Alcyone (Pleiad) Explained

Alcyone (; Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: Ἀλκυόνη|Alkyóne), in Greek mythology, was the name of one of the Pleiades, daughters of Atlas and Pleione or, more rarely, Aethra.^[1] She attracted the attention of the god Poseidon and bore him several children, variously named in the sources: Hyrieus, Hyperenor, and Aethusa;^[2] Hyperes and Anthas;^[3] and Epopeus.^{[4] [5]} By a mortal, Anthedon, Alcyone became the mother of the fisherman Glaucus, who was later transformed into a marine god.^[6]

Etymology

Alkyóne comes from alkyón (Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: ἀλκυών), which refers to a sea-bird with a mournful song^[7] or to a kingfisher bird in particular.^[8] The meaning(s) of the words is uncertain because alkyón is considered to be of pre-Greek, non-Indo-European origin.^[9] However, folk etymology related them to the háls (Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: ἅλς, "brine, sea, salt") and kyéo (Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: κυέω, "I conceive"). Alkyóne originally is written with a smooth breathing mark, but this false origin beginning with a rough breathing mark (transliterated as the letter H) led to the common misspellings halkyón (Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: ἁλκυών) and Halkyóne (Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: Ἁλκυόνη),^[10] and thus the name of one of the kingfisher bird genus' in English Halcyon. It is also speculated that Alkyóne is derived from alké (Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: ἀλκή, "prowess, battle, guard") and onéo (Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: ὀνέω, from Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: ὀνίνεμι, onínemi,^[11] "to help, to please").^[12]

Relation! rowspan="2"

Names	Sources
Apollodorus	Ovid	Hyginus		Pausanias	Athenaeus	Clement
Parentage	Atlas and Pleione	✓		✓	✓
	Atlas and Aethra			✓
Consort	Poseidon	✓	✓		✓			✓
	Anthedon						✓
Children	Aethusa	✓
	Hyrieus	✓		✓	✓
	Hyperenor	✓
	Epopeus				✓
	Hyperes					✓
	Anthas					✓
	Glaucus						✓

References

• Athenaeus of Naucratis. The Deipnosophists or Banquet of the Learned. London. Henry G. Bohn, York Street, Covent Garden. 1854. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
• Athenaeus of Naucratis. Deipnosophistae. Kaibel. In Aedibus B.G. Teubneri. Lipsiae. 1887. Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library.
• Hyginus, Fabulae from The Myths of Hyginus translated and edited by Mary Grant. University of Kansas Publications in Humanistic Studies. Online version at the Topos Text Project.
• M. Grant and J. Hazel, Who's Who in Greek Mythology, David McKay and Co Inc, 1979
• 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.
• Apollodorus, The Library with an English Translation by Sir James George Frazer, F.B.A., F.R.S. in 2 Volumes, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1921. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library. Greek text available from the same website.
• Publius Ovidius Naso, The Epistles of Ovid. London. J. Nunn, Great-Queen-Street; R. Priestly, 143, High-Holborn; R. Lea, Greek-Street, Soho; and J. Rodwell, New-Bond-Street. 1813. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.

Notes and References

1. Encyclopedia: Schmitz . Leonhard . Alcyone (1) . . . 1 . 108 . . Boston . 1867 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080604171637/http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-bio/0117.html . 2008-06-04 .
2. [Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Apollodorus]
3. [Pausanias (geographer)|Pausanias]
4. [Gaius Julius Hyginus|Hyginus]
5. [Ovid]
6. [Athenaeus]
7. Web site: ἀλκυών . Academic Dictionaries and Encyclopedias . 29 July 2023 . en.
8. Book: Woodhouse . Sidney Chawner . English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language . 1910 . Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited . London . 9780710023247 . 470 .
9. Book: Beekes . Robert Stephen Paul . van Beek . Lucien . Etymological Dictionary of Greek . 2010 . 1 . Brill . Leiden . 978-90-04-17420-7 . 71.
10. Web site: Liddell . Henry George . Scott . Robert . A Greek-English Lexicon, ἀλκυών . Perseus Digital Library . Tufts University . 29 July 2023.
11. Web site: ὀνέω - Ancient Greek (LSJ) . Liddell, Scott, Jones Ancient Greek Lexicon . 29 July 2023.
12. Web site: ALCYONE (Alkyone) - Boeotian Pleiad Nymph of Greek Mythology . Theoi Project . 29 July 2023.