nephelê

Nephelê (Νεφέλη) is a figure in Greek mythology described as the personification and a cloud-nymph. She is typically presented as a minor deity associated with the sky and the phenomena of weather, and she is most notably linked with the story of Athamas and his children.

In most accounts Nephelê is the wife of Athamas, the king of Boeotia, and the mother of Phrixus and Helle. The myth centers on the peril that befalls the children, prompting divine intervention. According to the tale, a golden ram is sent to rescue Phrixus and Helle from danger. The ram carries them away across the skies; Helle falls into the sea during the flight, giving the strait its name, the Hellespont. Phrixus ultimately reaches Colchis and sacrifices the ram to Zeus; its fleece becomes the Golden Fleece, guarded by a dragon and later sought by Jason and the Argonauts. Thus Nephelê’s role is primarily as the progenitor of the children who embark on the famous flight and as part of the larger mythic cycle surrounding the Golden Fleece.

The name Nephelê derives from the Greek nephelê, meaning “cloud,” reflecting her nature as a cloud-nymph and her associations with weather and the sky. In later literature and art, she is cited as an example of a cloud-born goddess or nymph, illustrating how natural phenomena were personified in Greek myth. See also cloud nymphs and Greek mythological personifications.