Three dog-like ants attacking a tethered camel, man in a tunic

Myrmekes (Μύρμηκες) is Greek for "

ant Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cretaceous period. More than 13,800 of an estimated total of 22 ...

s". Greek mythological animals and tribes were called with this name.

Mythology

Myrmidons In Greek mythology, the Myrmidons (or Myrmidones; el, Μυρμιδόνες) were an ancient Thessalian Greek tribe. In Homer's ''Iliad'', the Myrmidons are the soldiers commanded by Achilles. Their eponymous ancestor was Myrmidon, a king of ...

, ants transformed into a tribe of people by

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label=Genitive case, genitive Aeolic Greek, Boeotian Aeolic and Doric Greek#Laconian, Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label=Genitive case, genitive el, Δίας, ''D� ...

. *

Herodotus Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known f ...

, wrote about

Gold-digging ant The gold-digging ant is a mythical insect described in classical and medieval bestiaries. They were dog- or fox-sized ants that dug up gold in sandy areas. Some versions of the ''Physiologus'' said they came from Ethiopia, while Herodotus claimed ...

s in India which were smaller than dogs but larger than foxes. * Aelian, wrote: "The Indian ants (μύρμηκες οἱ Ἰνδικοὶ) which guard the gold will not cross the river Campylinus".Aelian, De Natura Animalium, 3.4-3.5
/ref> * Greek sailors that arrived from

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

have told stories of their encounters with the Myrmekes. They are a race of

s that can range in size from small

dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...

s to giant

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Nor ...

s which guarded a hill that had rich deposits of gold. The local tribes had to use a rush and grab maneuver to obtain the gold without being killed by the Myrmekes.

Cultural depictions

* The Myrmekes appeared in the ''

Percy Jackson & the Olympians ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' is a series of five fantasy novels written by American author Rick Riordan, and the first book series in the '' Camp Half-Blood Chronicles''. The novels are set in a world with the Greek gods in the 21st centu ...

'' book ''

The Demigod Files ''The Demigod Files'' is a collection of stories by Rick Riordan published on February 10, 2009.The Hidden Oracle ''The Hidden Oracle'' is a fantasy novel based on Greek and Roman mythology written by American author Rick Riordan. It was published on May 3, 2016, and is the first book in ''The Trials of Apollo'' series, the second spin-off of the ''Percy Ja ...

'' story of ''

The Trials of Apollo ''The Trials of Apollo'' is a pentalogy of fantasy adventure and mythological fiction novels written by American author Rick Riordan that collectively form a sequel to the ''Heroes of Olympus'' series. It is set in the same world as the Riordan ...

''. While the god Apollo and his friend, Meg McCaffrey, were walking through the forest to search for two of Apollo's missing kids, they come across the shell of a Myrmekes, which had been cracked in half. Apollo suspected that a strong animal had bit the ant in half. Later, when the two met the Palikoi (geyser gods), one of them, Pete, shined a spotlight and attracted the attention of three Myrmekes. After a fight, the ants captured Meg. Later on, when Apollo rescued Meg, they encountered the queen ant, which was about three times bigger than the rest of the ants.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Myrmekes
at Theoi.com
Myrmekes
at Mythical Creatures List Greek legendary creatures Mythological insects Indian legendary creatures Gold

Mythology

Cultural depictions

See also

References

External links