AEOLUS


Meaning of AEOLUS in English

n.

Greek god of the winds.

In the Odyssey Homer represents Aeolus as the mortal ruler of the floating island of Aeolia. He gives Odysseus a favourable wind for his voyage and a bag in which the unfavourable winds are confined, but Odysseus's careless companions open the bag, releasing the winds and driving their ship back to shore. Later writers depicted Aeolus as a minor god rather than a human being. The Aeolian harp is named for him.

Britannica Concise Encyclopedia.      Краткая энциклопедия Британика.