Libonotus
God of the south-southwest wind blowing from the direction of Libya, bringing warm air and occasional sandstorms
The Myth of Libonotus
Libonotus was the divine personification of the south-southwest wind in the expanded Greek wind system. His name combines Libs (the southwest wind from Libya) and Notos (the due south wind), placing him in the intercardinal direction between the two. Libonotus blew from the direction of the Libyan coast and the western Sahara, carrying warm air and sometimes fine desert sand into the southern Aegean and Crete. In the twelve-wind compass, he filled the gap between the major south and southwest winds, reflecting observations that winds from slightly different southern directions carried distinct weather patterns. Ancient writers noted that Libonotus could bring oppressive heat and a hazy sky filled with suspended dust, conditions familiar to modern residents of the Mediterranean who experience the sirocco. The precision with which Greeks named and personified these wind variations demonstrates how deeply wind patterns were woven into the fabric of Mediterranean life.
Parents
Eos and Astraeus
Symbols
Fun Fact
Libonotus carried Saharan dust into Greece, a phenomenon still observed today when sirocco winds coat Athens in fine red sand
Explore Further
Euronotus
⚡ godWind, south-southeast
God of the south-southeast wind that brought warm humid air from the eastern Mediterranean and Egypt
Lips
⚡ godWind, southwest
God of the southwest wind associated with warm weather and favourable sailing conditions from Libya
Argestes
⚡ godWind, west-northwest
God of the west-northwest wind whose name means clearing or brightening, associated with fair weather after storms
Apeliotes
⚡ godWind, east
God of the east wind who brought warm rain beneficial to crops and was considered a gentle and favourable deity
Aparctias
⚡ godWind, north
Alternative name for the god of the true north wind, sometimes distinguished from Boreas as a calmer northern breeze
Notus
⚡ godwind
God of the south wind, bringer of late summer storms and the hot, damp winds feared by sailors and farmers.
Skiron
⚡ godWind, northwest
God of the northwest wind associated with the onset of winter and the cold dry air from the Adriatic
Kaikias
⚡ godWind, northeast
God of the northeast wind associated with cold weather and hailstorms in the Greek wind system
Zephyrus
⚡ godGod of the west wind
Zephyrus was the god of the gentle west wind, bringer of spring.
Venti
🐉 creaturepersonifications
The four wind gods — Boreas, Notus, Eurus, and Zephyrus — each ruling a cardinal direction
Eurus
⚡ godwind
God of the east wind, the only one of the four Anemoi not given a specific seasonal role by Hesiod.
Zephyr
💭 conceptLanguage and meteorology
An English word meaning a gentle, mild breeze, derived from Zephyrus, the Greek god of the west wind who represented the mildest and most pleasant of the four directional winds