Cyrene (mythology)

Cyrene ( altgr. Κυρήνη dt "supreme ruler ."; See also AltGr κυρία dt " mistress, mistress ") is a nymph in Greek mythology. Cyrene appears in the ninth Pythian ode of Pindar, her father is the king of the Lapiths Hypseus, which descended by his parents, the Naiad Creusa and Gaiatochter and the river god Peneus as a hero in the second generation of Okeanos.

Pindar describes further that the youthful Cyrene excelled not in weaving and in the domestic things, as it corresponded to the image of women of ancient Greece, but instead in the way of manly Heroine their father's flock protected with sword and bronze javelins from wild animals. So it came to pass that Cyrene with bare hands struggled with a horrible Lions during herding. When the god Apollo, son of Leto, became aware of during a ride on the chariot of the fighting Cyrene, he inflamed, impressed by their fighting spirit and resolute manner in love with her and kidnapped the beautiful one, after he had held consultation with the centaur Cheiron, to North Africa. There, the two were married by the goddess Aphrodite. In Libya Cyrene gave birth to the hero the Aristaeus and a second son Idmon.

Next to Cyrene (if it is one and the same legendary figure is ) have given birth to the Diomedes of Thrace.

In addition to Pindar also Callimachus of Cyrene called in his second and third hymn.