M Is For Menelaus Trivia Quiz

Answer: Menelaus

Menelaus was indeed the king of Sparta whose wife Helen was abducted by the Trojan prince Paris. She was the bribe offered to Paris by Aphrodite if he would name her as "the fairest one". Following the kidnapping, Menelaus and his brother Agamemnon (king of Mycenae) called upon all Greeks to enact revenge on Troy. And so "a thousand ships" sailed to the Trojan War. After ten years of fighting, Menelaus finally retrieved Helen and they resumed their married life in Sparta, albeit not a happy one: Menelaus kept on mourning the comrades he lost in Troy.
Makedon, the mythical ancestor of the Macedonians, was probably tall and perhaps slender, based upon the etymological analysis of his name. But there are few sources left about him, and they contradict each other: some state Makedon was the son of Zeus, others that he was the son of Osiris. And also Aeolus and Lykaon are cited as his father.
Mormo was a female spirit that should keep children from misbehaviour - a female version of the bogeyman, perhaps.
Mimas was one of the Giants battling the Olympians during the Gigantomachy. He was killed in battle, but the name of his enemy is disputed.

Answer: Medusa

Medusa was one of the three Gorgons: three sisters with atrocious looks. Medusa was mortal, her sisters Stheno and Euryale were immortal. The Greek hero Perseus was sent to kill Medusa, and he used the gifts of several Olympic gods to do so. The goddess Athena had given Perseus a mirror, so he could strike while looking in the mirror and not directly into Medusa's ghastly face.
Melanippe (literally "black horse") can refer to several mythical females, among them the Amazon captured by Heracles in an effort to exchange her for Hippolyta's golden belt. One of Heracles' tasks was to obtain this belt, which he first tried without bloodshed. But Hera intervened and Heracles had to slay several Amazons.
Myrina was also a name applied to several characters. The best documented of those was an Amazon queen who conquered Syria, Phrygia and Lesbos.
Macaria was either the daughter of Heracles or the minor goddess of a welcome death. Heracles' daughter chose to be sacrificed, so in a way she welcomed death too.

Answer: Minos

King Minos and Queen Pasiphae reigned over Crete. They had several children together, but then Pasiphae wanted a completely different sexual experience: she had intercourse with a bull. And after a while she delivered a monster: a gigantic human body crowned with a bull's head, and feeding only on human flesh: the Minotaur. To keep the Minotaur from eating the Cretan citizens, king Minos ordered to build a great maze (the Labyrinth) and to confine the Minotaur in the centre of this Labyrinth. And to feed the monster, Minos demanded that the city of Athens (whose army he had defeated) send regularly seven young boys and seven young girls.

When the Athenian youngster Theseus came of age, he volunteered to be sent to the Minotaur, and with the help of Ariadne (daughter of Minos and Pasiphae) he succeeded in defeating the monster.

Answer: Mousike

Mousike may be a lesser known goddess, but her name still lives on in the word "music" in many languages. Indeed: not only the English word "music" but also most synonyms in Romance languages, Germanic languages, Slavic languages and Turkic languages have been derived from the name of this goddess.
There are several sets of Horae (minor goddesses who rule part of the day or part of the year). Some sets contain only three or four Horae, one set contains twelve of them. In the set of twelve Horae described by Nonnus there are several Horae appointed to the most propitious moment to undertake some action. The third hour was Mousike, the fourth hour Gymnastike (time to do some exercises), and the fifth hour was Nymphe (everything involving water: washing, cleaning...).
Marpesia was one of the queens of the Amazons and would have helped founding the city of Ephesus.
Melinoe was a nymph of the earth, vengeful in nature: she would send nightmares and drive people mad.
Molpadia was a name for at least two mythical characters, including an Amazon killed by Theseus.

Answer: Momus

Momus was one of the offspring of Nyx (night) and had inherited a dark character. In present language we would think of Momus as a nit-picker. The name of Momus would have been derived from the ancient Greek for "blame", and Momus, who once dwelt on Olympus, was expelled because of his constant criticism.
According to a fable by Aesop, he criticized the most beautiful house designed by Athena because it had no wheels, and thus it could not be moved if the neighbours were unfriendly. Another source praised the statues sculpted by Praxiteles because even Momus could not find fault with it.
Matton was a minor mythical character, involved in the kneading of dough.
Myles, an ancient king of Laconia, would have been the grandfather of the founder of Sparta.
Menoetius could refer to at least three different mythical characters. One of them was one of the Argonauts with Jason, and he was father of Patroclus (Achilles' comrade who died in the Trojan War).

Answer: Mnemosyne

Would we have to sing "Mnemosyne, all alone in the darkness..."? Mnemosyne was indeed the goddess of memory. She was listed as one of the Titans, and a story tells that Zeus in the shape of a mere mortal shepherd made love to her for nine consecutive nights, which resulted in nine beautiful daughters: the Muses.
A ritual performed when visiting an oracle dedicated to Mnemosyne was to drink first a sip of a well called the Lethe (forgetfulness) and then to take a sip from a well named "remembrance" (after Mnemosyne), so that one would forget prejudices and only retain the message of the oracle.
According to one source, Mnemosyne lived in Boeotia near the Pierian springs (which later were mentioned in Alexander Pope's poetry: "A little learning is a dangerous thing; / Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring.")

Mania was a minor goddess of insanity. Her name lives on in the present word mania.
Minthe was a naiad amorously pursued by Hades. To escape rape, she was transformed into a mint plant.
Messembria was the goddess of the sixth hour, noon.

Answer: Morpheus

Morpheus is the son of Hypnos, the god of sleep. According to Ovid, Hypnos had several sons, all specialized in one aspect of dreaming - and Morpheus was the best at appearring in human form. Ovid describes how Morpheus took the guise of Ceyx to bring Ceyx' wife Alcyone the sad news of Ceyx' death by drowning. So Morpheus appeared as a very wet Ceyx, wearing only seaweed in his hair and beard. Hypnos, Morpheus and the rest of their family would have resided on the edge of Hades (the Underworld).
Manto was one out of at least five young women, all born to a different well known parent. The most fame gained Manto daughter of the soothsayer Tiresias during the years that he was a woman. Indeed: the male prophet Tiresias was punished by Hera to live as a priestess for seven years.
Two mythical people carried the name of Megareus. One of them was a prince and defender of Thebes when the brothers Eteocles and Polynices fell out as to who of them was allowed to rule Thebes for the next year.
Melampus (literally "black foot") was a mythical soothsayer of great fame.

Answer: Medea

When the Greek hero Jason sailed to Colchis (at the eastern end of the Black Sea) to find the Golden Fleece, he met Medea - a princess of Colchis, and yet considered a barbarian by the Greeks. Medea was a sorceress of some kind, and she aided and abetted Jason on condition that he marry her after conquering the Golden Fleece. The theatre play by Euripides starts about ten years later, when Jason and Medea were happily married and had several children.

But then Jason fell head over heels for the charming Corinthian princess Glauce. Medea killed Glauce by means of a poisoned robe, and then confronted Jason.

While Jason witnessed the fact from a distance, Medea stabbed both of her sons to death.

Answer: Midas

Midas was king of Phrygia. It seems there have been at least three kings of Phrygia named Midas, so the various stories can become quite confused.
According to old lore, Midas was the son of Gordias, a charioteer. When Gordias and Midas arrived in Phrygia during a civil dispute, the arguing Phrygians remembered that an oracle had promised "a king would come in his chariot". So Gordias was made king, and he was succeeded by his son Midas. The chariot in which they came was tied up with a complicated knot, and another oracle declared that "he who unties this knot, will become ruler of Asia". The real Alexander the Great knew this myth and decided to untie the knot in a very drastic way: he cut it with his sword.
When Dionysus, the god of the wine, sought one of his satyrs, it was Midas who had welcomed the stray satyr for many days. Dionysus granted Midas one wish as reward for his hospitality, and Midas chose (poorly) to alter everything he touched into pure gold. It soon became clear why Midas' choice was a folly: the touch altered not only random objects into pure gold, but also everything Midas would try to eat or drink, and even his daughter whom he tried to comfort. Midas implored Dionysus to get rid of this golden touch, and so it was done.
Another story about Midas (possibly another Midas) was that he judged a music competition between Apollo and Pan. As Midas favoured Pan's flute play, Apollo punished him by giving him a pair of donkey's ears.

Answer: Melpomene

The nine Muses were (alphabetically listed) Calliope for epic poetry, Clio for history, Erato for love poetry and lyrics, Euterpe for music, Melpomene for tragedy, Polyhymnia for sacred poetry, Thalia for comedy, Terpsichore for dance and Urania for astronomy.
Melpomene is usually depicted as a young woman in a long robe and cothurns (actor's boots with thick soles), crowned with a wreath of laurel or vines. In her hands she carries usually a sword or other bladed weapon (symbol of the killing characters on stage), a club with ivy, and/or the mask of a tragic actor.
Merope could refer to several mythical females, including the mother of Phaeton who would be killed when losing control over Helios' chariot.
Maia was the mother of Hermes, the messenger of the gods.
Melete was an ancient Boeotian deity dedicated to contemplation. She can be identified as a precursor to Mnemosyne and the Muses.