Other names: Catamitus (Latin), Ganymedes

Etymology: The etymology of the name Ganymede is rather uncertain with many people and sources giving different meanings. A possible Latin meaning is “Gladdening Prince” that takes from the Greek words of ganumai meaning “gladdening” and mêdon or medeôn which means “prince.” As this last word likely has a double meaning, another translation is “genitals.” In which case, Ganymede’s name is meant to have a deliberate double-meaning.

Plato gives forth the meanings of “Ganu,” meaning: “taking pleasure,” and “med,” meaning: “mind.”

Robert Graves in his “The Greek Myths” says that Ganymede comes from the words: ganyesthai and medea, meaning “rejoicing in virility.”

Pronunciation: [gan-uh-meed]

The story of Ganymede is one that is some three thousand years old and dates from the pre-Hellenic and Aegean myths. It’s important to note too, that Ganymede is Trojan and has his place first in the Anatolian myths before his story later becomes part of the classical Greek and Roman legends.

Ganymede’s story and myth is one that has changed too over the millennia. Later Cretan and Minoan additions to the story come some many hundreds if not a thousand years before the Greek version of the story. For many modern day readers, the Hellenic version of the story is the most familiar and well-known.

The Legend

Ganymede was the son of King Tros of Dardania and who is the basis for the kingdom of Troy in Phrygia from Greek mythology. An exceptionally beautiful youth, Ganymede had caught the attention of Zeus when he was out watching over his father’s flock of sheep on Mount Ida. Now, depending on the versions of the story being told, Zeus, either in the guise of an eagle or sending his eagle Aquila, comes and carries him off to Mount Olympus.

Now, when King Tros heard of his son’s disappearance, he grieved so much that Zeus sent the messenger god Hermes to deliver two storm-footed horses as compensation. Other versions state that Zeus gave Tros a golden vine crafted by the god Hephaistos in addition to the two horses. These horses were said to be so fast that they could run over water. The legendary Heracles would ask for these same horses later as payment for destroying the sea monster sent by the god Poseidon when he attacked the city of Troy. Hermes was tasked too with assuring Tros that Ganymede would become immortal and have a place of great honor among the gods as Zeus’ cup-bearer.

Once he arrived in Olympus, Ganymede faced the wrath of Hera, the wife of Zeus. She was angry and very likely jealous that her husband had taken such a fancy to a young boy. In addition to this, Hera was also angry that Zeus intended for Ganymede to replace Hebe, her daughter as the cup-bearer, after an incident where Hebe had accidentally spilled some of the nectar of the gods.

Eos Kidnapping Ganymede & Tithonus

Another version of this myth says that it was Eos, the goddess of the Dawn who carries off Ganymede to Mount Olympus. At this same time, Eos had also kidnapped another, Tithonus. Zeus succeeded at snatching Ganymede away from Eos while making a bargain with her for Tithonus to become immortal. In her bargaining, Eos forgot to ask for Tithonus to also remain youthful. As a result, every day Eos watched Tithonus grow older until she locked him in a room as she could no longer bear the sight of him so old or he turned into a grasshopper.

Ganymedes’ Lineage – Divine Heritage

While Ganymede is listed as the son of Tros, ruler of Dardania that would become known as Troy, and Callirrhoe, the daughter of the river god Scamander.

Tros and Callirrhoe had two other sons: Assaracus and Ilus.

In Pseudo-Apollodorus’ Bibliotheca, he mentions that Tros and Callirrhoe also had a daughter, Cleopatra, a rather common name and not necessarily any of a line of Egyptian Queens.

It should be noted in some versions, Tros is the son of Erichthonius, who in turn is himself the son of Astyoche the daughter of the river god Simoeis. Following the lineage back through Tros’ grandfather of Dardanus, you find a connection to Zeus in the way of his being the great grandfather to Tros.

Ultimately, that makes Zeus Ganymede’s’ Great-Great Grandfather.

Sometimes, the genealogy of Ganymede gets confused and instead of Tros as his father, it is another king of Troy, Laomedon who is mentioned as the youth’s father. It can get rather confusing, as the genealogy will place Laomedon as a nephew to Ganymede with Ilus II as his father and thus Tros as grandfather to him. The overall story of Ganymede is still pretty much the same regardless of who’s mentioned as the father.

Cup-Bearer To The Gods

Regardless of the versions of the story told, Ganymede does become the cup-bearer to the gods and basically serves them their wine. Further variations of this story tell how Ganymede would ride Zeus’ eagle Aquila, accompanying this god on his travels. Both the Aquila constellation near Aquarius and the constellation of Crater, said to be Ganymede’s cup, are near the Aquarius constellation to complete this story.

Ganymede also becomes deified as he was given immorality and eternal youth by Zeus and ends up being the one responsible for the annual Nile River flooding and the life-giving waters of rain. Some scholars have pointed out that like the story of Capricorn, the Greeks are borrowing from other older stories and cultures as well as coming up with their own stories to explain the images and what the constellations mean.

