Calypso was, in Greek mythology, a nymph who lived on the island of Ogygia, off the coast of North Africa. From 1181 to 1174 BC, she detained the returning Trojan War hero Odysseus on her island.
Biography[]
Calypso was the daughter of Atlas and Pleione, and she became the ruler of the island of Ogygia, off present-day Tunisia. In 1181 BC, the Greek hero Odysseus came to her island during his long return voyage to Ithaca, and she imprisoned Odysseus on her island for seven years and enchanted him with her singing. UItimately, Odysseus' patron goddess Athena persuaded Zeus to send Hermes to tell Calypso to set Odysseus free, as it was not his destiny to live with her forever. Calypso angrily commented that the gods hated goddesses having affairs with mortals, but she eventually conceded and gave Odysseus and his men wine, bread, and materials to build a raft and return home. Some accounts of the legend claim that Calypso and Odysseus had two children, Nausithous and Nausinous.