Myth & LegendGreek → English
Cassiopeia
/ˌkasɪəˈpiːə/noun
The W-shaped northern constellation, named after the boastful queen of Greek myth.
The Greek roots
Κασσιόπεια
Kassiópeia
Cassiopeia, queen of Aethiopia
Literally: “Cassiopeia”
Follow a root:Κασσιόπεια1 word
The story of the word
She bragged that she or her daughter outshone the Nereids, so Poseidon sent a sea monster and the sky punished her by fixing her to a chair that turns upside down as it circles the pole. Her whole family is up there: Cepheus the husband, Andromeda the daughter chained to the rock, Perseus arriving, and Cetus the monster. Tycho Brahe's supernova of 1572 blazed in this constellation and helped break the doctrine that the heavens never change.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → English
- First recorded
- 14th century
Same family
AndromedaCepheusPerseus
In a sentence
Find the W of Cassiopeia and Polaris is an easy hop away.
Cassiopeia never sets from British latitudes.