Pyrrhus (mythology)
In Nonnus's fifth-century AD epic poem the Dionysiaca, Pyrrhus (Ancient Greek: Πύρρος, romanized: Púrrhos, lit. 'fiery') is a minor figure who was punished by the goddess Rhea for his assault of her. His short story is only mentioned in passing.
Etymology
The Greek proper name Πύρρος means "fiery, red-coloured" and it is derived from the word πῦρ meaning fire, flame.[1] It was especially used to denote red hair.[2] In Mycenaean Greek the name is attested as pu-wo (Linear B: 𐀢𐀺).[2]
Mythology
The little-known and otherwise unattested Pyrrhus was a mortal man from Phrygia who lusted after the goddess Rhea, the mother of the gods, and tried to assault her. Rhea changed him into a stone immediately for his hubris.[3][4][5] This happened not far from the site of Niobe's own transformation into a rock after she challenged another goddess, Leto.[3] Pyrrhus's transformation into stone is part of a wider typical theme where a man is punished for his lust that led him to assault a goddess, in this case Rhea.[6]
See also
References
- Liddell & Scott 1940, s.v. πῦρ.
- Beekes 2010, s.v. πυρρός.
- Nonnus, Dionysiaca 12.81-83
- M. Rosemary Wright. "A Dictionary of Classical Mythology: Summary of Transformations". mythandreligion.upatras.gr. University of Patras. Retrieved January 3, 2023.
- Levitan & Lombardo 2022, p. 228.
- Forbes Irving 1990, pp. 143, 298.
Bibliography
- Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010). Lucien van Beek (ed.). Etymological Dictionary of Greek. Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series. Vol. ΙΙ. Leiden, the Netherlands: Brill Publications. ISBN 978-90-04-17419-1.
- Forbes Irving, Paul M. C. (1990). Metamorphosis in Greek Myths. Oxford Classical Monographs. Oxford, New York, Toronto: Oxford University Press, Clarendon Press. ISBN 0-19-814730-9.
- Levitan, William; Lombardo, Stanley (August 15, 2022). Tales of Dionysus: The Dionysiaca of Nonnus of Panopolis. Michigan, United States: University of Michigan Press. ISBN 978-0-472-13311-6.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert (1940). A Greek-English Lexicon, revised and augmented throughout by Sir Henry Stuart Jones with the assistance of Roderick McKenzie. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Online version at Perseus.tufts project.
- Nonnus, Dionysiaca; translated by Rouse, W H D, I Books I-XV. Loeb Classical Library No. 344, Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1940. Internet Archive
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