In
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of ancient Greek folklore, today absorbed alongside Roman mythology into the broader designation of classical mythology. These stories conc ...
, Helice ( (modern ;
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...
: ''Helike'') means "willow") was a name shared by several women:
* Helice, nurse of the god
Zeus
Zeus (, ) is the chief deity of the List of Greek deities, Greek pantheon. He is a sky father, sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus.
Zeus is the child ...
during his infancy on
Crete
Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...
together with her sister
Aex AEX may refer to:
* AEX index (Amsterdam Exchange index), a stock market index
* ISO 639:aex, a spurious-language code retired in 2008
* Alexandria International Airport (Louisiana)
Alexandria International Airport is a public use airport lo ...
.
Hyginus
Hyginus may refer to:
People
*Hyginus, the author of the '' Fabulae'', an important ancient Latin source for Greek mythology.
*Hyginus, the author of the ''Astronomia'', a popular ancient Latin guide on astronomy, probably the same as the author ...
, ''De astronomia
__NOTOC__
''De astronomia'' (; ''Concerning Astronomy'') is a book of stories written in Latin, probably during the reign of Augustus ( 27 BC AD 14). Attributed to "Hyginus", the book's true author has been long debated. However, the art histor ...
'
2.13.5
/ref> Her name suggests that she was a "willow
Willows, also called sallows and osiers, of the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 350 species (plus numerous hybrids) of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions.
Most species are known ...
-nymph
A nymph (; ; sometimes spelled nymphe) is a minor female nature deity in ancient Greek folklore. Distinct from other Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature; they are typically tied to a specific place, land ...
", just as there were oak
An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...
-tree nymphs and ash-nymphs (Dryad
A dryad (; , sing. ) is an oak tree nymph or oak tree spirit in Greek mythology; ''Drys'' (δρῦς) means "tree", and more specifically " oak" in Greek. Today the term is often used to refer to tree nymphs in general.
Types
Daphnaie
Thes ...
s and Meliae
In Greek mythology, the Meliae (also called Meliads) (; or ) were usually considered to be the nymphs of the ash tree, whose name they shared.
Mythology
According to Hesiod, the Meliae (probably meaning all tree-nymphs) were born from the dr ...
). It is likely that she is the same as Ide. When Cronus
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Cronus, Cronos, or Kronos ( or ; ) was the leader and youngest of the Titans, the children of Gaia (Earth) and Uranus (mythology), Uranus (Sky). He overthrew his father and ruled dur ...
once came to Crete in search of Zeus, the young god hid himself and his nurses by turning them into bears, as he became a serpent. Later, when he became king, he made them both constellations, Helice becoming Ursa Major, while Cynosura became Ursa Minor
Ursa Minor (, contrasting with Ursa Major), also known as the Little Bear, is a constellation located in the far northern celestial hemisphere, northern sky. As with the Great Bear, the tail of the Little Bear may also be seen as the handle of ...
. Helice, in antiquity, was a common proper name for the constellation
A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms Asterism (astronomy), a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object.
The first constellati ...
Ursa Major. In one version, Demeter
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Demeter (; Attic Greek, Attic: ''Dēmḗtēr'' ; Doric Greek, Doric: ''Dāmā́tēr'') is the Twelve Olympians, Olympian goddess of the harvest and agriculture, presiding over cro ...
asks the stars whether they know anything about her daughter Persephone
In ancient Greek mythology and Ancient Greek religion, religion, Persephone ( ; , classical pronunciation: ), also called Kore ( ; ) or Cora, is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. She became the queen of the Greek underworld, underworld afte ...
's abduction, and Helice tells her to ask Helios
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Helios (; ; Homeric Greek: ) is the god who personification, personifies the Sun. His name is also Latinized as Helius, and he is often given the epithets Hyperion ("the one above") an ...
