List of sirens
[ edit]- Molpe ( Μολπή)
- Thelxiepeia ( Θελξιέπεια) or Thelxiope ( Θελξιόπη) "eye pleasing")
Who are the Sirens in mythology?
Sirens are mythological creatures with the head of women and the body of a bird. They live on an island in the sea luring men to them with their beautiful voices and eating them. Later versions describe them as having fish tails similar to that of mermaids According to legend, the Sirens were young maidens who were friends of Persephone.
Are there male sirens in mythology?
Male sirens existed besides female sirens in early ancient Greek mythology. The male siren was commonly depicted as a half-bird creature similar to the female sirens except that they had beards. However, with time they disappeared and eventually, sirens were only seen as dangerous mermaids.
What is the mythological character of sirens?
Sirens
- Origin. According to legend, the Sirens were young maidens who were friends of Persephone. When Persephone got kidnapped by Hades.
- Myth. The hero Jason sailed past the island of the Sirens on his quest for the Golden Fleece. ...
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Who were the Greek sirens?
The original Sirens were simply people who helped to take care of the Greek goddess Persephone. One day the god of the underworld, Hades, kidnapped Persephone so that she would need to be with him. Persephone’s mother, Demeter, was also a goddess.
Who is the most famous Siren?
ThelxiepeiaWho is the most famous siren? Thelxiepeia (sometimes spelled Thelxiope or Thelxinoe) is the most famous siren. Her name means 'persuasive face'. References to Thelxiepeia can be found in Hesiod, Lycophron, Apollodorus, Hyginus.
Who were the Sirens in Greek mythology?
Siren, in Greek mythology, a creature half bird and half woman who lured sailors to destruction by the sweetness of her song. According to Homer, there were two Sirens on an island in the western sea between Aeaea and the rocks of Scylla.
Who were the first Sirens?
Traditionally, the Sirens were daughters of the river god Achelous and a Muse; it depends on the source which one, but it was undoubtedly one of these three: Terpsichore, Melpomene, or Calliope. However, according to the great tragedian Euripides, the Sirens' mother was actually one of the Pleiades, Sterope.
What island did the Sirens live on?
According to Homer the Sirens lived on an island near Scylla and Charybdis (traditionally located in the Strait of Messina between Italy and Sicily). Here they awaited passing ships and with their lovely music enticed sailors to their doom.
What is a male siren called?
They could be called tritons.
How many Sirens are there?
It is said that only six Sirens can exist at any given time, and when a Siren dies, their powers pass on to another individual....Known Sirens.NameTroy CalypsoAbilityPhaseleech (& Phaselock)RoleTwin brother of Tyreen, God-King of the Children of the VaultStatusDeceasedAppearancesBorderlands 312 more columns
Who killed the sirens?
One legend says that Hera, queen of the gods, persuaded the sirens to enter a singing contest with the Muses. The Muses won the competition and then plucked out all of the sirens' feathers and made crowns out of them.
Do sirens still exist?
Since the 1990s, civil defense sirens have been replaced by electronic sirens and the procedure has been simplified. As of 2013, there are four playable tones: a natural disaster warning, an upcoming air/nuclear strike, an imminent air/nuclear strike, and an "all clear" signal.
What are the sirens symbols?
The Sirens symbolize temptation, desire, and risk. Any man that passes the isle is tempted to stop his ship and listen to the Sirens' sweet sounds.
What are sirens weaknesses?
Weaknesses. Bronze dagger and victim's blood – The only way to kill a siren is to stab it with a bronze dagger dipped into the blood of someone it has infected. The death of a siren releases its victims from its hold. Mirrors – A siren's true face can be seen in a mirror.
What do sirens do to humans?
Generally, they are depicted as beautiful women with the tails of fish, but they can also be shown as scary, humanoid creatures with sharp teeth for tearing apart humans. Sirens are known for luring in sailors with their enchanting songs and then killing them.
Who created sirens?
"The Seirenes (Sirens). They were the daughters of Akhelous (Achelous) and the Mousa (Muse) Melpomene, and their names were Peisinoe, Aglaope, and Thelxiepeia." Apollonius Rhodius, Argonautica 4.
What are the three sirens?
They [the Greeks] imagine that "there were three sirens, part virgins, part birds," with wings and claws. "One of them sang, another played the flute, the third the lyre. They drew sailors, decoyed by song, to shipwreck.
Are harpies and sirens the same?
