Named after the Sibyls, oracles in ancient Greece. Originally there may have been just one Sibyl at a time, but the number eventually increased to nine or ten. Bases included Delphi, Samos, Delos and Clarus. The etymology of the term’s source is unknown.
Name origin: Unknown. May refer to the Biblical Eve, but this has been doubted due to the usual naming practices of the discoverers.
Name origin: Greek mythical daughter of Agamemnon and Klytaemnestra. After their mother murders their father, Elektra and her brother Orestes plot to kill Klytaemnestra and her lover Aegisthus in revenge, on the orders of the Delphic Oracle.
Sappho (c.630-570 BCE) was an ancient Greek lyric poet and musician from the island of Lesbos. Widely regarded as an outstanding writer, she was called the Tenth Muse; sadly, much of her work, in total estimated at around 10,000 lines, has been lost. Her poetry is still influential today.
Name origin: Greek – either a Nereid, or a mortal formed from a statue. Galateia was one of the fifty Nereides and the goddess of calm seas, wooed by Polyphemos with music, milk and cheese.
Name origin: Greek goddess of motherhood. Leto was one of the Titanides, a bride of Zeus, and the mother of the twins Artemis and Apollo. Alongside her children, she was a protectress of the young. Her name and iconography suggest she also represented modesty and demure womanhood.
Zeus ordered Ekho to protect him when he was dallying with her fellow nymphs. She did this by engaging his wife Hera in chat when about to discover her husband’s infidelity. As punishment, Hera cursed Ekho by only allowing her to repeat another’s words. Afterwards, Ekho fell in love with the mortal Narcissus, who spurned her. He wasted away pining for his own reflection, and she eventually did the same in mourning for him.
Name origin: In ancient Greek myth, the first human woman. Zeus had Hephaistos and others create Pandora in order to punish Prometheus for stealing fire from the gods, as a bride for his brother Epimetheus.
Name origin: Greek goddess of the hearth (both private and municipal) and the home. Hestia presides over the cooking of bread and the preparation of the family meal. She was also the goddess of the sacrificial flame and received a share of every sacrifice to the gods.
