns and Homerica with an English Translation by Hugh G. Evelyn-White.'' Homeric Hymns. Cambridge, MA.,

; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1914
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
*

, ''The Iliad with an English Translation by A. T. Murray, Ph.D., in two volumes''. Cambridge, Massachusetts., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1924
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
*

; ''The Odyssey with an English Translation by A. T. Murray, Ph.D., in two volumes''. Cambridge, Massachusetts., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1919
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
* Kerenyi, Karl, ''Dionysus: Archetypal Image of Indestructible Life'', English translation 1976. * Nilsson, Martin P. (1927) 1950. ''The Minoan-Mycenaean Religion and Its Survival in Greek Religion'' 2nd ed. (Lund"Gleerup). * Pausanias, ''Pausanias Description of Greece with an English Translation by W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., and H. A. Ormerod, M.A., in 4 Volumes.'' Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1918
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
*

, ''Odes, Nemean 7 for Sogenes of Aegina Boys' Pentathlon with an English Translation by Diane Arnson Svarlien''. 1990
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
*

Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...

. Plato in Twelve Volumes, Vols. 10 & 11 translated by R.G. Bury. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1967 & 1968
Online Version at the Perseus Digital Library
* Smith, William, ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography,'' LLD. London. Walton and Maberly, 1854
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
*

Sophocles Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or c ...

: The Plays and Fragments, with critical notes, commentary, and translation in English prose. Part VI: The Electra. Sir Richard C. Jebb. Cambridge. Cambridge University Press. 1894
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
* Willetts, R. F. "Cretan Eileithyia" ''The Classical Quarterly'' New Series, 8.3/4 (November 1958), pp. 221–223

External links

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