In Greek mythology, Halia was a woman who according to Rhodian tradition became the sea-goddess Leucothea. She was a lover of the sea-god Poseidon to whom she bore seven children.
Overview
In Greek mythology, Halia (Ancient Greek: or , means 'the dweller in the sea') was a woman who according to Rhodian tradition became the sea-goddess Leucothea.
Family
Halia was a daughter of Thalassa (the sea), and sister to the Telchines.
Mythology
According to the account by Diodorus Siculus, Poseidon fell in love with Halia, and fathered on her six sons and one daughter, Rhodos, who later became the wife of Helios and the one after whom the island of Rhodes was named. While Aphrodite was journeying from Cythera to Cyprus, she attempted to make a stop at Rhodes. Poseidon and Halia's sons however drove her away. In anger, Aphrodite cursed them with lust over their mother, so they raped Halia. When Poseidon learnt of this, he buried them deep beneath the soil, as Halia cast herself at the sea. She then became the goddess Leucothea, who is usually in other traditions identified with the Theban queen Ino instead. She was worshipped as a divine being by the Rhodians.
See also
Jocasta
Aegypius
Tethys
