Thrinakia (
GreekGreek , an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, is the language of the Greeks. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. In its ancient form, it is the language of classical...
Θρινακία), also
Trinacria or
Thrinacie, mentioned in book 11 of
HomerHomer is a legendary ancient Greek epic poet, traditionally said to be the author of the epic poems the Iliad and the Odyssey...
's
OdysseyThe Odyssey is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is, in part, a sequel to the Iliad, the other work traditionally ascribed to Homer. The poem is fundamental to the modern Western canon. Indeed it is the second—the Iliad being the first—extant work of...
, is the
islandAn island or isle is any piece of land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls are called islets. A key or cay is another name for a small island or islet. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot, .There are two main types of islands:...
home of
HeliosIn Greek mythology the sun was personified as Helios Homer often calls him simply Titan or Hyperion, while Hesiod and the Homeric Hymn separate him as a son of the Titans Hyperion and Theia or Euryphaessa and brother of the goddesses Selene, the moon, and Eos, the dawn...
'
cattleCattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
, guarded by his eldest daughter,
LampetiaIn Greek mythology, Lampetia was the daughter of Helios and Neaera; she was the personification of light. With her sister, Phaethusa, she guarded the cattle of Thrinacia. She told her father when Odysseus' men slaughtered some of his cattle which were ageless and deathless, like a forbidden fruit...
. It is sometimes said to have been
SicilySicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is an autonomous region of Italy. Several much smaller islands surrounding it are considered to be part of Sicily....
, since the name Thrinacia could be taken to imply a connection to the number three (Greek
treis, tria sounds vaguely similar to Thri-) and Sicily has three corners. The fact that Sicily is often identified with the episode of the
CyclopesIn Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, a cyclops , is a member of a primordial race of giants, each with a single eye in the middle of its forehead. The classical plural is cyclopes , though the conventional plural cyclopses is also used in English...
only serves to underscore the shaky footing any
geographerA geographer is a scientist whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's physical environment and human habitat.Though geographers are historically known as people who make maps, map making is actually the field of study of cartography, a subset of geography...
is on when trying to identify
HomerHomer is a legendary ancient Greek epic poet, traditionally said to be the author of the epic poems the Iliad and the Odyssey...
's locations.
Odysseus and his crew arrive at Thrinacia after returning from the land of the dead (house of
HadesHades refers both to the ancient Greek underworld, the abode of Hades, and to the god of the underworld. Hades in Homer referred just to the god; the genitive , Haidou, was an elision to denote locality: "[the house/dominion] of Hades"...
).
Thrinakia (
GreekGreek , an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, is the language of the Greeks. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. In its ancient form, it is the language of classical...
Θρινακία), also
Trinacria or
Thrinacie, mentioned in book 11 of
HomerHomer is a legendary ancient Greek epic poet, traditionally said to be the author of the epic poems the Iliad and the Odyssey...
's
OdysseyThe Odyssey is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is, in part, a sequel to the Iliad, the other work traditionally ascribed to Homer. The poem is fundamental to the modern Western canon. Indeed it is the second—the Iliad being the first—extant work of...
, is the
islandAn island or isle is any piece of land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls are called islets. A key or cay is another name for a small island or islet. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot, .There are two main types of islands:...
home of
HeliosIn Greek mythology the sun was personified as Helios Homer often calls him simply Titan or Hyperion, while Hesiod and the Homeric Hymn separate him as a son of the Titans Hyperion and Theia or Euryphaessa and brother of the goddesses Selene, the moon, and Eos, the dawn...
'
cattleCattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
, guarded by his eldest daughter,
LampetiaIn Greek mythology, Lampetia was the daughter of Helios and Neaera; she was the personification of light. With her sister, Phaethusa, she guarded the cattle of Thrinacia. She told her father when Odysseus' men slaughtered some of his cattle which were ageless and deathless, like a forbidden fruit...
. It is sometimes said to have been
SicilySicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is an autonomous region of Italy. Several much smaller islands surrounding it are considered to be part of Sicily....
, since the name Thrinacia could be taken to imply a connection to the number three (Greek
treis, tria sounds vaguely similar to Thri-) and Sicily has three corners. The fact that Sicily is often identified with the episode of the
CyclopesIn Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, a cyclops , is a member of a primordial race of giants, each with a single eye in the middle of its forehead. The classical plural is cyclopes , though the conventional plural cyclopses is also used in English...
only serves to underscore the shaky footing any
geographerA geographer is a scientist whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's physical environment and human habitat.Though geographers are historically known as people who make maps, map making is actually the field of study of cartography, a subset of geography...
is on when trying to identify
HomerHomer is a legendary ancient Greek epic poet, traditionally said to be the author of the epic poems the Iliad and the Odyssey...
's locations.
Odysseus and his crew arrive at Thrinacia after returning from the land of the dead (house of
HadesHades refers both to the ancient Greek underworld, the abode of Hades, and to the god of the underworld. Hades in Homer referred just to the god; the genitive , Haidou, was an elision to denote locality: "[the house/dominion] of Hades"...
). Odysseus has been warned by both
CirceIn Greek mythology, Circe is a minor goddess of magic living on the island of Aeaea....
and the shade of
TiresiasIn Greek mythology, Tiresias was a blind prophet of Thebes, famous for being transformed into a woman for seven years...
to avoid Thrinacia, but his men beg him to let them stop and rest. He reluctantly agrees, but makes them swear an oath not to touch the cattle on the island. However, for the next month unfavorable winds blow continuously and they are unable to leave the island. When Odysseus goes to pray for a safe return to
IthacaIthaca or Ithaka is an island located in the Ionian Sea, in Greece, with an area of 45 square miles and a little more than three thousand inhabitants. It is an independent municipality of the Kefallinia Prefecture, and lies off the northeast coast of Kefalonia...
, his crew, fearing starvation, slaughter and eat some of Helios's cattle. In punishment, when they finally sail away from the island, Helius successfully pleads to Zeus to send a thunderbolt at their ship, killing all the men except Odysseus.