Terpsichore

In Greek mythology, Terpsichore (/tərpˈsɪkər/; Greek: Τερψιχόρη, "delight in dancing") is one of the nine Muses and goddess of dance and chorus. She lends her name to the word "terpsichorean", which means "of or relating to dance".

Terpsichore
Goddess of Dancing and Chorus
Member of the Muses
Greek statue of Terpsichore from Hadrian's villa, presently at the Prado Museum (Madrid)
AbodeMount Olympus
SymbolsLyre
Personal information
ParentsZeus and Mnemosyne
SiblingsEuterpe, Polyhymnia, Urania, Clio, Erato, Thalia, Calliope, Melpomene
ConsortApollo, Achelous, Ares
ChildrenLinus, Biston, the Sirens
Terpsichore on an antique fresco from Pompeii

Appearance

Terpsichore is usually depicted sitting down, holding a lyre, accompanying the dancers' choirs with her music. Her name comes from the Greek words τέρπω ("delight") and χoρός ("dance").

Family

According to Hesiod's Theogony, Zeus lay with the Titan Mnemosyne each night for nine nights in Piera, producing the nine Muses.[1]

According to Apollonius of Rhodes, Terpsichore was the mother of the Sirens by the river god Achelous.[2] The Etymologicum Magnum mentions her as the mother of the Thracian king Biston by Ares.[3] According to the Byzantine scholar Eustathius, Terpsichore was the mother of the Thracian king Rhesus by the river god Strymon.[4]

Terpsichore, Muse of Music and ballet, an oil-on-canvas painting by Jean-Marc Nattier (1739)

Historical

Literature

  • When The Histories of Herodotus were divided by later editors into nine books, each book was named after a Muse. Terpsichore was the name of the fifth book.

Music and dance

Media

  • In the 1947 film Down To Earth, Rita Hayworth plays Terpsichore, who is annoyed and visits Earth to change a musical that depicts her in a bad light.[5]

Science

  • Terpsichore, a genus of ferns in the family Polypodiaceae, subfamily Grammitidoideae named after the Muse[6]
  • The terpsitone, an electronic musical instrument invented by Leon Theremin, was named after Terpsichore.[7]

See also

Notes

  1. Gantz, p. 54; Hesiod, Theogony 5362, 9157.
  2. Apollonius of Rhodes, Argonautica 4.893 (pp. 354, 355); so too Nonnus, Dionysiaca 13.3135 (pp. 452, 453); Tzetzes, Chiliades, 1.14, line 338 & 348.
  3. Etymologicum Magnum, 197.59 (p. 179).
  4. Eustathius on Homer, Iliad p. 817.
  5. "New Flower Named For Rita Hayworth". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. August 29, 1946. p. 15. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  6. Smith, Alan R. (1993). "Terpsichore, a New Genus of Grammitidaceae (Pteridophyta)". Novon. 3 (4): 478–489. doi:10.2307/3391398. JSTOR 3391398.
  7. Mason, C. P. (1936). Theremin "Terpsitone" A New Electronic Novelty in Radio Craft, Dec. 1936, p.365.

References

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