ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPRSTU–Z

I to Iolaos Iole to Ixion

Iole to Ixion

Iole

Iole was the daughter of Eurytus and had the dubious honor of being offered as the prize in an archery competition.

The encounter with Iole can be included in the Deeds (praxeis) of Herakles (Heracles); Eurytus offered Iole as the prize in an archery competition which Herakles entered; the winner of the competition would be allowed to marry Iole; Herakles won the contest but Eurytus refused to allow Herakles to have Iole as his wife; in an act of revenge, Herakles killed Eurytus and his sons and took Iole as his mistress.

Iolkos
Iolcos

The city from which Iason (Jason) and the Argonauts set forth on their quest for the Golden Fleece.

Iolkos was located near the eastern coast of Greece on the slopes of Mount Pelion on the Gulf of Pagasai (Pagasae); also spelled as Iolkus or Iolcus.

Ion (1)

The eponymous ancestor of the Ionians.

Ion was a son of Apollon and Kreusa (Creusa) and abandoned by his mother in a cave; Ion was saved by Hermes and taken to Apollon’s temple at Delphi where he became an attendant; Kreusa eventually married a man named Xuthus but the couple was childless; they went to Delphi for advice and were told that they should adopt the first child they met when they left the temple; the first child they encountered was Ion but Kreusa was sure that Ion was a child of Xuthus born out of wedlock; she plotted to kill Ion but the priestess of Apollon showed her the swaddling clothing in which the infant was wrapped when he had been presented at the temple; Kreusa accepted the fact that Ion was her abandoned child and she and Xuthus took the child to Athens where, according to Athene (Athena), a prophecy had been fulfilled and that Ion would become the founder of the Ionian race.

Ion (2)

A drama by Euripides written about 412? BCE dealing with the founder of the Ionian race, Ion.

I personally recommend the translations compiled by Richmond Lattimore and David Grene; you can find this and other plays by Euripides in the 882 section of your local library or you can order them from the Book Shop on this site which is linked to Amazon.com.

Ionia

An ancient region on the western coast of Asia Minor which included the adjacent islands in the Aegean Sea.

Although Ionia shares a common name with the Ionian Islands and the Ionian Sea (which are both located on the opposite, i.e. western side of the Greek mainland) the district of Ionia is much more Asian than European and was colonized by the Greeks to disperse their growing populations and to expand their economic power base.

Ionian Islands

A group of Greek islands which are located off the western coast Greece; they are often called Heptanisos which literally means Seven Islands in Greek.

From north to south, the Ionian Islands are: Kerkyra (Corfu), Paxos (Paxi), Leukas (Lefkada), Ithaka (Ithaki), Kephallenia (Cephallenia) and Zakynthus (Zante) and Kythira.

Ionian Revolt

Circa 500 BCE, the political situation in Ionia became desperate; the Greek colonists of Ionia had survived good and bad rulers but since the Persian conquest fifty years hence, the plight of the Ionians was becoming less and less tolerable.

The seeds of the Ionian Revolt were planted when the political party of the democrats banished some rich men from the island of Naxos; these men took refuge in the Persian city of Miletus and appealed to the local tyrant, Aristagoras, for help in regaining control of Naxos; Aristagoras did not have the resources or authority to mount such an invasion so he took the matters up the Persian chain of command with promises of an easy victory and that Naxos could be used as a staging area for the invasion of the other islands of the Kyklades (Cyclades) Group and, finally, the Greek mainland.

The Persian king, Darius, approved the plan and a fleet of 200 ships was launched with a Persian named Megabates as the commander; preparing for the attack on Naxos, the fleet gathered near the island of Khios (Chios); when Megabates was making his inspection of the fleet, he found one of the ships unguarded; Megabates had the ship’s captain bound with his head protruding through an oar-hole; Aristagoras appealed for mercy but Megabates insisted on the humiliating punishment; Aristagoras deliberately disobeyed Megabates and freed the errant captain; Megabates was furious and devised a clever plan where Aristagoras would lose his wealth, power and his life.

