Sirens
Dangerous creatures whose irresistible singing lured sailors to shipwreck on the rocky coast of their island. Only Odysseus and the Argonauts survived hearing their song.
The Myth of Sirens
The Sirens were dangerous beings, part woman and part bird (later reimagined as mermaids), who inhabited a rocky island. Their voices were so enchantingly beautiful that any sailor who heard their song was compelled to steer toward them, crashing on the hidden rocks and perishing.
The island's coast was littered with the bones and rotting ships of those who had succumbed. The Sirens sang of knowledge and pleasure, promising to reveal all truths — a temptation of the mind as much as the senses.
Two heroes survived the Sirens. When the Argonauts passed, Orpheus played his lyre more beautifully than the Sirens could sing, drowning out their voices. Odysseus, wanting to hear their song, had his crew plug their ears with wax while he was lashed to the mast. He heard the Sirens' voices and was overwhelmed with desire to reach them, but the ropes held, and his deafened crew sailed safely past.
Parents
Achelous and a Muse
Symbols
Fun Fact
Modern "sirens" — emergency warning sounds — take their name from these mythical singers, whose sound demanded immediate, unavoidable attention.
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
Siren Songs
🐉 creatureBird-women whose song lured sailors to death
The Sirens were creatures — part bird, part woman — whose irresistible song lured sailors to crash on their island's rocks.
Orpheus
🗡 heroThe musician whose art moved gods and stones
The legendary poet-musician whose singing could charm animals, move trees, and halt rivers — and who nearly rescued his wife from death itself.
Scylla
🐉 creatureSix-headed sea monster
A terrifying sea monster with six heads on long necks, each with three rows of teeth. She lived in a cliff cave opposite the whirlpool Charybdis, creating an impossible choice for sailors.
Phorcydes
🐉 creaturesea creatures
The monstrous children of Phorcys and Ceto, including the Gorgons, Graeae, and other terrors
Arion
🗡 heroPoet saved by dolphins
Arion was a legendary poet and musician whose life was saved by a dolphin when pirates forced him to jump overboard.
Orpheus
🗡 heroLegendary musician and poet
The greatest musician in Greek mythology, whose playing could charm animals, trees, and even stones. His descent into the underworld to rescue his wife is one of myth's most poignant tales.
Ceto
🐉 creatureSea, monsters
Primordial sea goddess known as the Mother of Monsters who bore many of the most fearsome creatures in Greek myth
Parthenope
🌿 nymphmusic, the sea, death
A Siren who drowned herself after failing to lure Odysseus, and whose body washed ashore where Naples now stands.
Siren Song
💭 conceptLanguage and persuasion
An English phrase meaning a dangerously appealing but ultimately destructive temptation, derived from the Sirens who lured sailors to their deaths with irresistible singing
Tritons
🐉 creaturesea, marine
Fish-tailed sea spirits who attended Poseidon and blew conch shells to calm or stir the waves, led by the original Triton, son of Poseidon.
Trojan Cetus
🐉 creaturesea monsters
A sea monster sent by Poseidon to ravage Troy, fought by Heracles in exchange for divine horses
Sybaris
🐉 creaturemonsters
A monstrous serpent-dragon that terrorised the region around Delphi until slain by a young hero