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 ...

, Icarius (; grc, Ἰκάριος ''Ikários'') was a

Spartan Sparta (Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referred t ...

king and a champion runner.

Family

Icarius was the son of either

Perieres In Greek mythology, Perieres ( grc, Περιήρης) may refer to these two distinct individuals. * Perieres, king of Messenia and son of Aeolus. * Perieres, Theban charioteer of Menoeceus (father of Creon). He was the one who wounded Clymenus, ...

and

Gorgophone In Greek mythology, Gorgophone ( grc, Γοργοφόνη "Gorgon-Slayer") was the name of two different women. * Gorgophone, daughter of Perseus. * Gorgophone, a Libyan princess as one of the 50 Danaïdes. She married and murdered Proteus, son of ...

or of

Oebalus In Greek mythology, Oebalus, also spelled Oibalus or Oibalius, (; Ancient Greek: Οἴβαλος, '' Oíbalos'') was a king of Sparta. Family Oibalus was the son of either Cynortas or Argalus. He was the second husband of Princess Gorgophone a ...

and Bateia and thus brother of

Hippocoon In Greek mythology, the name Hippocoön (; grc, Ἱπποκόων, ''Hippokóōn'') refers to several characters: *Hippocoon, in one account, father of Neleus, who is otherwise called son of Cretheus or Poseidon. *Hippocoon, a Spartan king, fathe ...

and

Tyndareus In Greek mythology, Tyndareus (; Ancient Greek: Τυνδάρεος, ''Tundáreos''; Attic Greek, Attic: Τυνδάρεως, ''Tundáreōs''; ) was a Spartan king. Family Tyndareus was the son of Oebalus (or Perieres (king of Messenia), Perieres ...

. By

Periboea __NOTOC__ In Greek mythology, the name Periboea (; Ancient Greek: Περίβοια "surrounded by cattle" derived from ''peri'' "around" and ''boes'' "cattle") refers to multiple figures: *Periboea, one of the 3,000 Oceanids, water-nymph daughte ...

, he became the father of

Penelope Penelope ( ; Ancient Greek: Πηνελόπεια, ''Pēnelópeia'', or el, Πηνελόπη, ''Pēnelópē'') is a character in Homer's ''Odyssey.'' She was the queen of Ithaca and was the daughter of Spartan king Icarius and naiad Periboea. Pe ...

, Perileos, Thoas, Damasippus, Imeusimus, Aletes and

Iphthime In Greek mythology, the name Iphthime (Ancient Greek: Ἰφθίμη ''Iphthīmē'') refers to: *Iphthime, daughter of Icarius, a sister of Penelope and Perileos. She became the wife of Eumelus from Pherae and possibly, the mother of his son, Zeu ...

.Apollodorus, 3.10.3-6 According to other traditions, the mother of Penelope,

Alyzeus Alyzeus ( grc, Ἀλυζεύς) was in Greek mythology a son of Icarius and Polycaste, and brother of Penelope and Leucadius. After his father's death, he reigned in conjunction with his brother over Acarnania, and is said to have founded the town ...

and

Leucadius In Greek mythology, the name Leucadius may refer to: *Leucadius, a son of Icarius and Polycaste, co-ruler of Acarnania with his brother Alyzeus, and the eponym of Leucas. *Leucadius, a surname of Apollo.Ovid, ''Tristia'' 3.1.42 & 5.2.76; Propert ...

was

Polycaste Polycaste (; Ancient Greek: Πολυκάστη) is the name of several different women in Greek mythology: *Polycaste, a princess of Pylos and daughter of King Nestor and Eurydice (or Anaxibia). She was sister to Thrasymedes, Peisistratus, Pisidi ...

, daughter of

Lygaeus ''Lygaeus'' is a genus of seed bugs in the family Lygaeidae. There are more than 60 described species in ''Lygaeus''. Species These 69 species belong to the genus ''Lygaeus'': * '' Lygaeus alboornatus'' Blanchard, 1852 * '' Lygaeus analis'' D ...

