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In Greek mythology, King Haemus (/ˈhiːməs/; Ancient Greek: Αἷμος, Haîmos) of Thrace, was the son of Boreas, the north wind.

Mythology

Haemus was vain and haughty and compared himself and his wife, Queen Rhodope, to Zeus and Hera. The gods changed him and his wife into mountains (respectively Haemus Mons, now known as the Balkan Mountains, and the Rhodope Mountains).^[1] In ancient Greek, the Balkan Peninsula was thus known as the "Peninsula of Haemus" (Χερσόνησος τοῦ Αἵμου), a name which retains some currency in modern Greek.

Another classic etymology derives the name 'Haemos' from the myth about the fight of Zeus and the dragon Typhon:

He was again driven to Thrace and hurled entire mountains at Zeus in the battle around Mount Haemus. When these bounced back upon him under the force of the thunderbolt, blood gushed out on the mountain. From this, they say, the mountain is called haemus ("bloody").^[2]

Notes

^ Ovid, Metamorphoses 6.87-89
^ Apollodorus (1976). "Theogony, the Rape of Persephone, the Battle of the Gods and Giants". Gods & Heroes of the Greeks: The Library of Apollodorus. Translated by Simpson, Michael; Baskin, Leonard. University of Massachusetts Press. pp. 20. ISBN 9780870232060.

References

Apollodorus, The Library with an English Translation by Sir James George Frazer, F.B.A., F.R.S. in 2 Volumes, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1921. ISBN 0-674-99135-4. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library. Greek text available from the same website.
Publius Ovidius Naso, Metamorphoses translated by Brookes More (1859-1942). Boston, Cornhill Publishing Co. 1922. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
Publius Ovidius Naso, Metamorphoses. Hugo Magnus. Gotha (Germany). Friedr. Andr. Perthes. 1892. Latin text available at the Perseus Digital Library.