Sirens and harpies are confused almost as much as sirens and mermaids, usually by giving harpies beautiful or hypnotic voices, a characteristic that only sirens possessed in Greek myth. This is probably due to the harpies often being portrayed as bird-like, and of course birds are well known for singing.
Are sirens and mermaids the same?
Are sirens and mermaids the same? 'Mermaid' and 'siren' are often used interchangeably, but there is actually a distinction between the two, according to legend and literature. Mermaids are half fish, half women who live in the ocean and are typically harmless. Sirens are like evil mermaids.
How are the sirens related to Zeus?
According to Ovid, the famous Roman poet (43 BC – 17/18 AD), the sirens of Greek mythology were handmaidens to Persephone, daughter of Zeus, king of all Greek gods and the Goddess of harvest; Demeter.
What does the name Parthenope mean?
The name Parthenope means 'maiden-voiced' or "the voice of a young woman". References to Parthenope can be found in the Lycophron and Strabo.
Who is Parthenope?
Parthenope is one of the most famous sirens. Her name means 'maiden-voiced'. References to Parthenope can be found in Lycophron and Strabo.
What are the different types of sirens mythology?
References to the sirens can be found in many different ancient Greek texts, including the famous Odyssey by Homer, and the story of Jason and the...
What type of creature is a siren?
A Siren is a mythical monster. In early Greek sources the sirens are pictured as part woman and part bird; however, in some later sources they are...
What is a Siren in Greek mythology?
The sirens are figures from ancient Greek mythology. The sirens were said to be highly dangerous. They lured sailors with their beautiful singing,...
Who is the most famous siren?
Thelxiepeia (sometimes spelled Thelxiope or Thelxinoe) is the most famous siren. Her name means 'persuasive face'. References to Thelxiepeia can b...
What were the original sirens?
They were famous for having such beautiful voices that men would give their lives to listen to them for just a moment. Nor were the original Greek Sirens mermaids.
Where did the sirens come from?
The Origins of the Sirens. The Sirens began their story as a trio of naiads, freshwater nymphs. Their father was Achelous, the god of one of central Greece’s largest rivers. Achelous was most remembered for contesting with Heracles for the love of the beautiful princess Deianira.
Why did Odysseus have his ears stuffed with wax?
While the men would have their ears stuffed with wax to block out the alluring sound, Odysseus could not resist the opportunity to hear the singing that tempted men to their deaths. The ship approached the Sirens’ island with Odysseus firmly bound to the mast.
Why did Ovid claim the siren wings were a gift from Demeter?
Ovid claimed that the Sirens’ wings were a gift from Demeter so the nymphs could help her search the world for her missing daughter. Click To Tweet
What is the island called that the Sirens inhabited?
The island the Sirens inhabited, Anthemusa, was fictional but may have represented a real place. Its name, meaning “flowery isle,” may have given a clue as to its real-world location. Many have placed the Sirens in a collection of small islands today called the Sirenuse.
Why were the Greek Sirens so famous?
They were famous for having such beautiful voices that men would give their lives to listen to them for just a moment. Nor were the original Greek Sirens mermaids. That development came later – the Greeks pictured them as women with the bodies of large birds.
How many ships passed the Sirens?
Two ships, however, managed to pass the Sirens without disaster. Only one sailor in Greek mythology, however, actually heard their song and lived to tell the tail.
What are sirens in art?
The Sirens. The Sirens were creatures that sang beautifully, luring those passing by to their deaths. Each Siren combined the appearance of a woman and a bird, with the exact appearance varying depending on the artist. Some artists drew Sirens that had bodies of birds with the heads of women, while others made them look like women with the legs ...
What is the siren song?
The Sirens are the origin of the term “siren song,” which refers to something that’s hard to resist, but which will end badly. One of the most unique aspects of the Sirens, particularly in Homer’s “The Odyssey,” is how it’s not their appearances that tempt sailors, but their voices.
How did Circe prepare Odysseus for the sirens?
Circe had warned Odysseus prior to the encounter about the dangers of the Sirens, and he prepared his men by having them put beeswax in their ears to block out the song. They then tied Odysseus to the mast of the boat, as he wanted to hear what the Sirens sang about.
What happened to the sirens after Homer?
There have been several stories of the Sirens after Homer, and some authors said that when a person heard the Sirens song and escaped, the Sirens were fated to die. These authors claim that after Odysseus was able to escape the Sirens despite hearing them, that they threw themselves into the sea and died.
How many sirens are there in Homer's Tale?
