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— CH. 1 · ORIGINS AND ETYMOLOGY —

Helios

~5 min read · Ch. 1 of 6
6 sections
  • The word helios comes from a Proto-Indo-European root that ancient scholars trace back to the dawn of language itself. Walter Burkert noted in his 1985 book Greek Religion that both Helios and Eos possess an impeccable Indo-European lineage in both etymology and status as gods. The Doric form of the name appears as Hálios, while Homeric Greek spells it as ēélios with variations like Aélios in Cretan dialects. Plato’s dialogue Cratylus proposed several etymologies connecting the word to halízein meaning collecting men when he rises or aeí heileín which translates to ever turning because he always turns the earth in his course. Modern scholarship contradicts these ancient theories but acknowledges the inherited nature of the term across languages including Sanskrit Old English and Welsh. The suffix -helio- now forms compounds such as heliocentrism aphelion and heliotropium reflecting its enduring linguistic legacy.

  • In Ovid's Metamorphoses Phaethon asks his father Helios for permission to drive the sun chariot for a single day despite warnings about danger. Zeus strikes Phaethon with lightning killing him after the boy travels too low burning the earth and too high freezing it. Clymene orders slave girls to hide her son's still-smouldering body from Merops who had discovered the affair between Helios and Clymene. In Euripides' lost play Phaethon survives only in twelve fragments where Helios accompanies his son on a spare horse named Sirius trying to give instructions. Pindar described how the Heliades mourned their brother by the Eridanus river and were turned into black poplar trees shedding tears of amber. Aesop's fable tells of Helios winning against Boreas when a traveler removed his cloak due to heat while wind made him wrap it tighter. Heracles shot an arrow at Helios out of frustration crossing the Libyan desert but immediately apologized profusely receiving a golden cup in return. Sophocles' Ajax calls upon Helios to stop his reins before committing suicide on Salamis informing his aging father Telamon of his fate.

  • Ancient artifacts present Helios as a beautiful full-faced youth with wavy hair wearing a crown adorned with the sun's rays. The radiant crown traditionally held twelve rays symbolizing the twelve months of the year according to descriptions found in marble reliefs and coins. Euripides describes him as khrysōpós meaning golden-eyed or beaming like gold while Mesomedes of Crete writes he has golden hair. Apollonius Rhodius states he possesses light-emitting golden eyes and Ovid depicts him dressed in Tyrian purple robes sitting on a throne of bright emeralds. Mithraic invocations describe him as a fair-to-behold youth with fiery hair clothed in a white tunic and scarlet cloak wearing a fiery crown. Coins from Rhodes show his head looking right bearing a diadem of rays dating between 170-150 BC. Busts from the second century AD display holes used for attaching a sun ray crown visible today at the Ancient Agora Museum in Athens.

  • The island of Rhodes served as one of the only places where Helios was worshipped as a major deity in ancient Greece. Pindar's Olympian Odes memorialize the devotion of Rhodes to the cult and personality of Helios making him their founder and civilization's progenitor. Rituals included driving a quadriga drawn by four horses over a precipice into the sea reenacting the myth of Phaethon during annual festivals called Halia. Horse sacrifices were offered in teams of four specifically in Rhodes unlike other regions where single animals sufficed. The Rhodians built a shrine known as Haleion dedicated to the god within their city walls. Athenaeus reported that those who sacrificed to him brought honey instead of wine reasoning that the god holding the cosmos should not succumb to drunkenness. During Thargelia and Pyanopsia festivals Athenians held feasts with processions carrying branches twined with wool honoring both Helios and the Horae goddesses of seasons.

  • A colossal statue named the Colossus of Rhodes adorned the port of Rhodes until it collapsed after an earthquake hitting the island in 226 BC. Strabo recorded its height as seven times ten cubits which translates roughly to seventy feet or approximately the modern Statue of Liberty from feet to crown. Chares the Lindian crafted this work considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World before it fell at the knees. An oracle instructed the people not to rebuild the statue despite attempts to raise it again following the disaster. The structure stood so tall that it became the tallest statue in the ancient world according to contemporary descriptions. Rhodes absorbed worship of local hero Tlepolemus into Helios transferring prominence from the mortal figure to the divine founder. Games originally celebrated for Tlepolemus were now given to Helios seen as both ancestor and progenitor of the polis.

  • Anaxagoras asserted during his trial around 450 BC that the Sun was actually a gigantic red-hot ball of metal clashing with traditional religious views. Plato's Republic presents Helios as the symbolic offspring of the idea of the Good within philosophical dialogues. Lucian parodied Anaxagoras' theory in Icaromenippus where Selene complains about philosophers stirring strife between herself and Helios. Diodorus Siculus recorded an unorthodox version where Basileia married Hyperion producing Helios who drowned in river Eridanus before transforming into immortal nature. Claudian wrote that Helios was nursed by his aunt Tethys during infancy while Pausanias noted Titan might be identified as Helios himself rather than separate. Athenian historian Philochorus stated the first day of each month was sacred to Helios establishing Sunday as day of the Sun. The Roman Emperor Julian made Helios central divinity of short-lived revival of traditional practices in fourth century AD elevating him beyond minor deity status.

Common questions

What is the etymology of the name Helios?

The word helios comes from a Proto-Indo-European root that ancient scholars trace back to the dawn of language itself. Walter Burkert noted in his 1985 book Greek Religion that both Helios and Eos possess an impeccable Indo-European lineage in both etymology and status as gods.

Who was Phaethon and what happened when he drove Helios' chariot?

Phaethon asked his father Helios for permission to drive the sun chariot for a single day despite warnings about danger. Zeus struck Phaethon with lightning killing him after the boy traveled too low burning the earth and too high freezing it.

How did ancient Greeks depict the physical appearance of Helios?

Ancient artifacts present Helios as a beautiful full-faced youth with wavy hair wearing a crown adorned with the sun's rays. The radiant crown traditionally held twelve rays symbolizing the twelve months of the year according to descriptions found in marble reliefs and coins.

Where was Helios worshipped as a major deity in ancient Greece?

The island of Rhodes served as one of the only places where Helios was worshipped as a major deity in ancient Greece. Pindar's Olympian Odes memorialize the devotion of Rhodes to the cult and personality of Helios making him their founder and civilization's progenitor.

When did the Colossus of Rhodes collapse and how tall was it originally?

A colossal statue named the Colossus of Rhodes adorned the port of Rhodes until it collapsed after an earthquake hitting the island in 226 BC. Strabo recorded its height as seven times ten cubits which translates roughly to seventy feet or approximately the modern Statue of Liberty from feet to crown.

What scientific theories about the Sun were proposed by Anaxagoras and other philosophers regarding Helios?

Anaxagoras asserted during his trial around 450 BC that the Sun was actually a gigantic red-hot ball of metal clashing with traditional religious views. Plato's Republic presents Helios as the symbolic offspring of the idea of the Good within philosophical dialogues.

All sources

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