Minthe
A Naiad nymph of the Underworld river Cocytus who was trampled into the mint plant by a jealous Persephone.
The Myth of Minthe
Minthe was a Naiad associated with the Cocytus, the river of wailing in the Underworld. She was beautiful, and Hades noticed. Before — or in some versions, after — his marriage to Persephone, Hades took Minthe as a lover. Minthe, perhaps unwisely, boasted about it. She declared that she was more beautiful than Persephone and that Hades would surely cast his wife aside and return to her.
Persephone heard this. The Queen of the Dead was not a figure who tolerated rivals. She trampled Minthe underfoot, grinding her into the earth. From the crushed nymph grew a low, fragrant plant — mint. In an alternate version, it was Demeter who did the trampling, protecting her daughter's marriage with maternal ferocity.
Hades could not undo the transformation, but he softened it. He gave mint its sweet scent, so that Minthe would be noticed and appreciated even in her diminished form. Every time someone crushes a mint leaf and smells that sharp fragrance, the myth says, they are repeating Persephone's act and releasing Minthe's spirit.
Parents
A spirit of the river Cocytus
Children
None
Symbols
Fun Fact
Menthol, peppermint, spearmint — every product containing mint carries the name of a nymph crushed underfoot by the Queen of the Dead.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
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