, who knows the deeds of the day, because the night is blameless and knows nothing. Another account relates that Helice and her sister Aex were the nymph-daughters of Olenus
In Greek mythology and Roman mythology, Olenus (; Ancient Greek: Ὤλενος ''Olenos'') was the name of several individuals:
*Olenus, son of Vulcan and father of Helice and Aex, two nurses of infant Jove. A city in Aulis was named for him. ...
, son of Hephaestus
Hephaestus ( , ; wikt:Hephaestus#Alternative forms, eight spellings; ) is the Greek god of artisans, blacksmiths, carpenters, craftsmen, fire, metallurgy, metalworking, sculpture and volcanoes.Walter Burkert, ''Greek Religion'' 1985: III.2. ...
. It was said that the trio gave their names to the following cities— Olenus
In Greek mythology and Roman mythology, Olenus (; Ancient Greek: Ὤλενος ''Olenos'') was the name of several individuals:
*Olenus, son of Vulcan and father of Helice and Aex, two nurses of infant Jove. A city in Aulis was named for him. ...
in Aulis, Helice in the Peloponnesus
The Peloponnese ( ), Peloponnesus ( ; , ) or Morea (; ) is a peninsula and geographic regions of Greece, geographic region in Southern Greece, and the southernmost region of the Balkans. It is connected to the central part of the country by the ...
, and Aex in Haemonia.
* Helike, a nymph who became the wife of King Oenopion
In Greek mythology, Oenopion (Ancient Greek language, Ancient Greek: , ''Oinopíōn'', English language, English translation: "wine drinker", "wine-rich" or "wine face") was a legendary king of Chios, and was said to have brought winemaking to th ...
of Chios
Chios (; , traditionally known as Scio in English) is the fifth largest Greece, Greek list of islands of Greece, island, situated in the northern Aegean Sea, and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, tenth largest island in the Medi ...
and mother by him of Melas, Talus, Maron
Maron, also called Maroun or Maro (, '; , '; ; ), was a 4th-century Syriac Christian hermit monk in the Taurus Mountains whose followers, after his death, founded a religious Christian movement that became known as the Maronite Church, in full ...
, Euanthes, Salagus, Athamas
In Greek mythology, Athamas (; ) was a Boeotian king. Apollodorus1.9.1/ref>
Family
Athamas was formerly a Thessalian prince and the son of King Aeolus of Aeolia and Enarete, daughter of Deimachus. He was the brother of Salmoneus, Sisyph ...
and Merope (Aero
Aero is a Greek prefix relating to flight and air. In British English, it is used as an adjective related to flight (e.g., as a shortened substitute for aeroplane).
Aero, Ærø, or Aeros may refer to:
Aeronautics Airlines and companies
* Aero (A ...
).[ Parthenius]
20
/ref>
* Helike, an Aegialian princess as the only daughter of King Selinus
Selinunte ( , ; ; ; ) was a rich and extensive ancient Greek city of Magna Graecia on the south-western coast of Sicily in Italy. It was situated between the valleys of the Cottone and Modione rivers. It now lies in the of Castelvetrano, b ...
who wed her with Ion
An ion () is an atom or molecule with a net electrical charge. The charge of an electron is considered to be negative by convention and this charge is equal and opposite to the charge of a proton, which is considered to be positive by convent ...
. By the latter, she became the mother of Bura. Later on, Ion built a city
A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
which he named after Helice.[Pausanias]
7.1.4
/ref>
Notes
References
* Aratus Solensis, ''Phaenomena'' translated by G. R. Mair. Loeb Classical Library Volume 129. London: William Heinemann, 1921
Online version at the Topos Text Project.
* Aratus Solensis, ''Phaenomena''. G. R. Mair. London: William Heinemann; New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons. 1921
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library
* 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, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1918.
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
* Pausanias, ''Graeciae Descriptio.'' ''3 vols''. Leipzig, Teubner. 1903.
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library
{{Greek myth index
Queens in Greek mythology
Princesses in Greek mythology
Deeds of Demeter
Metamorphoses into animals in Greek mythology
Helios in mythology
Deeds of Zeus
Ursa Major