Nereids

In the Greek mythological genealogy preserved in the sources, the Nereids are the daughters of the sea-god Nereus (the 'Old Man of the Sea') and the Oceanid Doris. They are traditionally numbered at fifty and include figures who form part of the sea-divinities' household and retinue. Their parentage and role locate them within classical Greek cosmology as minor divine or semidivine beings born of sea deities.

Classical descriptions represent Nereids as beautiful young women, often crowned with branches of red coral and clothed in white silk robes trimmed with gold; in ancient art they are depicted riding dolphins, sea-horses, or grouped with Tritons, and later iconography sometimes shows them nude or partially nude. In modern Greek folktales (where the name survives as neráides) they are described as extraordinarily beautiful, with golden hair, wearing white or rose garments, dancing at noon or midnight, and sometimes wearing a veil or carrying a handkerchief.

In the mythic corpus the Nereids symbolize the kind and beautiful aspects of the sea: they sing and dance, serve in the retinues of major sea-deities (such as Poseidon and Amphitrite), and assist humans at sea — for example helping sailors, heroes such as the Argonauts, consoling Thetis over Achilles, and aiding Aeneas in storm narratives. Some sources report they were said to reveal to men the mysteries of Dionysus and Persephone. In modern folktales the nereida can form temporary marital bonds with mortal men, a union often conditioned on the retention of a personal garment (veil or handkerchief) which, if stolen and hidden, keeps her in the human realm until recovered.