While Homer’s tale has two Sirens, other myths have reported between two and five Sirens. Their song is both sad and beautiful, and is said to call to Persephone, asking her to return. Those who hear the song can’t resist and are lured to the Sirens location, which ends in their death.
Why do the sirens survive?
The Sirens survived because their divine nature means they don’t need to eat anything. Another appearance of the Sirens takes place in “ Argonautica .”.
Who brought Orpheus to the Sirens?
Jason passes by the Sirens on his journey, but like Odysseus, he too had been warned of their dangerous song, this time by Chiron. Jason brought Orpheus, a musician, poet and prophet, along with his crew. When Orpheus heard the Sirens singing, he played music even more beautiful than their song to drown them out.
Who are the sirens in Greek mythology?
The Greek Sirens: Himerops ("she whose voice awakens desire"), Thelxinow ("the enchantress"), Aglaope ("she of the glorious voice") and Peisinoe ("the seductive." ) (54-55)
What is the legacy of Sirens?
One of the more interesting developements in the legacy of the Sirens comes after Homer has installed them in his epic poem as "malleable" figures. Having appeared as characters with an ambiguous history, others soon arrived to fill in the gaps of knowledge with inventions of their own. It is in this process of rounding out the Sirens that each century seems to imbue them with an extended patrimony, a more complicated history, a love and hate relationship (typical for male scholars centuries after their apprearance still afraid of their potentially destructive power) to this band of Sirens. And poets, philosophers, historians begin by giving them names so as to see them as individual personalities, rather than nameless bird/mermaid/women/temptresses on the shore of a small island of bones and corpses. And along the way the Sirens travel far from Homer's original island -- and become characters and actors in a wide variety of myths and rituals.
Who discovered the island of the sirens?
Hesiod, in his efforts to systamatize mythology (make it logical to himself at least) claims to have discovered the island of the Sirens on his map -- off the west coast of Italy: Antemoessa, "rich in flowers." The continuing confusion between determining the Sirens were "soul catchers" or muses such that Pindar compliments the girls of Thebes "who singing is like that of the Sirens." There is also a wonderful conusion in 8th century B.C. comparing the Sirens' song to those of funeral dirges and by the end of the 4th c BC the foreign enchantresses of the Odyssey had become the respectable personification of the lament for the dead...and they became in their female head and bird shapes as funeral monuments. The highpoint of this "Kitsch" is reached by Alexander the Great who "over the grave of his beloved Hephaestion, raised hollow Siren-figures in which were hidden the musicians who were to make lamentation." (51)
Who demoted flute plaing whores who robbed travellers of their money?
And lastly, in a 12th century commentary on the Odyssey by Eustathius, archbishop of Thessalonica, demoted them even further to "flute plaing whores who robbed travellers of their money." (59)
What are the sirens?
Among these are the Sirens, whose mythology and imagery inspired the modern view of the mermaid. The Sirens used their beautiful singing voices to lure victims to them.
Which mythology is the most famous for the sirens?
The more famous appearance of the Sirens in mythology was in the Odyssey. Odysseus used a much different technique to bypass the danger of the Sirens.
Why are sirens important?
In offering knowledge, the Sirens represented a much different threat than other creatures in mythology. Many scholars believe that this was because they were not simple sea monsters but were closely linked to death. The Sirens were used in funerary art throughout much of Greek history.
What did the sirens promise Odysseus?
In the Odyssey, they did not promise Odysseus physical delights when he heard their song, but wisdom.
What happened to the sirens after Odysseus sailed safely?
They said that the Sirens were fated to die if anyone heard their song without succumbing to it, so after Odysseus sailed safely by they all threw themselves into the sea and drowned.
What did Homer's description of a meadow covered in rotting corpses mean?
Some suggested that their ships sank on the rocks, while Homer’s description of a meadow covered in rotting corpses implied that the Sirens were cannibals.
How many sirens are there in Greek mythology?
There were said to be anywhere from two to eight of them and many sea deities were named as their parents. The Sirens are most well-known from two famous Greek stories that took place on the sea.
