Europa (mythology)

Home > ... > Literature and the Arts > Classical Literature, Mythology, and Folklore > Folklore and Mythology > ...

Essential reading Compare
side-by-side The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition

Europa

Europa yoorō´pe , in Greek mythology, daughter of Agenor and Telephassa. Zeus, enamored of her, appeared as a white bull, enticed her to climb on his back, and swam off with her to Crete. There she bore him Minos , Rhadamanthus , and Sarpedon . She married the king of Crete, who adopted her sons. After her death she was worshiped as a goddess in the festival of the Hellotia.

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1E1-Europa-myt" title="Facts and information about Europa (mythology)">Europa (mythology)</a>

Give this article a thumbs-up on StumbleUpon

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

"Europa." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 25 Dec. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"Europa." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (December 25, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Europa-myt.html

"Europa." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Retrieved December 25, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Europa-myt.html

Learn more about citation styles

Europa

The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable | 2006 | | Â© The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable 2006, originally published by Oxford University Press 2006. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

Europa in Greek mythology, a princess of Tyre who was courted by Zeus in the form of a bull. She was carried off by him to Crete, where she bore him three sons (Minos, Rhadamanthus, and Sarpedon). The continent of Europe is said to be named after her, although Herodotus thinks this is unlikely since she was a Phoenician, and not from mainland Europe.

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1O214-Europa" title="Facts and information about Europa (mythology)">Europa (mythology)</a>

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Europa." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Oxford University Press. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 25 Dec. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Europa." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Oxford University Press. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (December 25, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Europa.html

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Europa." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Oxford University Press. 2006. Retrieved December 25, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Europa.html

Learn more about citation styles

Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Cyprus trades Santa Claus for mythical Europa to pitch new currency to kids News Wire article from: AP Worldstream; 11/22/2007
	Sculpting the baroque world of Fernando Botero.(Worldview) Magazine article from: USA Today (Magazine); 8/1/2008
	Michelle Pauline Lim: The essence of being human.(Arts and Living) Newspaper article from: Manila Bulletin; 12/13/2009

Facts and information from other sites

Related articles from newspapers, magazines, and more

	Cyprus trades Santa Claus for mythical Europa to pitch new currency to kids News Wire article from: AP Worldstream; 11/22/2007; ; 608 words ; ...euro. Taking his place will be Europa, a character in Greek mythology, seduced by Zeus after he had transformed himself into a bull. Europa bore him three sons, and he...the euro on Jan. 1. Why not Europa? Why does it always have to...
	Galileo probe finds big fault on Europa. Newspaper article from: Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service; 12/21/1998; ; 700+ words ; ...violently past each other. But Europa doesn't have this system...fault is called. (In Greek mythology, Astypalaea was the sister of Europa.) Randy Tufts of the University...from Galileo's view behind Europa's southern edge. The fault...
	Theseus and the Minotaur.(Greek mythology)(Brief Article) Magazine article from: Calliope; 12/1/2000; ; 700+ words ; Once upon a time, Zeus, the king of the Greek gods, saw a beautiful maiden named Europa picking flowers in a meadow and decided that he wanted her. He changed himself into a bull and enticed her to ride upon his back...
	Integration, Subversion, and the Rape of Europa: Heinrich Böll's "Er kam als Biefrahrer" Magazine article from: Comparative Literature; 10/1/2006; ; 700+ words ; ...of quizzical maidens like Europa. The integral tenability of...find a turn to Greco-Roman mythology during this iconoclastic period...obliquely retells the "Rape of Europa." The collection, edited...place? Bll's version of the Europa story fully respects the
	Sendung und Dichtung: Adam Mickiewicz in Europa.(Book review) Magazine article from: Sarmatian Review; 4/1/2005; ; 700+ words ; ...underdog. As opposed to this, German Romanticism, first expressed as a "completion of the enlightenment through a new mythology" (144) in the works of Schiller, Novalis, and Friedrich Schlegel (144-53), became transformed in the works of Fichte...
	Civilization and its discontents Newspaper article from: The Independent Weekly; 4/30/2008; ; 700+ words ; ...II carries the title THE RAPE OF EUROPA. The classical allusion seems...and more appropriate: In Greek mythology, Europa was a Phoenician princess carried...the engrossing film The Rape of Europa that is unambiguously appalling...
	Nandipha Mntambo doesn't take any bull.(Entertainment) Newspaper article from: Pretoria News (South Africa); 12/9/2008; 700+ words ; ...fighter and the animal herself. Europa, currently part of disturbance...The coincidental link with Greek mythology - Europa was seduced by Zeus who was disguised...fascination with Minotaurs. "Europa became a queen of some island...
	Question Time.(Features) Newspaper article from: The Mirror (London, England); 8/15/2006; 328 words ; ...from? Peter Colley Hayling Island, Hants A IN Greek mythology Europa was a Phoencian princess abducted by Zeus, king of...Later in Greek history mainland Greece was known as Europa and by 500BC that had extended to the lands to the north...
	Meet Auntie Sam.(Lexington)(Column) Magazine article from: The Economist (US); 9/14/1996; 700+ words ; THE British have Britannia, the French have Madeleine, and all Europeans may turn to the beautiful Europa, who in Greek mythology was abducted by Zeus posing as a bull. Americans, by contrast, have a masculine symbol for their collective...
	The death penalty: a European view. (International). Newspaper article from: Corrections Compendium; 3/1/2003; ; 700+ words ; According to Greek mythology, Europa, the Phoenician princess loved by Zeus, gave Europe its name. It is also possible that Europe's name came from the Phoenician...