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 ...
, Oileus or Oïleus (; grc, Ὀϊλεύς ''Oī̈leús'') was the king of
Locris
Locris (; el, label=Modern Greek, Λοκρίδα, Lokrída; grc, Λοκρίς, Lokrís) was a region of ancient Greece, the homeland of the Locrians, made up of three distinct districts.
Locrian tribe
The city of Locri in Calabria (Italy), a ...
Hodoedocus In Greek mythology, Hodoedocus or Hodedocus (; Ancient Greek: Ὁδοίδοκος) was a son of Cynus and grandson of Opus. His father and sister, Larymna, were eponyms of the cities Kynos in Locris and Larymna in Boeotia respectively.
Hodoedocus w ...
(whom Oileus succeeded as King of Locris) and his mother as Agrianome (daughter of Perseon), according to Hyginus's ''Fabulae''. Oileus is best known as the father of Ajax the Lesser. There is disagreement as to the name of Ajax's mother: Homer names Eriopis as the legal wife of Oileus, but
scholia
Scholia (singular scholium or scholion, from grc, σχόλιον, "comment, interpretation") are grammatical, critical, or explanatory comments – original or copied from prior commentaries – which are inserted in the margin of th ...
sts cite other authors, some of whom agreed with Homer in considering Eriopis (or Eriope) the mother of Ajax, but others stated that the mother of Ajax by Oileus was Alcimache, and yet others asserted that Alcimache was simply another name for Eriopis.
John Tzetzes
John Tzetzes ( grc-gre, Ἰωάννης Τζέτζης, Iōánnēs Tzétzēs; c. 1110, Constantinople – 1180, Constantinople) was a Byzantine poet and grammarian who is known to have lived at Constantinople in the 12th century.
He was able to p ...
listed three alternate options: Eriopis, Alcimache, or Astyoche the daughter of
Itylus
In Greek mythology, Itylus or Itylos (Ancient Greek: Ἴτυλον), was the son of Aedon, daughter of Pandareus of Ephesus and wife of King Zethus of Thebes.
Mythology
Envious of Niobe, her sister-in-law, who had six sons and six daughters, ...
. Oileus was also the father of Medon, who is usually regarded as illegitimate; Medon's mother was said to be a
nymph
A nymph ( grc, νύμφη, nýmphē, el, script=Latn, nímfi, label=Modern Greek; , ) in ancient Greek folklore is a minor female nature deity. Different from Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature, are ty ...
named
Rhene
''Rhene'' is a spider genus of the family Salticidae (jumping spiders).
Taxonomy
The genus was originally named ''Rhanis'' by C. L. Koch in 1846. However, this name had already been used for a beetle genus in 1834. Accordingly, Tamerlan Thorel ...
, though some gave Alcimache as his mother. According to Hyginus, Rhene was the mother of Ajax as well.
Mythology
In
Apollonius Rhodius
Apollonius of Rhodes ( grc, Ἀπολλώνιος Ῥόδιος ''Apollṓnios Rhódios''; la, Apollonius Rhodius; fl. first half of 3rd century BC) was an ancient Greek author, best known for the ''Argonautica'', an epic poem about Jason and t ...
' ''Argonautica'', Oileus gets wounded in the shoulder during the attack of the Stymphalian Birds on the ''
Argo
In Greek mythology the ''Argo'' (; in Greek: ) was a ship built with the help of the gods that Jason and the Argonauts sailed from Iolcos to Colchis to retrieve the Golden Fleece. The ship has gone on to be used as a motif in a variety of sour ...
'' and receives aid from
Eribotes In Greek mythology, Eribotes (Ancient Greek: Ἐρυβώτης) was a Locrian who was counted among the Argonauts. He was the son of Teleon.
Mythology
Eribotes appears to have had skills of a physician: in the ''Argonautica'', he attends on Oile ...
.
Oileus was also the name of a defender of
Troy
Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in prese ...
, the charioteer of Bienor, killed by Agamemnon.Homer, ''Iliad'' 11.92
Notes
References
*
Apollonius Rhodius
Apollonius of Rhodes ( grc, Ἀπολλώνιος Ῥόδιος ''Apollṓnios Rhódios''; la, Apollonius Rhodius; fl. first half of 3rd century BC) was an ancient Greek author, best known for the ''Argonautica'', an epic poem about Jason and t ...
Gaius Valerius Flaccus
Gaius Valerius Flaccus (; died ) was a 1st-century Roman poet who flourished during the " Silver Age" under the Flavian dynasty, and wrote a Latin ''Argonautica'' that owes a great deal to Apollonius of Rhodes' more famous epic.Online version at theoi.com. * Gaius Valerius Flaccus, ''Argonauticon.'' Otto Kramer. Leipzig. Teubner. 1913 Latin text available 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 ...