In Greek mythology, the Epimeliads, Epimelides, Meliades, or Maliades (Ancient Greek: Ἐπιμηλιάδες, Ἐπιμηλίδες, Μηλιάδες, Μαλιάδες) are dryadnymphs that care for apple trees as well as sheep and goats. The homonymic names for an epimelias (Ἐπιμηλιάς) relates them to both fruit trees and flock animals giving them their dual role. Their hair is white, much like apple blossoms or undyed wool. Like other dryads, they can shape-shift from trees to humans. They are also known to be the guardians of the tree that the Golden Fleece was kept on. Notably, these nymphs are not a clearly defined category since various other types of nymphs were counted among them.[citation needed]
Στη Λέσβο οι Νύμφες ονομάζονταν Ἐπιμηλίδες και είναι γνωστές τρεις κατηγορίες τους: Μελίαι, Δρυάδες και Ἕλειοι. Μια ακόμα κατηγορία Νυμφών είναι αυτή των Βρισῶν όνομα που πήραν από την περιοχή της Βρίσας.
In Lesbos the Nymphs were called Epimelides and three categories of them are known: Meliai, Dryades and Heleioi. Another category of Nymphs is that of the Vrisians, a name they took from the region of Vrisa.
—Athina Latsinoglou, 2020[1] Master of Classical Archeology
—translation
Etymology
One etymology for the ancient Greek word μῆλον refers to a goat or a sheep. In Boeotian, the word was μεῖλον. However, another etymology for the ancient Greek word μῆλον can refer to an apple or any other fruit, while ἐπιμηλίς is specifically the name for medlar. The Doric and Aeolic variation is μᾶλον, hence once of their names Maliades.
