Hero (Greek)

Hero in Greek mythology, priestess of Aphrodite in Sestos. Her lover, Leander, swam the Hellespont nightly from Abydos to see her. During a storm the light by which she guided him blew out, and he drowned. Hero, in despair, then threw herself into the sea. Christopher Marlowe's poem Hero and Leander is based on the story.

Hero in Greek mythology, priestess of Aphrodite at Sestos on the European shore of the Hellespont, whose lover Leander, a youth of Abydos on the opposite shore, swam the strait nightly to visit her. One stormy night he was drowned and Hero in grief threw herself into the sea.

he·ro / ˈhi(ə)rō/ • n. (pl. -roes) a person, typically a man, who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities: a war hero. ∎  the chief male character in a book, play, or movie, who is typically identified with good qualities, and with whom the reader is expected to sympathize. ∎  (in mythology and folklore) a person of superhuman qualities and often semidivine origin, in particular one of those whose exploits and dealings with the gods were the subject of ancient Greek myths and legends. ∎  (also hero sandwich) another term for submarine sandwich.