In Roman times, the name Ganymede was sometimes used for handsome slaves who served as cupbearers. Furthering this, many have pointed out that the story of Ganymede is a clear indication and precedence for homosexuality in Greek culture. Others, like in Plato’s writings of dialogues between him and Socrates, say that it wasn’t homosexuality. Instead, they point out the meaning of the name Ganymede for “taking pleasure of the mind.” That Zeus loved Ganymede non-sexually for his mind. Still, other sources point out that this is where the Latin word for catamite originates.

Homosexuality Within Greek Myths

There is a line of thought that points out that all of Zeus’ romantic affairs have some sort of allegorical meaning. The primary one with the story of Ganymede being that of homosexuality in Greek culture.

Before the story of Ganymede and Zeus became popular, the only mention of this type of behavior is found within the worship of the goddess Cybele. Her male followers and devotees would try to attain unity with her through castration and dressing as women. That description though, speaks more of being transgender.

Early Versions Of The Myth – As previously stated, the earliest retellings of Ganymede’s story have no erotic overtones. It isn’t until the fifth century B.C.E. that any sort of sexual relationship between Ganymede and Zeus is mentioned. There has been found a number of Attic vases showing the erotic relationship between the two.

Pederasty – Becoming popular around 7 B.C.E. in ancient Greece, the social acceptance of pederasty appears very suddenly and the first mention of it is on a Cretan brass plaque. Even the famous philosopher Plato makes mention of pederasty having Cretan origins. Pederasty is the relationship between an older man and a younger man, often in his late teens. Ancient Greek social customs say this relationship was consensual.

Note: In Ancient Greek culture and a few others, a youth is just a young adult. About 15 years old for young women and 17-18 for young men. Not as young as a modern mindset is likely to assume.

Plato had Socrates deny Ganymede as the catamite of Zeus. Plato goes on to say that Zeus loved the youth non-sexually and for his mind or psyche. Further, of all of Zeus’ lovers, Ganymede is the only one who is given immortality. Though this is likely overlooking the genealogy of Ganymede’s and that he’s given immortality as he’s a descendant of Zeus’. At the same time, it makes sense for Zeus to love Ganymede’s mind or intellect when he’s just bringing home a descendant of his in whom he might see a lot of potentials and wants to preserve it with immortality.

Once pederasty became popular, some scholars point out that it is or was part of an initiation ritual and in line with entering into the military and the worshiping of Zeus. There would be the presenting of gifts to the youth after his being abducted and taken to the countryside. When the youth returned later, he would sacrifice a bull to Zeus.

Among the different regions of ancient Greece, pederasty was viewed and seen differently. Among the Spartans and Megarians, their cultures didn’t allow for the practice. In Athens, it was a practice reserved only for the aristocracy. Thebans and Boeotians used the practice as an educational means for young boys and to curb their more aggressive tendencies. The Dorians practiced it as well.

For those who have analyzed the myth of Ganymede, they have noted that in many Greek Coming-Of-Age stories about homosexuality, such pederastic relationships didn’t take place without the father’s approval or supervision.

Artistic & Poetic Symbolism – In poetry, Ganymede is used to symbolize an attractive young male drawn towards homosexual desires and love. He is not always shown as such though. In Apollonius’ Argonautica, Ganymede gets upset with a young, god Eros when he’s cheated at a game of chance with dice. Aphrodite, goddess of Love proceeds to chastise her son Eros for cheating on a beginner.

The poet Virgil uses the imagery of Ganymede’s abduction with the youth’s elderly tutors trying uselessly to pull him back to earth while his hounds howl pathetically up towards the heavens.

Fifth-century Attic vases frequently show Ganymede and Zeus’ sexual relationship. Ganymede is shown as a handsome youth. In his abduction scenes, he’s shown with a rooster (a lover’s gift), a hoop (a boy’s toy), or a lyre. In these scenes, he is either being carried off by an eagle or offering food to an eagle from a patera. When Ganymede is shown as the cup-bearer to the gods, he is usually shown as pouring nectar from a jug.

Sculptures and mosaic art often show Ganymede with a shepherd’s crook and wearing a Phrygian cap.

God Of Homosexuality

Despite what the early myths may show and as stories do change and evolve over time, Ganymede does become the god of Homosexuality. Ganymede is often shown as a companion and playmate to the other gods of love, Eros (Love) and Hymenaios (Marital Love). Plato referred to Ganymede as Himeros (Sexual Desire).

The Trojan War

Hera had once been the patron goddess of Troy and her hatred of Ganymede as another lover in a long line of Zeus’ many affairs, has been used by poets and writers to explain why in the story of the Trojan War there is a sudden shift in alliances and support by the gods.

In Quintus Smyrnaeus’ “Fall of Troy” Ganymede is horrified by the invasion of his homeland and pleads with Zeus as he mentions their relationship as kinsmen not to be allowed to see the destruction of Troy. Persuaded by Ganymede’s tears, Zeus veils the city of Priamos in a fog bank that stopped the Greeks from fighting.