Megabates secretly sent a messenger to Naxos and warned the unsuspecting islanders of the impending invasion; the people of Naxos made hasty preparations and were ready when the Persians arrived; a siege of four months ensued and the Persians realized that they could not afford to continue because their war-chest was empty and the easy victory which Aristagoras had promised was not to be had; the Persians withdrew and Aristagoras realized his future looked bleak.

At this same time, a captive of king Darius named Histia (Hestia)eus, sent a message to Aristagoras and urged him to organize a revolt of the Ionian Greeks; the time seemed right to Aristagoras so he plotted to arrest all the princes of the Ionian cities and replace them with men he could trust; with the institution of military governors and the revolt against Darius clearly in the open, Aristagoras sailed to Sparta to seek an alliance.

The Spartan king, Kleomenes (Cleomenes), when he heard how far the Persian capital of Susa was from the Aegean Sea (three months march), dismissed Aristagoras abruptly; Aristagoras then tried to bribe Kleomenes but was again rebuffed; Aristagoras took his appeal to the city of Athens and presented his proposal to the popular assembly; where Aristagoras had been unable to persuade one man (the Spartan king), he had no trouble gaining the support of the people of Athens; they promised twenty ships and appointed a commander named Melanthius to assist Aristagoras.

Other allies joined the revolt and Aristagoras organized an attack on the Persian city of Sardis; Aristagoras did not go to Sardis himself but sent a large ground force to capture the city while he waited in Miletus; circa 498 BCE, Sardis was burned but not captured; the homes of the city were made of straw and when one house was set ablaze, with the exception of the akropolis (acropolis), the entire city burned to the ground; the Ionians retreated to the city of Ephesus and were soundly defeated by the pursuing Persians.

The Athenians withdrew their support for the Ionians but the revolt continued; the city of Byzantium was captured and other northern provinces joined the Ionians against the Persians; the island of Cyprus tried to join the revolt but was soon recaptured by the Persians; Darius instructed his best generals to quash the revolt and the Ionians were soon losing territory to the Persian onslaught.

Aristagoras realized that his fate was not going to be one of victory or honorable defeat; he took his few supporters to Thrake (Thrace) and tried to continue his tyranny on the humble people of that land; he was finally killed trying to capture an unimportant town in a poor nation.

The Ionian Revolt ended with the Persians again in control of the Greek colonies but now the Persians were openly hostile to the cities of the Greek mainland for their support of the Ionians; when the Greeks had burned Sardis, the temple of the goddess Kybele (Cybele) was inadvertently destroyed and the Persians, in retribution, desecrated many Greek temples and shrines when they eventually invaded the Greek mainland in 490 and 480 BCE; also, the Persians never forgave the Athenians for meddling in the affairs of their empire and the burning of Sardis was a pretext for the burning of Athens in 480 BCE.

Ionian Sea

An arm of the Mediterranean Sea between southern Italy, eastern Sicily and the Greek mainland; the Ionian Sea is connected to the Adriatic Sea by the Strait of Otranto; commonly called the Ekhinades (Echinades).

Ionians

One of the four main divisions of the prehistoric Greeks, i.e. Dorian, Akhaian (Achaean), Aeolian and Ionian; the Ionians settled the northern coast of the Peloponnesian Peninsula circa 1100 BCE and established numerous colonies in Asia Minor.

Ionic Architecture

One of the five classical orders of architecture in ancient Greece.

Ionic Architecture that was typified by a fluted column with a molded base and a capital composed of four volutes (a spiral ornament), usually parallel to the architrave (the lower-most member) with a pulvinus (a pad-like structure at the base) connecting a pair on each side of the column and an entablature (the entire portion between the columns and the eves) typically consisting of an architrave of three fascias (a broad, flat, horizontal surface), a richly ornamented frieze decorated in low relief and a cornice (horizontal projection) bracketed out of egg-and-dart (closely set, alternating series of oval and pointed forms) and dentil molding (a series of closely spaced, small, rectangular blocks) with the frieze sometimes omitted.

