In Greek mythology, Peneus (; ) is a Thessalian river god, one of the three thousand Rivers, a child of Oceanus and Tethys.Hesiod, Theogony 343 & 366–370; Diodorus Siculus, 4.69.1 & 72.1
Family The nymph Creusa bore him one son, Hypseus, who was King of the Lapiths,Diodorus Siculus, 4.69.1; Pindar, Pythian Odes 9 and three daughters, Menippe (mother of Phrastor by Pelasgus),Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Antiquitates Romanae 1.28 DaphneOvid, Metamorphoses 1.452; Hyginus, Fabulae 203 and Stilbe.Diodorus Siculus, 4.69.1 Some sources state that he was the father of Cyrene,Virgil, Georgics 4.320; Hyginus, Fabulae 161 alternately known as his granddaughter through Hypseus. Daphne, in an Arcadian version of the myth, was instead the daughter of the river god Ladon.Pausanias, 10.7.8; Statius, Thebaid 4.289; Nonnus, Dionysiaca 42.386
Peneus also had a son Atrax with Bura,Stephanus of Byzantium, s.v. Atrax and Andreus with an unknown consort.Pausanias, 9.34.6 Tricce (or Tricca), eponym of the city Tricca, was mentioned as his daughter.Stephanus of Byzantium, s.v. Trikkē In later accounts, Peneus was credited to be the father of Chrysogenia who consorted with Zeus and became the mother of Thissaeus.Pseudo-Clement, Recognitions 10.21-23 Meanwhile, his daughter Astabe coupled with Hermes and became the parents of Astacus, father of Iocles, father of Hipponous.Scholia on Euripides, Phoenician Women 133 According to Hellanicus, Peneus was the father of Iphis, mother of Salmoneus by Aeolus the son of Hellen.Hellanicus in scholia on Plato, Symposium 208 (p. 376) In Pherecydes' account, he also sired Dryops to Polydora, daughter of Danaus.Scholia ad Apollonius Rhodius, 1.1212
Mythology Eros shot Apollo with one of his arrows, causing him to fall in love with Daphne. It was Eros's plan that Daphne would scorn Apollo because Eros was angry that Apollo had made fun of his archery skills.Ovid, Metamorphoses 1.456-462 Eros also claimed to be irritated by Apollo's singing. Daphne prayed to the river god Peneus to help her. He changed her into a laurel tree, which later became sacred to Apollo (see Apollo and Daphne).
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Diodorus Siculus, The Library of History translated by Charles Henry Oldfather. Twelve volumes. Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann, Ltd. 1989. Vol. 3. Books 4.59–8. Online version at Bill Thayer's Web Site; Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library. Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities. English translation by Earnest Cary in the Loeb Classical Library, 7 volumes. Harvard University Press, 1937–1950. Online version at Bill Thayer's Web Site; Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library. Hesiod, The Theogony from The Homeric Hymns and Homerica with an English Translation by Hugh G. Evelyn-White, Cambridge, MA., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1914. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library. Greek text available from the same website. Hyginus, Fabulae from The Myths of Hyginus translated and edited by Mary Grant. University of Kansas Publications in Humanistic Studies. Online version at the Topos Text Project.
Nonnus, Dionysiaca translated by William Henry Denham Rouse (1863-1950), from the Loeb Classical Library, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 1940. Online version at the Topos Text Project; Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library. Ovid, Metamorphoses translated by Brookes More (1859-1942). Boston, Cornhill Publishing Co. 1922. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library; Latin text available at the Perseus Digital Library. Pausanias, Description of Greece with an English Translation by W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., and H.A. Ormerod, M.A., in 4 Volumes. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1918. . Online version at the Perseus Digital Library; Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library. Pindar, Odes translated by Diane Arnson Svarlien. 1990. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.; Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library. Pseudo-Clement, Recognitions from Ante-Nicene Library Volume 8, translated by Smith, Rev. Thomas. T. & T. Clark, Edinburgh. 1867. Online version at theoi.com. Statius, The Thebaid translated by John Henry Mozley. Loeb Classical Library Volumes. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1928. Online version at the Topos Text Project; Latin text available at the Perseus Digital Library. Stephanus of Byzantium, Stephani Byzantii Ethnicorum quae supersunt, edited by August Meineike (1790-1870), published 1849. A few entries from this important ancient handbook of place names have been translated by Brady Kiesling. Online version at the Topos Text Project. Virgil, Bucolics, Aeneid, and Georgics of Vergil. J. B. Greenough. Boston. Ginn & Co. 1900. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.