Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities o ...

, Eurylochus (;

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic pe ...

: Εὐρύλοχος ''Eurúlokhos'') appears in

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 ...

's ''

Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the '' Iliad'', ...

'' as second-in-command of

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''. Odys ...

' ship during the return to

Ithaca Ithaca most commonly refers to: *Homer's Ithaca, an island featured in Homer's ''Odyssey'' *Ithaca (island), an island in Greece, possibly Homer's Ithaca *Ithaca, New York, a city, and home of Cornell University and Ithaca College Ithaca, Ithaka ...

after the

Trojan War In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans ( Greeks) after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, king of Sparta. The war is one of the most important events in Greek mythology and ...

. He is portrayed as an unpleasant, cowardly individual who undermines Odysseus and stirs up trouble.

Family

Eurylochus was the husband of Odysseus's sister,

Ctimene In Greek mythology, Ctimene (; Ancient Greek: , ) was an Ithacan princess as the daughter of King Laertes and Anticlea. Family Ctimene was the younger sister of Odysseus, the legendary king of Ithaca. Mythology Ctimene was raised by her p ...

Mythology

When Odysseus and 12 of his crew, including Eurylochus, came into the port of

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

, the

Cyclops In Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, the Cyclopes ( ; el, Κύκλωπες, ''Kýklōpes'', "Circle-eyes" or "Round-eyes"; singular Cyclops ; , ''Kýklōps'') are giant one-eyed creatures. Three groups of Cyclopes can be distinguish ...

Polyphemus Polyphemus (; grc-gre, Πολύφημος, Polyphēmos, ; la, Polyphēmus ) is the one-eyed giant son of Poseidon and Thoosa in Greek mythology, one of the Cyclopes described in Homer's ''Odyssey''. His name means "abounding in songs and ...

seized and confined them. Along with the Ithacan king and six others namely: Lycaon, Amphialos, Alkimos,

Amphidamas Amphidamas (; Ancient Greek: Ἀμφιδάμας) was the name of multiple people in Greek mythology: *Amphidamas, father of Pelagon, king of Phocis, who gave Cadmus the cow that was to guide him to Boeotia. *Amphidamas or Amphidamantes, fath ...

and

Antilochus In Greek mythology, Antilochus (; Ancient Greek: Ἀντίλοχος ''Antílokhos'') was a prince of Pylos and one of the Achaeans in the Trojan War. Family Antilochus was the son of King Nestor either by Anaxibia or Eurydice. He was the b ...

, Eurylochus survived the manslaughter of his six companions by the monster. When the ship stops on

Aeaea __NOTOC__ Aeaea, Ææa or Eëä ( or ; grc, Αἰαία, Aiaíā ) was a mythological island said to be the home of the goddess-sorceress Circe. In Homer's ''Odyssey'', Odysseus tells Alcinous that he stayed here for one year on his way home ...

, home of

Circe Circe (; grc, , ) is an enchantress and a minor goddess in ancient Greek mythology and religion. She is either a daughter of the Titan Helios and the Oceanid nymph Perse or the goddess Hecate and Aeëtes. Circe was renowned for her vas ...

the goddess-sorceress, daughter of the sun god

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

and the

Oceanid In Greek mythology, the Oceanids or Oceanides (; grc, Ὠκεανίδες, Ōkeanídes, pl. of grc, Ὠκεανίς, Ōkeanís, label=none) are the nymphs who were the three thousand (a number interpreted as meaning "innumerable") daughters o ...

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 ...

Perse, Eurylochus and Odysseus draw lots to lead a group of twenty-two men to explore the island. Eurylochus is chosen. After the crew spots a column of smoke, Eurylochus leads his expedition towards the source. They near a palace surrounded with wild but magically benign animals. Inside the palace is Circe singing, and (led by

Polites Polites is the name of two characters in Greek mythology of the Trojan War, and a genus of butterflies. *Polites (friend of Odysseus) is a Greek warrior in the '' Iliad.'' *Polites (prince of Troy) is a Trojan killed by Neoptolemus In Greek my ...

) all rush in, except for Eurylochus who suspects her treachery. When she turns the rest of the expedition into pigs, Eurylochus escapes and warns Odysseus and the portion of the crew who stayed on the ship, thus enabling Odysseus to attempt a rescue. When Odysseus goes to save his men, Eurylochus refuses to guide him and urges him to escape and leave the men to their fate. When Odysseus returns from Circe, having rescued the men, Eurylochus insults Odysseus. Odysseus considers killing him but the crewmen drag them apart.Homer, ''Odyssey'
10.439
& 440 After their reconciliation, Circe advises Odysseus to see the prophet

Tiresias In Greek mythology, Tiresias (; grc, Τειρεσίας, Teiresías) was a blind prophet of Apollo in Thebes, famous for clairvoyance and for being transformed into a woman for seven years. He was the son of the shepherd Everes and the nym ...

for advice to get back home. Tiresias instructs Odysseus not to touch the cattle of Helios, but Eurylochus persuades the hungry and mutinous crew to kill and eat some of the god's cattle. As punishment, Odysseus' ship is destroyed, and all of his crew, including Eurylochus, are killed in a storm sent by

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label= genitive Boeotian Aeolic and Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label= genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek relig ...

. Only Odysseus survives.

Notes

References

Apollodorus Apollodorus (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: :''Note: A f ...

, ''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. ISBN 0-674-99135-4
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.Greek text available from the same website
*

, ''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.
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.Greek text available from the same website
* Pausanias, ''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
* Tzetzes, John, ''Allegories of the Odyssey'' translated by Goldwyn, Adam J. and Kokkini, Dimitra. Dumbarton Oaks Medieval Library, Harvard University Press, 2015. {{Characters in the Odyssey Achaeans (Homer) Characters in the Odyssey