For an example of Ionic columns see: http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/5219/

Iophon

The son of the Athenian playwright, Sophokles (Sophocles) and Nikostrate (Nicostrate); he was the half-brother of Sophokles’ other son, Agathon.

Iota

The ninth letter of the Greek alphabet; pronounced Yota when reciting the alphabet and as a long E in most words; upper case: Ι; lower case: ι.

Iphianassa (1)

One of the three daughters of Agamemnon and Klytemnestra (Clytemnestra).

In The Iliad (book 9, line 145), she is called Iphianassa but later authors and other portions of the Epic Cycle named her as Iphigenia; in the Kypria, which is part of the Epic Cycle, Iphigenia and Iphianassa are said to be two different women but, for the sake of consistency, we shall assume that Homer was correct and that later authors were mistaken.

Iphianassa was one of the three daughters of Agamemnon and Klytemnestra (Clytemnestra) who was offered to Akhilleus (Achilles) if he would put away his anger and return to the battle with the Trojans.

When the Argive fleet was about to sail for Troy from the island of Aulis, the goddess Artemis would not let the ships leave the harbor because Agamemnon had offended the goddess by boasting about his skills as a archer; the seer, Kalkhas (Calchas), said that unless Agamemnon sacrificed his daughter, Iphianassa, to Artemis, the fleet would not be allowed to leave Aulis; Agamemnon had Iphianassa brought to Aulis on the pretext that she was to marry Akhilleus; when the time for the sacrifice came, Artemis took Iphianassa from the altar and substituted a deer in her stead; Iphianassa was taken to the land of Tauris to serve as a priestess for Artemis; she remained in Tauris until her brother, Orestes, was sent to steal the image of Artemis from the temple at Tauris; he and Iphianassa recognized each other and he persuaded her to flee with him; her name literally means Strong-Born.

Iphianassa (2)

One of the daughters of Anteia and Proetus; her sisters were: Iphinoe and Lypsippe.

Iphigenia
Iphianassa

One of the three daughters of Agamemnon and Klytemnestra (Clytemnestra).

Iphianassa was one of the three daughters of Agamemnon and Klytemnestra (Clytemnestra) who was offered to Akhilleus (Achilles) if he would put away his anger and return to the battle with the Trojans.

When the Argive fleet was about to sail for Troy from the island of Aulis, the goddess Artemis would not let the ships leave the harbor because Agamemnon had offended the goddess by boasting about his skills as a archer; the seer, Kalkhas (Calchas), said that unless Agamemnon sacrificed his daughter, Iphianassa, to Artemis, the fleet would not be allowed to leave Aulis; Agamemnon had Iphianassa brought to Aulis on the pretext that she was to marry Akhilleus; when the time for the sacrifice came, Artemis took Iphianassa from the altar and substituted a deer in her stead; Iphianassa was taken to the land of Tauris to serve as a priestess for Artemis; she remained in Tauris until her brother, Orestes, was sent to steal the image of Artemis from the temple at Tauris; he and Iphianassa recognized each other and he persuaded her to flee with him; her name literally means Strong-Born.

Iphigenia at Aulis

A play that was begun by Euripides but finished, it is assumed, by his son circa 405 BCE.

The play deals with the interplay of the primary heroes of the Trojan War: Agamemnon, Menelaos (Menelaus) and Akhilleus (Achilles); in this play, Agamemnon’s daughter, Iphigenia, pleads for her life but finally goes willingly to the sacrificial altar for the sake of Greece.

I personally recommend the translations compiled by Richmond Lattimore and David Grene; you can find this and other plays by Euripides in the 882 section of your local library or you can order them from the Book Shop on this site which is linked to Amazon.com.

Iphigenia in Tauris

A play by Euripides produced 414? BCE.

