Greek Mythology Notes

Hemera

primordial
Ἡμέρα
Personification of Day

Hemera was the primordial goddess of daytime, who each morning scattered the darkness to fill the world with light.

The Myth

Hemera and Nyx dwelt at the edge of the world, passing each other at the threshold of Tartarus — when one entered, the other departed. Hemera brought Aether's brilliance to the mortal world by dispersing the dark mists that Nyx gathered each evening.

Parents

Erebus and Nyx

Symbols

lightmorningdawn mists

Fun Fact

The word "ephemeral" — lasting only a day — contains Hemera's name: epi + hemera, "for a day."

Words We Inherited

English words and phrases that trace back to this myth:

ephemeral

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