Semystra () or Semestra was a

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 ...

, 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 ...

Mythology

Semystra nurtured

Keroessa In Greek mythology, Ceroessa (Ancient Greek: Κερόεσσα ''Keroessa'' means "the horned") was a heroine of the foundational myth of Byzantium. She was the daughter of Io and Zeus; elder sister of Epaphus; and mother of Byzas, founder of Byzant ...

, daughter of Io and

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 ...

. Keroessa's mother gave birth at Semystra's altar and left the baby there in order to protect her from

Hera In ancient Greek religion, Hera (; ; in Ionic Greek, Ionic and Homeric Greek) is the goddess of marriage, women, and family, and the protector of women during childbirth. In Greek mythology, she is queen of the twelve Olympians and Mount Oly ...

. Semystra found the infant and raised her.Dionysius of Byzantium, Anaplous of the Bosporos, §24
/ref>Anaplous Bosporou. Dionysii Byzantii De Bospori navigatione quae supersunt; una cum supplementis in geographos graecos minores aliisque ejusdem argumenti fragmentis e codicibus MSS. edidit Carolus Wescher, p.12
/ref> According to a legend, Semystra was also the mother of

Byzas Byzas (Ancient Greek: Βύζας, ''Býzas'') was the legendary founder of Byzantium (Ancient Greek: Βυζάντιον, ''Byzántion''), the city later known as Constantinople and then Istanbul. Background The legendary history of the founding ...

, who was the founder of

Byzantium Byzantium () or Byzantion () was an ancient Greek city in classical antiquity that became known as Constantinople in late antiquity and Istanbul today. The Greek name ''Byzantion'' and its Latinization ''Byzantium'' continued to be used as a n ...

.Anca Dan. The Europeans Shores of the Bosporus. I∆ΥMA MEIZOOΣ EΛΛHIΣMOΥ. Eγκυκλoπαιδϵια M ϵιζoνoς Eλληνισμoυ, Kωνσταντ ινoυπoλη, 2008. ffhal-02435580f, p. 4
/ref> The city of Semystra was named after her and there was an altar of her there.

References

Nymphs {{Greek-deity-stub