The play deals with the life of the daughter of Agamemnon, Iphigenia, after she was saved from the sacrificial altar and transported to the land of Tauris to serve as a priestess of Artemis.

When her brother, Orestes, arrived on the island to steal the image of Artemis, he was captured and scheduled for sacrifice; Iphigenia recognized Orestes and could not complete the sacrifice; they stole the image of Artemis and fled.

The play is also called: Iphigenia Among the Tauris, Iphigenia Among the Tauri and Iphigenia in Taurica.

Iphikles
Iphicles

The half-brother of Herakles (Heracles) and the son of Alkmene (Alcmene) and Amphitryon.

Although the two men, Herakles and Iphikles, were conceived on the same night, they had different fathers and were very different in heart and mind.

Iphikles was the son of the mortal Amphitryon and Herakles was the son of the almighty Zeus; as a young man, Iphikles lost his wits and deserted his father’s home and went to live with Eurystheus (the man who sent Herakles on his Twelve Labors).

Iphiklos (1)
Iphiclos

The son of Phylakos (Phylacos) and Klymene (Clymene); the uncle of Iason (Jason).

Iason’s father, Aeson, married Iphiklos’ sister, Alkimede (Alcimede) and this kinship inclined Iason to include Iphiklos in the Argonauts and the quest for the Golden Fleece.

Iphiklos was the father of Protesilaus (the first Greek soldier killed at Troy) and Podarkes (Podarces).

Iphiklos was a rich man and what we might call a cattle baron; his rich herds were thought to be such a prize that Neleus offered his daughter Pero to any man who could steal Iphiklos’ cows; a young seer named Melampous (Melampus) wanted to marry Pero and accepted the challenge but was caught by Iphiklos while trying to steal the cattle; a deal was struck in which Melampous would serve as seer for Iphiklos for one year and then Iphiklos would give Melampous the cattle he needed to marry Pero.

His name may also be rendered as Iphiklus or Iphiclus.

Iphiklos (2)
Iphiclos

An Argonaut; a son of Thestios and the brother of Althaia; uncle of Meleagros.

Iphiklos was from Aetolia and had the distinction of being an Argonaut and a member of the Kalydonian (Calydonian) Hunt.

His name may also be rendered as Iphiklus or Iphiclus.

Iphimedia

The consort of Aloeus and the mother of the Giants: Otos and Ephialtes.

Iphinoe (1)

One of the daughters of Anteia and Proetus who was inflicted with madness for her irreverence towards the Immortals; her sisters were: Iphianassa and Lypsippe.

Iphinoe (2)

The woman who brought queen Hypsipyle’s message of welcome to Iason (Jason) and the Argonauts when they landed on the island of Lemnos.

Iphition

A Trojan ally from Lykia (Lycia) who was slain by Akhilleus (Achilles); he was the son of Otrynteus and a naiad nymph.

Iphitos (1)
Iphitus

A son of Eurytus who was thrown to his death from the walls of the city of Tiryns by Herakles (Heracles).

For killing Iphitos, Herakles was forced into slavery for one year and purchased by the queen of Lydia, Omphale.

Iphitos and his brother, Klytios (Clytios), were Argonauts.

Iphitos (2)
Iphitus

A son of Klytoneos (Clytoneos) of Phokis (Phocis); the great-grandson of Poseidon (lord of the Sea); one of the Argonauts.

Ippalektryon
Griffin

A creature having the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion.

The historian Herodotus provides a location for the Griffins; he states that they “guard gold” in a land north of the one-eyed Arimaspians and south of the land of the Hyperboreans.

The name may also be rendered as Hippalektryon.

Ippeis (1)
Hippeis

The social class as horsemen or charioteers in ancient Athens.

