Erebus
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| Greek deities series |
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| Primordial deities |
In Greek mythology, Erebus (Template:Pron-en), also Erebos or Erebes (Ancient Greek: Ἔρεβος, "deep darkness or shadow"), was the son of a primordial god, Chaos, and represented the personification of darkness and shadow, which filled in all the corners and crannies of the world. His name is used interchangeably with Tartarus and Hades since Erebus is often thought of as part of the underworld. Erebus married his sister Nyx (goddess of the night) and their children include: Aether (god of sky), Hemera (goddess of day), the Moirai (Fates).[citation needed]
Etymology
The perceived meaning of Erebus is "darkness"; the first recorded instance of it was "place of darkness between earth and Hades". Hebrew עֶרֶב (ˤerev) 'sunset, evening' is sometimes cited as a source,[1] or alternatively it is attributed to a PIE root *h₁regʷ- 'to be dark', however note also related Greek ἐρεμνός (eremnós) 'darkness' with -m-.[citation needed]
Family
Erebus's father is Chaos, he had no mother except for darkness.[citation needed]
Chaos
Erebus's father, Chaos, was said to be the entity from which all the gods were originally born. Chaos is described as the earth (Gaia) from the sky (Ouranos).[citation needed]
Offspring
According to Hesiod's Theogony, Erebus was born the son of Chaos and darkness itself, without intercourse,[2] and brother to Nyx. Chaos' other children were Eros, Tartarus, and Gaia.[3] Eventually Nyx and Erebus courted and gave birth to Hemera (goddess of day), Aether (god of sky), Cer (goddess of death), Oneiroi (god of dreams), as well as Hypnos (god of sleep), Thanatos (god of death), Momus (god of criticism), Nemesis (goddess of revenge), the Hesperides (guardians of the golden apples), and Charon, the ferryman.[4] He was also the father of Geras (god of old age) according to Hyginus (c. AD 1). Some accounts attest that Erebus is the father of the Moirai with Nyx as well.[5] In the few myths that he has appeared to be searching for an ultimate warrior. In one myth he was said to be trying to get noticed although that is not a certain fact.[citation needed]
As a mythological place
Erebus was later depicted as a material region, the lower half of Hades, the underworld.[4] It was where the dead had to pass immediately after dying. Charon ferried the souls of the dead across the river Styx, upon which they entered the land of the dead.[citation needed]
Place names
Mount Erebus is a volcano on Ross Island, Antarctica, which is the southernmost historically active volcano.[6]
Mt. Erebus is also the name of level E3M6 in the 1993 computer game Doom , as well as the name of the Gallente Titan in EVE Online[citation needed]
See also
References
Notes
- ^ Douglas Harper (2001). "Online Etymology Dictionary: Erebus".
- ^ Hansen, p. 164.
- ^ Morford, and Lenardon, p. 36.
- ^ a b Turner and Coulter, p. 170.
- ^ Randall, p. 55.
- ^ "Erebus". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved June 6, 2009.
Sources
- Javier M. Saenz (2004). Handbook of Classical Mythology. ABC-CLIO.
- Geoffrey H. Hartman (1987). The Unremarkable Wordsworth. University of Minnesota Press.
- Mark P. O. Morford (1999). Classical Mythology. Oxford University Press.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - Alice Elizabeth Sawtelle Randall (1896 (digitized 2006)). The Sources of Spenser's Classical Mythology. Harvard University.
{{cite book}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - Patricia Turner (2001). Dictionary of Ancient Deities. Oxford University Press.
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