The Odyssey Glossary

Glossary of Terms

Agamemnon

King of Mycenae; Greek leader at Troy, murdered by his wife Klytaimnestra and her lover Aigisthos on his return home; brother of Menelaos.

Agelaos

One of the suitors of Penelope.

Aiaia

Kirke's island.

Aias

Greek hero at Troy, drowned on the return trip after defying the gods. Name also spelled Ajax.

Aigisthos

Klytaimnestra's lover; usurper of Agamemnon's throne at Mycenae.

Aiolos

King of the winds; gives Odysseus a bag of winds.

Akhaians

Homer's name for the Greeks (as opposed to the Trojans).

Akhilleus

The greatest Greek warrior at Troy.

Alkinoos

King of the Phaiakians, host to Odysseus; father of Nausikaa, husband of Arete.

Amphinomes

A suitor of Penelope.

Antinoos

Hotheaded ringleader of Penelope's suitors.

Arete

Queen of the Phaiakians.

Athena

Goddess of wisdom, battle, and the womanly arts; patron of Odysseus.

Elpenor

One of Odysseus' crew, falls off Kirke's roof and dies.

Erebos

The dark land of the dead.

Eumaios

Faithful swineherd of Odysseus.

Eupeithes

Father of Antinoos; killed by Laertes.

Eurykleia

Old and faithful nurse to Odysseus.

Eurylokhos

Second-in-command to Odysseus during his travels.

Eurymakhos

Rational suitor to Penelope.

Eurynome

Housekeeper to Penelope.

Hades

God of the underworld.

Halitherses

Old friend of Odysseus in Ithaka.

Helen

Wife of Menelaos; carried off to Troy by Paris, causing the Trojan War.

Helios

Sun god whose sacred cattle are eaten by Odysseus' crew.

Hera

Queen of the gods, wife of Zeus.

Hermes

Messenger of the gods.

Ilium

Another name for Troy.

Iros

Beggar to Penelope's suitors, stirs up a fight with Odysseus.

Ithaka

Island home of Odysseus.

Kalypso

Beautiful nymph who detains Odysseus eight years at island of Ogygia.

Kharybdis

A dangerous whirlpool Odysseus must sail by.

Kikones

People at Ismaros, raided by Odysseus after the Trojan War.

Kirke

Enchantress who turns men into swine; Odysseus and his men stay on her island for a year.

Klytaimnestra

Murderous wife of Agamemnon, lover of Aigisthos.

Ktesippos

One of Penelope's suitors; killed by the cowherd.

Kyklopes

One-eyed race of giants; Odysseus encounters the Kyklops Poseidon.

Laertes

Father of Odysseus.

Laistrygonians

Hostile giants who attack Odysseus and eat his men.

Medon

The crier, spared during the slaughter.

Melanthios

Disloyal goatherd to Odysseus.

Melantho

Disloyal maidservant to Odysseus.

Menelaos

Brother of Agamemnon, husband of Helen, host to Telemakhos.

Mentes

Old friend of Odysseus; one of Athena's disguises.

Mentor

Old friend of Odysseus; adviser to Telemakhos; frequent disguise of Athena.

Muses

The nine goddesses who inspire the arts.

Mycenae

Principal city of the Akhaians, home of Agamemnon.

Nausikaa

Phaiakian princess, daughter of Alkinoos; she rescues Odysseus and has a crush on him.

Neleus

Father of Nestor.

Nestor

Elderly king of Pylos, chief adviser of the Greeks at Troy.

Odysseus

Brilliant Greek warrior and hero of The Odyssey.

Ogygia

Island home of Kalypso.

Oidipous

King of Thebes who killed his father and married his mother.

Olympos

Mountain home of the gods.

Orestes

Killed Klytaimnestra and Aigisthos to avenge the murder of his father, Agamemnon; foil character to Telemakhos.

Patroklos

Akhilleus' best friend at Troy; his death inspired Akhilleus to fight.

Peiraios

Telemakhos' trusted crewman.

Peisistratos

Nestor's youngest son; he accompanies Telemakhos on part of his journey.

Penelope

Faithful wife of Odysseus, mother of Telemakhos.

Phaiakians

Inhabitants of the island of Skheria.

Phemios

Bard at the palace of Odysseus; spared in the slaughter.

Philoitios

Faithful cowherd to Odysseus.

Polyphemos

Kyklops son of Poseidon; blinded by Odysseus.

Poseidon

God of the sea; the immortal antagonist in The Odyssey, he is hostile toward Odysseus because Odysseus blinded his son, Polyphemos.

Proteus

"The Ancient of the Sea," he has the gift of prophecy and can change his shape.

Seirenes

Enchantresses who lure sailors to their deaths with their beautiful voices.

Skheria

Island home of Alkinoos, Arete, and Nausikaa.

Styx

River boundary between the land of the living and the land of the dead.

Teiresias

Blind prophet met by Odysseus in the land of the dead; he foretells Odysseus' future.

Telemakhos

Son of Odysseus and Penelope; secondary hero of The Odyssey.

Theoklymenos

Fugitive who accompanies Telemakhos home and interprets omens.

Zeus

King of the gods, brother of Poseidon, father of Athena; ruler on Mount Olympos.