When the noted statesman, Solon, reorganized the Athenian society (circa 594 BCE) he divided the citizens into four specific groups; the four classes under Solon’s constitution were:

  1. Pentakosiomedimnoi (the owners of large, productive tracts of land);
  2. Ippeis (named for their social class as horsemen or charioteers);
  3. Zeygitai (named for their social class as ox drivers); and
  4. Thetes (the lowest of the four classes of Athenian citizens, literally they were hired farm workers and served as lightly-armed soldiers and common seaman).
Ippeis (2)
Ippeys

The elite three-hundred horsemen of Sparta who were the personal bodyguard of the kings.

Ippemolgoi
Hippemolgoi

A Greek name for the Skythians (Scythians).

Since the Skythians were nomads and lived much as we would imagine stereotypical modern gypsies, they had no cities and lived in horse-drawn wagons, the Greeks referred to them as Mare-Milkers, i.e. Ippemolgoi.

Ippo
Hippo

An Okeanid, i.e. one of the three thousand daughters of Okeanos (Ocean) and Tethys; her name literally means, Horse.

Zeus gave the Okeanids, Apollon and the Rivers the special obligation of having the young in their keeping.

Ipponoe
Hipponoe

One of the fifty daughters of Nereus and Doris collectively known as the Nereids, i.e. the daughters of the Nereus.

Ippothoe
Hippothoe

One of the fifty daughters of Nereus and Doris collectively known as the Nereids, i.e. the daughters of the Nereus.

Ippothoos (1)
Hippothoos

One of the sons of the last king of Troy, Priam.

After Priam’s favorite son, Hektor (Hector), had been killed defending Troy, Priam berated his nine remaining sons for being wicked and worthless; Hippothoos was one of these sons; whether the old king spoke in desperate sorrow or from his heart is impossible to tell.

His name may also be rendered as Hippothous.

Ippothoos (2)
Hippothoos

The son of Alope and the lord of the Sea, Poseidon.

His name may also be rendered as Hippothous.

Ipsus

An ancient village in central Asia Minor in Phrysia; the site of a battle in 301 BCE between the successors of Alexander the Great.

Irene
Eirene

One of the Horae; her name literally means, Peace.

Iris

The messenger of Zeus; the goddess of the Rainbow; the daughter of Thaumas and Elektra (Electra) and the wife of Zephyrus (West Wind).

Iris flew from place to place as the faithful voice of Zeus; her words were never doubted and her presence commanded respect amongst Immortals and mortals alike; her sisters are the Harpies.

When the Argonauts were trying to chase the Harpies away from the blind seer, Phineus, Zeus sent Iris to warn the aggressive sailors not to harm the Harpies.

For more detailed information on Iris I suggest that you consult the Immortals section of this site.

Iron Age

The time period in which The Iliad and The Odyssey took place; the last and worst of the four classical ages; 1050-850 BCE; iron replaced bronze as the most desired metal.

Iros (1)
Irus

The beggar who taunted Odysseus at the prompting of the suitors of Penelope.

His true name was Arnaios but he was called Iros (the masculine form of the name Iris) because he earned his bread by being a messenger and was thus compared, insultingly, to the messenger of the Immortals, Iris; he was beaten and broken by Odysseus for his insults and abuse.

Iros (2)
Irus

A son of Aktor (Actor) and the father of the Argonaut, Eurytion.

Isandros
Isander

The son of Bellerophontes (Bellerophon); killed by Ares (god of War) in close battle against the fierce warriors of the Solymoi.

Isis

The Egyptian goddess who was variously identified by the Greeks with the heifer-maiden, Io, Demeter and Athene (Athena).

Iskhys
Ischys

A youth who offended Apollon by committing an act of infidelity with Apollon’s consort, Koronis (Coronis); Iskhys and Koronis were both killed by Apollon for their insulting behavior.

Island of Ares

An island in the Euxine (Black Sea) which was known as Enyalios until the Argonauts renamed it.

