Harpy
creatureThe Harpies were winged spirits who snatched people and things away without warning, personifying the sudden destructive gusts of wind.
The Myth
Originally described by Homer and Hesiod as beautiful winged women, the Harpies gradually became monstrous bird-women with sharp talons. Their names — Aello (storm-swift), Ocypete (swift-wing), and Celaeno (the dark one) — reflect their nature as wind daimones. They tormented the blind seer Phineus by snatching and defiling his food at every meal, a punishment from Zeus. The Argonauts Zetes and Calais, winged sons of Boreas, chased the Harpies away. In the Aeneid, Virgil placed them on the Strophades islands where they harassed Aeneas and his men.
Parents
Thaumas and Electra
Children
None recorded
Symbols
Fun Fact
The word "harpy" entered English meaning a grasping, unpleasant person — and "harpoon" may derive from the same Greek root harpazein, "to snatch."
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth: