Arcas

There is also Arcas (pronunciation: AHR-kaash) in Portugal, see Arcas, Portugal.

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In Greek mythology, Arcas (Αρκάς) was the son of Zeus and of the nymph Callisto, whom Hera turned into a bear. Arcas unknowingly attempted to kill his mother during a hunt, not recognizing her. Zeus put them both in the sky as Ursa Major (Callisto) and Ursa Minor (Arcas). (Note that the etymology of the name "Arcas" expresses the idea of a bear.)

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Various sources suggest that Maia or Lycaon raised Arcas.

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An alternate version: One of Artemis' companions, Callisto lost her virginity to Zeus, who had disguised himself as Apollo. Enraged, Artemis changed Callisto into a bear. Callisto's son, Arcas, nearly killed his mother while hunting, but Zeus (or Artemis) stopped him and placed them both in the sky as Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.

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The placing of Callisto and Arcas in the sky displeased Hera, so she asked her nurse, Tethys, to help. Tethys, a marine goddess, cursed the constellations to circle the sky forever and never to drop below the horizon: this allegedly accounts for the circumpolar motion of the "fixed" stars.

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Arcas, who became the eponym of Arcadia, had one son, Azan, by Erato.

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Greek mythology: Greek mythology comprises the collected narratives of Greek gods, goddesses, heroes, and heroines, originally created and spread within an oral-poetic tradition. Our surviving sources of mythology are literary reworkings of this oral tradition, supplemented by interpretations of iconic imagery, some...

Zeus: :Alternate meanings: See Zeus (web server) or Zeus (computer game)...

Nymph: : For other uses of "nymph" see Nymph (disambiguation)....