When the Argonauts approached the island they were attacked by the fierce birds which protected the island by dropping their arrow-like feathers on the sailors; the Argonauts used a trick similar to the one Herakles (Heracles) invented during his Sixth Labor (when he drove off the Stymphalian Birds), where he used krotalon (castanet-like clappers) to frighten the birds away; the Argonauts put on their plumed helmets and pounded on their shields with their swords; the movement of the plumes and the noise from the clanging shields frightened the war-birds away and the Argo was able to land on the island with only one sailor, Oileus, being wounded by the deadly feathers.

Islands of the Blest

The islands in the far West in the streams of Okeanos (Ocean) where the deceased heroes live in peace and untouched by sorrow.

After Zeus released Kronos (Cronos) from Tartaros (Tartarus) he placed him as the lord of the Islands of the Blest; also known as the Elysian Fields.

Ismene

Ismene was one of the unfortunate daughters of king Oedipus of the city of Thebes.

Ismene’s lineage is difficult to explain in ordinary terms because her father was also her brother.

Her grandfather, Laius, was the king of Thebes and was married to Iokaste (Jocasta); because of offenses he had committed in his youth, Laius was told by the oracle at Delphi that his son would kill him and marry his wife; when Laius and Iokaste had a son they plotted to kill the child but, through a series of divinely directed events, their infant son, Oedipus, escaped death and was raised in Korinth (Corinth) as the son of king, Polybos.

When Oedipus grew to manhood the oracle at Delphi told him that he was destined to kill his father so he left Korinth and returned to Thebes without realizing that Thebes, not Korinth, was the home of his true mother and father; on the way to Thebes, Oedipus met Laius on the road and, after an altercation, killed him; Oedipus also encountered the Sphinx on the road to Thebes and after answering her riddle, she killed herself.

When Oedipus arrived in Thebes he was hailed as a hero for outwitting the Sphinx; he became the king of Thebes and, since Iokaste was now a widow, married her without realizing that she was his mother.

Oedipus and Iokaste had four children: Antigone, Ismene, Eteokles (Eteocles) and Polynikes (Polynices); when the children were young adults, Oedipus realized what had happened and that he had, true to the prophecy, killed his father and was now married to his mother; Iokaste killed herself in shame; Oedipus blinded himself and went into a self-imposed exile.

Ismene stayed in Thebes but Antigone went with her father as his guide and companion; Eteokles, as the eldest son, became the king of Thebes and exiled his brother, Polynikes.

After many years of wandering, Oedipus took refuge in the sanctuary of the Eumenides (the Furies) near the town of Kolonus (Colonus); Ismene found Oedipus and Antigone in the sanctuary and tried to warn him that Iokasta’s brother, Kreon (Creon), and Polynikes were both seeking his support in the coming confrontation between Eteokles and Polynikes; Kreon appeared in the sanctuary and kidnapped Ismene and Antigone in order to bring pressure on Oedipus to return to Thebes but the king of Athens, Theseus, rescued the young women before Kreon could make his escape.

Soon afterwards, Oedipus died at Kolonus; Polynikes went to Thebes with his armies to depose Eteokles but both brothers were killed in the fray; Kreon decreed that Eteokles would have a proper burial because he had died defending Thebes but Polynikes’ body would be left to the dogs and vultures because he had died in disgrace by attacking his homeland and trying to depose the rightful king.

Antigone sought the help of Ismene so that Polynikes could be buried properly but Ismene would not be a part of any plan that might antagonize Kreon; without Ismene’s help, Antigone defied Kreon and gave her brother a proper burial.

The age of Antigone and Ismene is a matter of debate; their ages are not clearly given but many scholars believe that Ismene was the eldest simply because her actions were more mature and reserved.

For the complete telling of this story, read The Theban Plays by Sophokles (Sophocles); you can find these plays at your local library or you can order them through the Book Shop on this site which is linked to Amazon.com.

Iso

A prefix meaning equal.

Isokrates
Isocrates

(436-338 BCE) An Athenian teacher and writer.