Overview
List of sirens
Their number is variously reported as from two to eight. In the Odyssey, Homer says nothing of their origin or names, but gives the number of the sirens as two. Later writers mention both their names and number: some state that there were three, Peisinoe, Aglaope and Thelxiepeia or Aglaonoe, Aglaopheme and Thelxiepeia; Parthenope, Ligeia, and Leucosia; Apollonius followed Hesiod gives their names as Thelxinoe, Molpe, and Aglaophonos; Suidas gives their names as T…
Nomenclature
The etymology of the name is contested. Robert S. P. Beekes has suggested a Pre-Greek origin. Others connect the name to σειρά (seirá, "rope, cord") and εἴρω (eírō, "to tie, join, fasten"), resulting in the meaning "binder, entangler", i.e. one who binds or entangles through magic song. This could be connected to the famous scene of Odysseus being bound to the mast of his ship, in order to resist their song.
Iconography
The sirens of Greek mythology first appeared in Homer's Odyssey, where Homer did not provide any physical descriptions, and their visual appearance was left to the readers' imagination. It was Apollonius of Rhodes in Argonautica (3rd century BC) who described the sirens in writing as part woman and part bird. By the 7th century BC, sirens were regularly depicted in art as human-headed birds. They may have been influenced by the ba-bird of Egyptian religion. In early Greek …
Family
Although a Sophocles fragment makes Phorcys their father, when sirens are named, they are usually as daughters of the river god Achelous, either by the Muse Terpsichore, Melpomene or Calliope or lastly by Sterope, daughter of King Porthaon of Calydon.
In Euripides's play Helen (167), Helen in her anguish calls upon "Winged maidens, daughters of the Earth (Chthon)." Although they lured mariners, the Greeks portrayed the sirens in their "meado…
Mythology
According to Ovid (43 BC–17 AD), the sirens were the companions of young Persephone. Demeter gave them wings to search for Persephone when she was abducted by Hades. However, the Fabulae of Hyginus (64 BC–17 AD) has Demeter cursing the sirens for failing to intervene in the abduction of Persephone. According to Hyginus, Sirens were fated to live only until the mortals who heard their songs were able to pass by them.
Sirens and death
Statues of sirens in a funerary context are attested since the classical era, in mainland Greece, as well as Asia Minor and Magna Graecia. The so-called "Siren of Canosa"—Canosa di Puglia is a site in Apulia that was part of Magna Graecia—was said to accompany the dead among grave goods in a burial. She appeared to have some psychopomp characteristics, guiding the dead on the afterlife journey. The cast terracotta figure bears traces of its original white pigment. The woman bears th…
Christian belief and modern reception
By the fourth century, when pagan beliefs were overtaken by Christianity, the belief in literal sirens was discouraged. Although Saint Jerome, who produced the Latin Vulgate version of the bible, used the word sirens to translate Hebrew tannīm ("jackals") in the Book of Isaiah 13:22, and also to translate a word for "owls" in the Book of Jeremiah 50:39, this was explained by Ambrose to be a mere symbol or allegory for worldly temptations, and not an endorsement of the Greek myth.
Representing A Real Danger
How to Get Past The Sirens
- It was said that no mortal man could resist the sweet song of the Sirens. Hearing their voices spelled doom for anyone who tried to sail past their flowery island. Two ships, however, managed to pass the Sirens without disaster. Only one sailor in Greek mythology, however, actually heard their song and lived to tell the tail. In Homer’s Odyssey, the most famous nautical tale of the anci…
The Singers’ Names
- The earliest written account of the Sirens, given by Homer, gave no names for the Sirens. Nor did Homer number them. Most later accounts said there were three Sirens, although some said there were only two. Even with so few, there was a wide variety of names given for the former nymphs. These names all alluded to the seductive power of the Sirens’ ...
The Sirens and The Muses
- One later myth involving the Sirens diminished the threat they posed to passing ships. According to the description of Greece written by Pausanias, a statue at a shrine in Boetia showed the goddess Heraholding the Sirens in her hands. The image illustrated the story of how the Sirens lost the ability to fly after ships. The queen of the gods persuaded the Sirens to enter into a singi…
The Evolution of The Form
- The descriptions of the Sirens as having wings might be surprising for some modern readers. Art from after the time of Classical Greece often shows the Sirens much differently than they were originally depicted. Sirens in Greek artwork and mythologywere a hybrid creature, having attributes of both a bird and a beautiful woman. The earliest images of the Sirens in art showed t…
The Deadly Sirens
- The Sirens in Greek mythologybegan in most stories as river nymphs, but were transformed by Demeter following the abduction of Persephone. As monsters with the bodies of birds, the Sirens retained the beautiful singing voices they had been known for in their previous lives. They used their enchanting songs to lure sailors to their island, where they would feed on the unfortunate m…