. His other possible wives were Dorodoche (daughter of Ortilochus) and

Asterodia In Greek mythology, the name Asterodia, Asterodeia, or Asterodea (; Ancient Greek: Ἀστεροδεία, Ἀστεροδία) refers to: *Asterodia, a Caucasian nymph, daughter of Oceanus and Tethys, mother of Absyrtus by Aeetes. *Asterodia, a P ...

(daughter of

Eurypylus In Greek mythology, Eurypylus (; grc, Εὐρύπυλος ''Eurypylos'') was the name of several different people: * Eurypylus, was a Thessalian king, son of Euaemon and Ops. He was a former suitor of Helen thus he led the Thessalians during Troja ...

); the latter was said to have born him five sons - Amasichus, Phalereus, Thoon, Pheremmelias, Perilaos - and a daughter Laodice or

Laodamia In Greek mythology, the name Laodamia (Ancient Greek: Λαοδάμεια ''Laodámeia'') referred to: * Laodamia (or Hippodamia), a Lycian princess as the daughter of Bellerophon and Philonoe, daughter of King Iobates. Her mother was also known A ...

. In some accounts, by Erymede, daughter of a son Damasiclus, he became the father of

Elatus There were several figures named Elatus or Élatos (Ancient Greek: Ἔλατος means "ductile") in Greek mythology. * Elatus, a son of Arcas by either Leaneira (or Laodameia), Meganeira, Chrysopeleia or Erato and the brother of Apheidas and ...

, father of

Taenarus Cape Matapan ( el, Κάβο Ματαπάς, Maniot dialect: Ματαπά), also named as Cape Tainaron or Taenarum ( el, Ακρωτήριον Ταίναρον), or Cape Tenaro, is situated at the end of the Mani Peninsula, Greece. Cape Matapa ...

Mythology

Icarius was a

king and a champion runner who would not allow anyone to marry his daughter unless he beat him in a race.

Odysseus Odysseus ( ; grc-gre, Ὀδυσσεύς, Ὀδυσεύς, OdysseúsOdyseús, ), also known by the Latin variant Ulysses ( , ; lat, UlyssesUlixes), is a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer's epic poem the ''Odyssey''. Odysse ...

succeeded and married Penelope. After they got married, Icarius tried to persuade Odysseus to remain in Sparta. He did leave with Penelope, but Icarius followed them, imploring his daughter to stay. Odysseus told her she must choose whether to be with her father or with her husband. Penelope did not answer, but modestly covered her face with a veil. Icarius correctly understood that this was a sign of her will to leave with Odysseus, let them go and erected a statue of

Aidos Aidos or Aedos (;Greek: , ) was the Greek goddess of shame, modesty, respect, and humility. Aidos, as a quality, was that feeling of reverence or shame which restrains men from wrong. It also encompassed the emotion that a rich person might feel ...

(Modesty) on the spot.Pausanias, ''Graeciae Descriptio'' 3.20.10-11 Icarius was apparently still alive at the time of the events of the ''

Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major Ancient Greek literature, ancient Greek Epic poetry, epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by moder ...

''.

Notes

References

Apollodorus Apollodorus (Ancient Greek, Greek: Ἀπολλόδωρος ''Apollodoros'') was a popular name in ancient Greece. It is the masculine gender of a noun compounded from Apollo, the deity, and doron, "gift"; that is, "Gift of Apollo." It may refer to: ...

, ''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
*

Pausanias Pausanias ( el, Παυσανίας) may refer to: *Pausanias of Athens, lover of the poet Agathon and a character in Plato's ''Symposium'' *Pausanias the Regent, Spartan general and regent of the 5th century BC *Pausanias of Sicily, physician of th ...

, ''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
*

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...

, ''The Geography of Strabo.'' Edition by H.L. Jones. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann, Ltd. 1924
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
* Strabo, ''Geographica'' edited by A. Meineke. Leipzig: Teubner. 1877
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library.
{{Greek-myth-stub Princes in Greek mythology Laconian characters in Greek mythology