Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical co ...

, the Heliadae or Heliadai (; grc, Ἡλιάδαι) were the seven sons of

Helios In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Helios (; grc, , , Sun; Homeric Greek: ) is the deity, god and personification of the Sun (Solar deity). His name is also Latinized as Helius, and he is often given the epithets Hyper ...

and

Rhodos In Greek mythology, Rhodos/Rhodus () or Rhode (), was the goddess and personification of the island of Rhodes and a wife of the Solar deity, sun god Helios. Parentage Various parents were given for Rhodos. Pindar makes her a daughter of Aphro ...

and grandsons of

Poseidon Poseidon (; grc-gre, Ποσειδῶν) was one of the Twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and myth, god of the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 In pre-Olympian Bronze Age Greece, he was venerated as a ch ...

. They were brothers to

Electryone In Greek mythology, Electryone (Ancient Greek: Ἠλεκτρυώνην) or Alectrona (Doric form) was a daughter of Helios and Rhodos, and sister to the Heliadae. She died a virgin and was worshipped as a heroine on the island of Rhodes. She was ...

Biography

They were

Ochimus In Greek mythology, Ochimus (Ancient Greek: Ὄχιμος) was the eldest of the Heliadae, sons of Helios and Rhodos.Diodorus Siculus, ''Bibliotheca historica'5.56.5/ref> Mythology One of his brothers, Tenages, was murdered by four others: Ac ...

Cercaphus In Greek mythology, Cercaphus (Ancient Greek: Κέρκαφος) may refer to the following figures: * Cercaphus, one of the Heliadae. * Cercaphus, son of Aeolus and father of Ormenus, the eponymous founder of Ormenium in Thessaly. * Cercaphus, f ...

, Macareus (or Macar), Actis,

Tenages In Greek mythology, Tenages or Tenage ( grc, Τενάγης, Τενάγη ''Tenágēs'', ''Tenágē'') was one of the Heliadae, a son of Rhodos and Helios. He was murdered by his brothers, Actis, Triopas, Macar and Candalus, who were envious o ...

Triopas In Greek mythology, Triopas () or Triops (; grc, Τρίωψ, gen.: Τρίοπος) was the name of several characters whose relations are unclear. *Triopas, king of Argos and son of Phorbas. His daughter was Messene. * Triopas, king of Thessaly, ...

, and

Candalus In Greek mythology, Candalus (Ancient Greek: Κάνδαλος ''Kándalos'') was one of the Heliadae, a son of Rhodos and Helios. Candalus, along with his brothers, Triopas, Macar and Actis, were jealous of another brother, Tenages, and so they mu ...

(Nonnus

Nonnus Nonnus of Panopolis ( grc-gre, Νόννος ὁ Πανοπολίτης, ''Nónnos ho Panopolítēs'', 5th century CE) was the most notable Greek epic poet of the Imperial Roman era. He was a native of Panopolis (Akhmim) in the Egyptian Thebai ...

, ''

Dionysiaca The ''Dionysiaca'' {{IPAc-en, ˌ, d, aɪ, ., ə, ., n, ᵻ, ˈ, z, aɪ, ., ə, ., k, ə ( grc-gre, Διονυσιακά, ''Dionysiaká'') is an ancient Greek epic poem and the principal work of Nonnus. It is an epic in 48 books, the longest survi ...

'' 14.44 adds Auges and

Thrinax ''Thrinax'' is a genus in the palm family, native to the Caribbean. It is closely related to the genera ''Coccothrinax'', ''Hemithrinax'' and ''Zombia''. Flowers are small, bisexual and are borne on small stalks. Taxonomy In the first edition ...

). They were expert

astrologer Astrology is a range of divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of celestial objects. Dif ...

s and

seafarers A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. The profession of the s ...

, and were the first to introduce sacrifices to

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of ...

Rhodes Rhodes (; el, Ρόδος , translit=Ródos ) is the largest and the historical capital of the Dodecanese islands of Greece. Administratively, the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes regional unit, which is part of the So ...

. They also drove the

Telchines In Greek mythology, the Telchines ( grc, Τελχῖνες, ''Telkhines'') were the original inhabitants of the island of Rhodes and were known in Crete and Cyprus. Family Their parents were either Pontus and Gaia or Tartarus and Nemesis or else ...

out of Rhodes.

Mythology

Tenages was the most highly endowed of the Heliadae, and was eventually killed by Macareus, Candalus, Triopas and Actis. This is attributed to their jealousy of his skills at science. As soon as their crime was discovered, the four had to escape from Rhodes: Macareus fled to

Lesbos Lesbos or Lesvos ( el, Λέσβος, Lésvos ) is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of with approximately of coastline, making it the third largest island in Greece. It is separated from Anatolia, Asia Minor ...