Isokrates was influenced by the Sophists and Sokrates (Socrates) and, according to Plato, was destined for greatness either as an orator or a philosopher; he was a proponent of a united Greece which was an impossible dream; his influence was widespread and his pupils came from all over the Greek world; he was eloquent and respected; twenty-one of his discourses and nine of his letters survive to this day.

His name literally means, Equal-Rights.

Issus

A narrow plain near the modern city of Iskenderum, Turkey.

Issus is located near the Gulf of Alexandretta in south-central Turkey near the northern border of Syria; the Greek army, led by Alexander the Great, defeated the Persian king Darius there in 333 BCE; although the Persians had a larger army, the Greeks broke their ranks and sent Darius in a humiliating retreat.

Ister

The ancient Greek name for the Danube River which is the major river of eastern Europe; it flows 1,750 miles (2,816 kilometers) from the Black Forest eastward to the Euxine (Black Sea).

Isthmian Games

One of the great national festivals of ancient Greece held every two years on the Isthmus of Korinth (Corinth).

Isthmus
isthmus = neck

A narrow strip of land bounded by water connecting larger land masses.

The most famous isthmus in Greece was the Isthmus of Korinth (Corinth) which connected the Peloponnesian Peninsula to Attika (Attica), it was approximately 4 miles (6.4 kilometers) wide and a drag-way was constructed to transport ships across isthmus to avoid having to sail around the Peloponnesian Peninsula to go from the Gulf of Korinth to the Saronic Gulf.

Isthmus of Korinth
Isthmus of Corinth

The narrow strip of land that separates the Gulf of Korinth and the Saronic Gulf.

The Isthmus of Korinth is approximately 4 miles (6.4 kilometers) wide; in antiquity, ships were dragged along a slip-way to avoid the long sea voyage around the Peloponnesian Peninsula.

Istros

The river god of the Ister river.

Istros is one of the many sons of Tethys and Okeanos (Ocean); Ister is the ancient Greek name for the Danube River which is the major river of eastern Europe; it flows 1,750 miles (2,816 kilometers) from the Black Forest eastward to the Euxine (Black Sea).

Zeus gave the Rivers, Apollon and the Okeanids the special obligation of having the young in their keeping.

Ithaka
Ithaca

One of the Ionian Islands off the western coast of Greece in the Ionian Sea.

Ithaka is 36 square miles (93 square kilometers) in size; due east and very close to the large island of Kephallenia (Cephallenia); Ithaka was the home of Odysseus.

Approximate east longitude 20.42 and north latitude 38.24.

Ithome (1)

Mount Ithome; a mountain in southwestern Greece on the Peloponnesian Peninsula near the city of Messenia.

Ithome (2)

A fortress of Messenia on Mount Ithome.

Itys

The son of Prokne (Procne) and Tereus who was the innocent victim of his parents’ cruel revenge upon each other.

Tereus committed an act of outrage against Prokne’s sister, Philomela, and to keep his crime a secret, he cut out Philomela’s tongue and hid her in an isolated place; Philomela was able to weave her sad story onto a piece of needlework and send it to her sister; Prokne found Philomela and the two of them killed her son, Itys and served the cooked body to her evil husband, Tereus; Tereus tried to slay the sisters but all three were transformed into birds; Tereus became a hoopoe, Philomela became a swallow and Prokne became a nightingale.

Iulus

The son of Aineias (Aeneas) and Kreusa (Creusa); he was also called Askanius (Ascanius).

Ixion

A king of Thessaly who was the object of divine forgiveness and punishment.

Ixion arranged to have his father-in-law fall into a pit of burning coals rather than give over the dowry for his wife, Dia; Zeus forgave Ixion for this outrageous act but the ungrateful Ixion tried to seduce Hera; Zeus formed a counterfeit Hera from a cloud and named her Nephele; Ixion and Nephele gave life to the race of Centaurs; Zeus then condemned Ixion to spend eternity on a revolving wheel in the Underworld.

Iole to Ixion

I to Iolaos Iole to Ixion

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