hyacinthus

listen to the pronunciation of hyacinthus
English - English
A Spartan youth loved and accidentally killed by Apollo. The flower hyacinth sprang from his blood
In Greek mythology, a young man of great beauty who attracted the love of Apollo. The god killed him accidentally in discus throwing, and from his blood grew the flower hyacinthos (not the modern hyacinth), whose petals were marked with the words AI, AI ("Alas"). His death was celebrated at Amyclae, his native town in Sparta, with an early summer festival known as the Hyacinthia. The festival marked the transition from spring to summer

Related Terms

genus hyacinthus
sometimes placed in family Hyacinthaceae as the type genus