, Candalus to Cos, Triopas to

Caria Caria (; from Greek: Καρία, ''Karia''; tr, Karya) was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid-Ionia (Mycale) south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionians, Ionian and Dorians, Dorian Greeks colonized the west of i ...

, and Actis to

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

. Ochimus and Cercaphus, who stayed aside from the crime, remained at the island and founded the city of Achaea (in the territory of modern

Ialysos Ialysos ( el, Ιαλυσός, before 1976: Τριάντα ''Trianta'') is a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which ...

). Ochimus, the eldest of the brothers, seized control over the island; Cercaphus married Ochimus' daughter and succeeded to the power. The three sons of Cercaphus,

Lindus Lindus or Lindos ( gr, Λίνδος) was one of the most important towns in ancient Rhodes. It was situated on the eastern coast, a little to the north of a promontory bearing the same name. The district was in ancient times very productive in wine ...

Ialysus Ialysus or Ialysos ( gr, Ἰάλυσος), also Ialyssus or Ialyssos (Ἰάλυσσος), or Ielyssus or Ielyssos (Ἰήλυσσος), was a city of ancient Rhodes. It was one of the three ancient Doric cities in the island, and one of the six towns ...

and

Camirus Camirus or Kamiros ( grc, Κάμιρος; ) or Cameirus or Kameiros (Κάμειρος) was a city of ancient Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Its site is on the northwest coast of the island, west of the modern village of Kalavarda. History T ...

, were founders and

eponym An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

s of the cities

Lindos Lindos (; grc-gre, Λίνδος) is an archaeological site, a fishing village and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it ...

, Ialysos and

Kameiros Camirus or Kamiros ( grc, Κάμιρος; ) or Cameirus or Kameiros (Κάμειρος) was a city of ancient Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Its site is on the northwest coast of the island, west of the modern village of Kalavarda. History T ...

respectively.Pindar, ''Olympian Odes'' 7.3 ff.

Genealogy

Notes

References

Diodorus Siculus Diodorus Siculus, or Diodorus of Sicily ( grc-gre, Διόδωρος ; 1st century BC), was an ancient Greek historian. He is known for writing the monumental universal history ''Bibliotheca historica'', in forty books, fifteen of which su ...

, ''Diodorus Siculus: The Library of History''. Translated by

Charles Henry Oldfather Charles Henry Oldfather (13 June 1887 – 20 August 1954) was an American professor of history of the ancient world, specifically at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He was born in Tabriz, Persia. Parentage Oldfather's parents, Jeremiah and Fe ...

. Twelve volumes.

Loeb Classical Library The Loeb Classical Library (LCL; named after James Loeb; , ) is a series of books originally published by Heinemann in London, but is currently published by Harvard University Press. The library contains important works of ancient Greek and L ...

. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann, Ltd. 198
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
*

Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...

, ''The Odyssey'' with an English Translation by A.T. Murray, PH.D. in two volumes. Cambridge, MA., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1919. {{ISBN, 978-0674995611}
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.Greek text available from the same website
*

Nonnus of Panopolis Nonnus of Panopolis ( grc-gre, Νόννος ὁ Πανοπολίτης, ''Nónnos ho Panopolítēs'', 5th century CE) was the most notable Greek epic poet of the Imperial Roman era. He was a native of Panopolis (Akhmim) in the Egyptian Thebai ...

, ''

'' translated by William Henry Denham Rouse (1863-1950), from the Loeb Classical Library, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 1940.
Online version at the Topos Text Project.
* Nonnus of Panopolis, ''Dionysiaca. 3 Vols.'' W.H.D. Rouse. Cambridge, MA., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1940-1942
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library
*

Pindar Pindar (; grc-gre, Πίνδαρος , ; la, Pindarus; ) was an Ancient Greek lyric poet from Thebes. Of the canonical nine lyric poets of ancient Greece, his work is the best preserved. Quintilian wrote, "Of the nine lyric poets, Pindar is ...

, ''Odes'' translated by Diane Arnson Svarlien. 1990
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
*Pindar, ''The Odes of Pindar'' including the Principal Fragments with an Introduction and an English Translation by Sir John Sandys, Litt.D., FBA. Cambridge, MA., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1937
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library
* Smith, William; ''

Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'' (1849, originally published 1844 under a slightly different title) is an encyclopedia/biographical dictionary. Edited by William Smith, the dictionary spans three volumes and 3,700 p ...

'', London (1873)
"Heliadae and Heliads"
Children of Helios Rhodian mythology Demigods in classical mythology Rhodian characters in Greek mythology