Patriarchy Versus Matriarchy

The ancient historian and mythographer Apollodorus has taken the stance that the story of Ganymede shows the triumph of the patriarchy over the matriarchy. That men didn’t need women or their attention.

The famous philosopher Plato used the story of Ganymede to justify his sexual feelings with his male students. That is, loving someone for their intellect.

That certainly seems to be evident with Zeus taking an interest in Ganymede and having him replace Hebe as the cup-bearer to the gods in the accounts that remember Zeus’ and Ganymede’s genealogy and relationship to each other.

Cretan & Minoan Connection – Possible Reality

First, it helps to remember and know that the Minoan culture and civilization predate the Classical Greek culture by some two thousand years. In the Cretan accounts of the story of Ganymede, it is either Tantalus or Minos who abducts the youth. While they were chasing after Ganymede, he is killed and they end up burying him up on Mysian Olympus.

There is a story of King Minos’ brother, Rhadamanthus who loved the youth Talos. Some scholars have speculated that this may be the source of Cretan traditions and customs of homosexuality.

In Plato’s Timaeus, he has no problems blaming the Cretes for coming up with the story of Ganymede as being a lover of Zeus in order to justify their own practices of homosexuality and saying they were only following an example set out by Zeus and his laws. Many Greek authors beyond Plato tended to agree on the practices of pederasty being introduced to the Greeks from Crete.

In the Byzantine Suda, King Minos of Crete on hearing of Tros’ fame in Phrygia, he went to the city of Dardanos to stay as a guest of Tros. While there, Minos and Tros exchanged gifts with each other. After a while, Minos asked to see Tros’ sons, so that he could give them gifts too. Tros informed Minos that his sons were out hunting. Hearing that, Minos wanted to go hunting with the youths too. Tros sent an attendant out to meet his sons where they were hunting near the Granikos river. Minos however, had already sent his ships ahead of the hunting party. Minos had seen the youth Ganymede and fallen in love with him. So he had given orders to his men to the youth. Ganymede however, to escape the pain of his captivity, killed himself with a sword and Minos had him buried in a temple. From there of course, comes the later, more familiar story of Zeus abducting Ganymede and making him immortal.

Egyptian Connection

Ganymede, far as Greek myths go, is viewed as the source of the Nile river and its life sustaining waters. In Egyptian legend, this god is Hapi, who is responsible for dispensing the life sustaining waters and making the Nile valley fertile.

Mesopotamian Connection

The story of Ganymede seems to be related or taken from a Sumerian story of Etana, who descended to the heavens with the help of an eagle while looking for a plant of birth that in turn leads to the birth of his son, Balih.

Roman Connection

In the Roman telling of the myth, before Ganymede replaced Hebe’s role as cup-bearer, they held a competition to see who would have the honor of serving the gods. Naturally, Ganymede won, replacing Hebe and taking his place as a favorite companion to Jupiter. Apuleius, in his 2^nd century C.E. novel The Golden Ass refers to Ganymede as being a country-lad rather than a prince of Troy.

A catamite in Roman usage is the younger, passive partner of a pederastic relationship between an older man and a youth. Nowadays in more modern slang, catamite has come to mean an effeminate homosexual man. The Latin word Catamitus comes from the Etruscan word catmite. Though the word has lost many of the mythological connections to the Greek myth. While many vulgar Latinizations of the name Ganymede change it to Catamitus or Catamite, Ovid in his Metamorphoses continues to use Ganymede’s Greek name.

Thracian Connection

Similar to the Cretan connection, a possible real-world reality involves King Tantalus of Thrake mentioned in the Byzantine Suda. After Tros had won over all the local rulers or conquered them, he sent his son Ganymede with some 50 men to go out and make sacrifices in thanks to Zeus. Tantalus, certain that Ganymede was there to spy on his kingdom, sent his own men to intercept the youth. Once Tantalus, learned the truth of Ganymede’s mission, the king of Thrake tried to nurse the youth back to health. Unfortunately, Ganymede died from illness and Tantalus sent messengers to inform Tros of his son’s death. According to this account, it is later poets who are responsible for changing the story so that Zeus kidnapped Ganymede and became immortal.

Ganymede In Astronomy

Moon – In what should be no surprise to anyone, the seventh and largest moon of the planet Jupiter (the Roman counterpart to Zeus), is named Ganymede after the myth. Ganymede is the second-largest moon in the Solar System and the ninth-largest object as well.

Its discovery is attributed to Galileo Galilei on January 7^th, 1610. However, Chinese astronomical records dating to 365 B.C.E. have a Gan De detecting with the naked eye, a moon of Jupiter. This moon is most likely to have been Ganymede.

Astrology – To commemorate Ganymede’s place among the gods and his story, Zeus placed his eagle, Aquila, up into the heavens to become the constellation of the same name, along with the Aquarius Constellation representing Ganymede and the constellation Crater, representing the cup holding the nectar of the gods in it. None of which I can imagine sat well with Hera that Zeus seems to rub it into her face his new favorite mortal.

Aquila

Aquarius