Circe’s family tree centers on the sun god Helios as her father and the Oceanid nymph Perse (or Perseis) as her mother, making her a minor goddess with divine relatives on both sides. She is most famous as the witch of Aeaea in Homer’s Odyssey, where she turns men into pigs, but her lineage connects her to some of the most powerful figures in Greek mythology.
Parents: Helios and Perse
According to Hesiod’s Theogony (lines 956–957), Circe is the daughter of Helios and the Oceanid Perse, daughter of Oceanus and Tethys. Helios is the personification of the sun, who drives his chariot across the sky each day. Perse is a relatively obscure nymph, but her name means “to destroy” or “to sack,” fitting for a witch’s mother. Some later sources, such as the Bibliotheca (attributed to Apollodorus), agree on these parents, though a few variants name her mother as Hecate, the goddess of witchcraft—this is a minority tradition and not the standard genealogy.
Siblings: Pasiphae, Aeetes, and Perses
Circe’s most famous sibling is Pasiphae, the wife of King Minos of Crete, who became the mother of the Minotaur after falling in love with a bull. Her brother Aeetes was the king of Colchis, guardian of the Golden Fleece, and father of Medea, making Circe the aunt of Medea. Another brother, Perses, is less well-known; he ruled Colchis before being overthrown by Aeetes in some accounts. In Homer’s Odyssey, Circe is also called the sister of Aeetes, confirming the sibling relationship.
Children: Telegonus, Agrius, and Latinus
Circe’s most famous child is Telegonus, her son by Odysseus. According to the Telegony, a lost epic of the Trojan cycle, Telegonus was sent by Circe to find his father, but he accidentally killed Odysseus with a spear tipped with a stingray spine. Telegonus then married Penelope, Odysseus’s widow, while Telemachus (Odysseus’s son by Penelope) married Circe herself—a strange but attested mythic outcome. In other traditions, Circe is also the mother of Agrius and Latinus by Odysseus, and in some Italian legends, she bears Latinus to the hero, making her an ancestor of the Romans. Hesiod’s Theogony names Agrius and Latinus as sons of Circe and Odysseus, ruling over the Tyrrhenians (Etruscans).
Circe’s Role in the Odyssey
In Homer’s Odyssey (Book 10), Circe lives on the island of Aeaea, where she turns Odysseus’s men into pigs with a drugged wine. Odysseus resists her magic with the help of the herb moly, given to him by Hermes. After Odysseus forces her to swear an oath not to harm him, she restores his men and becomes his lover for a year. She later advises Odysseus on how to navigate the dangers of the Underworld and the Sirens, showing her knowledge of prophecy and magic. This episode establishes her as a powerful sorceress but also as a helpful guide, a duality that later writers expanded upon.
Later Literary and Artistic Depictions
After Homer, Circe’s story was retold by Roman poets and later European authors. Ovid’s Metamorphoses (Book 14) recounts her love for the sea-god Glaucus, who rejected her, and her subsequent revenge by turning his beloved Scylla into a monster. In the Renaissance, Circe became a symbol of dangerous female seduction and witchcraft, as in Spenser’s The Faerie Queene and Calderón’s play El mayor encanto, amor. Modern retellings, such as Madeline Miller’s 2018 novel Circe, reimagine her as a sympathetic figure, but the ancient sources consistently portray her as a goddess with real power and a complex moral nature.
Common Misconceptions
One common error is calling Circe a mortal witch. In all early sources, she is explicitly a goddess (a daimona or thea), daughter of Helios. Another misconception is that she turned men into pigs permanently; in the Odyssey, she changes them back at Odysseus’s request. Some modern readers also assume she is a villain, but in Homer she is more of an obstacle who becomes an ally. Finally, Circe is sometimes confused with Medea, her niece, who also uses magic—but Medea is the daughter of Aeetes and a mortal princess, not a goddess.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who are Circe’s parents?
Circe’s parents are Helios, the sun god, and Perse, an Oceanid nymph. This is stated in Hesiod’s Theogony and repeated in Apollodorus’s Bibliotheca. A few later sources name her mother as Hecate, but that is not the standard version.
Who are Circe’s siblings?
Her siblings are Pasiphae, Aeetes, and Perses. Pasiphae is the mother of the Minotaur, Aeetes is the king of Colchis and father of Medea, and Perses is a less prominent figure. Homer calls Aeetes her brother, confirming the relationship.
Who did Circe marry or have children with?
Circe never marries in the major myths, but she has children with Odysseus: Telegonus, Agrius, and Latinus (in some traditions). She also has a son named Telegonus, who accidentally kills Odysseus. In some Italian legends, she bears Latinus to Odysseus, making her an ancestor of the Romans.
Is Circe a goddess or a mortal?
Circe is a goddess, specifically a minor goddess or nymph of divine descent. She is the daughter of Helios and Perse, making her immortal. Homer calls her a goddess (thea), and she lives on the island of Aeaea.
Did Circe turn men into pigs permanently?
No, in the Odyssey she turns Odysseus’s men into pigs, but after Odysseus makes her swear an oath, she changes them back to human form. The transformation is temporary and reversible, not a permanent curse.
What is Circe’s relationship to Medea?
Circe is Medea’s aunt. Medea is the daughter of Aeetes, Circe’s brother. In some versions, Circe purifies Medea after she kills her brother Absyrtus, showing a familial connection.
Related
- Mami in Mesopotamian Mythology: Goddess of Birth
- Mors in Roman Mythology: Death Personified
- Ash in Egyptian Mythology: Role and Meaning
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