Scylla
Scylla was originally a beautiful sea nymph who was transformed into a six-headed monster by the jealous Circe or Amphitrite.
The Myth of Scylla
Scylla was once a beautiful nymph, transformed into a six-headed monster by jealous Amphitrite — or in some versions by Circe, who poisoned the waters where Scylla bathed after Poseidon or the sea god Glaucus rejected Circe's love. Scylla took up residence in the narrow strait opposite the whirlpool Charybdis. Odysseus chose to sail past Scylla rather than Charybdis, losing six men to her snapping heads — one for each mouth. Jason and the Argonauts navigated the same passage with Hera's help. Heracles reportedly killed Scylla, but her father Phorcys restored her to life. The strait near Sicily became a metaphor: trapped between Scylla and Charybdis meant facing two evils with no safe course.
Parents
Phorcys and Crataiis
Symbols
Fun Fact
Scylla's origin as a beautiful nymph transformed by jealousy mirrors many Greek myths — beauty attracting divine attention and jealous destruction.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
Explore Further
Scylla
🐉 creaturetransformation
Beautiful nymph transformed into a six-headed sea monster by Circe's poison, eternally lurking in a strait opposite Charybdis.
Callisto
🌿 nymphNymph transformed into the Great Bear
Callisto was a companion of Artemis who was seduced by Zeus and transformed into a bear — placed in the sky as Ursa Major, the Great Bear constellation.
Halia
🌿 nymphthe sea, salt
A sea nymph of Rhodes who bore six sons and a daughter to Poseidon before throwing herself into the sea in grief.
Amphitrite
🌿 nymphQueen of the sea
Amphitrite was the Nereid who became queen of the sea as Poseidon's wife.
Salmacis
🌿 nymphdesire
Water nymph of Caria whose desperate embrace of Hermaphroditus caused the gods to fuse them into a single dual-sexed being.
Bolina
🌿 nymphthe sea, escape
A mortal woman pursued by Apollo who threw herself into the sea and was granted immortality as a nymph.
Periboea
🌿 nymphthe sea, giants
A Naiad or sea nymph who bore the giant Nausithous to Poseidon, becoming the ancestress of the Phaeacians.
Galatea
🌿 nymphSea nymph loved by a Cyclops
Galatea was a Nereid loved by the Cyclops Polyphemus — but she loved the mortal Acis.
Krataiis
🐉 creatureSea, terror
Sea goddess or nymph identified as the mother of the terrifying six-headed monster Scylla
Ianeira
🌿 nymphEnchantment, captivating charm
Nereid sea nymph whose name means "she who enchants men," personifying the alluring fascination of the sea
Beroe
🌿 nymphcities, the sea
A nymph born to Aphrodite and Adonis, whose hand in marriage was contested by Poseidon and Dionysus.
Arethusa
🌿 nymphNymph who became a freshwater spring
Arethusa was a nymph of Artemis who was pursued by the river god Alpheus and transformed into a freshwater spring on the island of Ortygia in Syracuse.