Io

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Io in Greek mythology, a priestess of Hera who was loved by Zeus. Trying to protect her from the jealousy of Hera, Zeus turned Io into a heifer. Hera sent a gadfly to torture the heifer, which then fled across the world and finally reached Egypt, where Zeus turned her back into human form.

The Bosporus (‘cow's passage’) and the Ionian Sea are reputed to have been crossed by Io, and derive their names from her story.

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