Eumaeus

Eumaeus is a figure in ancient Greek literature, best known as the loyal swineherd of Ithaca in Homer's Odyssey. He tends Odysseus's pigs and serves as a trusted servant in Odysseus's household.

In the Odyssey, Odysseus returns to Ithaca disguised as a beggar. Eumaeus offers him shelter, food, and conversation, treating the visitor with hospitality in keeping with the Greek code of xenia. He speaks kindly of Odysseus and Telemachus and discusses the state of the house and the suitors who have overrun it. Eumaeus’s hospitality stands in contrast to the suitors’ disrespect and highlights an important moral dimension of the epic.

Later, when Odysseus reveals his true identity, Eumaeus continues to prove his loyalty. He fights beside Odysseus and Telemachus and, together with the loyal cowherd Philoetius, helps to defeat the suitors and restore order to the household. Eumaeus survives the climax and remains a trusted ally in Odysseus’s reclaimed rule.

In literary analysis, Eumaeus is often cited as an exemplar of hospitality and steadfast service. His character contributes to themes of loyalty, memory, and social order that run throughout the Odyssey, illustrating the bonds that support a just resolution of Ithaca’s crisis.