~From Naiads to Nymphs~

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Naiads- The nymphs of fresh water, whether of rivers, lakes, brooks, or springs.
Nala- A legendary king of India, whose love for Damayanti and whose subsequent misfortunes have supplied subjects for numerous poems.
Nanabozho- A North American Indian hero who, like Hiawatha, showed himself a benefactor of mankind. He stole fire from the fire spirit.
Naraka- The hell of the Hindus. It has 28 divisions, in some of which the victims are torn by ravens and owls; in others they are compelled to swallow cakes boiling hot, or are made to walk over burning sands.
Narcissus- The beautiful youth, son of the river god Cephissus and of the sea nymph Liriope. Echo, whose love he refused, died of grief. But Nemesis, to punish him, caused him to see his own image reflected in a fountain, whereupon he became so enamored of it that he gradually pined away, until he was metamorphosed into the flower which bears his name. According to another tradition, Narcissus had a sister of remarkable beauty, to whom he was tenderly attached. She resembled him in features, was similarly attired, and accompanied him in the hunt. She died young, and Narcissus, lamenting her death, frequented a neighboring fountain to gaze upon his own image in its stream. The strong resemblance that he bore to his sister made his own reflection appear to him, as it were, the form of her whom he had lost. The gods looked with pity upon his grief, and changed him into the flower that bears his name.
Nausicaa- A daughter of Alcinous, king of the Phćacians, and of Arete. She discovered the shipwrecked Odysseus (Ulysses) on the shore and conducted him to the court of her father.
Naxos- Island in the Aegean Sea.
Nectar- Wine conferring immortality, which was, according to Homer, drunk by the gods.
Neleus- Son of Neptune and Tyro, and brother to Pelias. He became king of Peloponnesus; his twelve sons were all killed by Hercules.
Nemean Lion- A monstrous lion, near the forest of Nemea, which wasted the surrounding country and threatened destruction to the herds. Hercules promised to deliver the country of the monster, and Thespius rewarded Hercules by making him his guest so long as the chase lasted. Hercules slew the lion, and thereafter wore its skin as his garment and its head as his helmet.
Nemesis- A Greek goddess, who measured out to mortals happiness and misery, and visited with losses and sufferings all who were blessed with too many gifts of fortune. This is the character in which she appears in the earlier Greek writers; but subsequently she was regarded, like the Erinyes or Furies, as the goddess who punished crimes.
Neoptolemus- The son of Achilles. He was reared in Scyros, in the palace of Lycomedes, and was brought thence by Ulysses, because it had been prophesied that Neoptolemus and Philoctetes were necessary for the capture of Troy. At Troy Neoptolemus showed himself worthy of his great father. He was one of the heroes concealed in the wooden horse, and at the capture of the city he killed Priam, and sacrificed Polyxena to the spirit of his father. He was also called Pyrrhus. See Phrrhus.
Nepenthe- A care-dwelling drug, which Polydamna, wife of Thonis, king of Egypt, gave to Helen. A drink containing this drug "changed grief to mirth, melancholy to joyfulness, and hatred to love." Homer mentions this drug nepenthe in his Odyssey.
Neptune- A Roman god of water, identified with Poseidon, the Greek god of the ocean. To him as god of the ocean, myths assign the following activities: his assistance to Jupiter against the Titans; the building of the walls and ramparts of Troy; the creation and taming of the horse; the raising of the island Delos out of the sea; and the destruction of Hippolytus by a monster sent from the deep. He was feared also as the author of earthquakes and deluges, which he caused or checked at pleasure by his trident.
Nereids- Sea nymphs, generally regarded as belonging to the Mediterranean. The chief characteristics of these minor deities of the sea were the power of divination and the ability to change their forms at pleasure. They were daughters of Nereus and Doris, fifty in number, and usually followed in the train of Neptune.
Nereus- A son of Pontus and Gća, and husband of Doris, by whom he became the father of the fifty Nereids.
Nessus- Centaur who carried Deianira off causing Hercules to come and save her. He shot an arrow at Nessus and the centaur fell to the ground. But before he died, he whispered in Deianira’s ear, “Take some of my blood and save it. If you ever fear that you are losing your husband’s love, paint some of the blood on his tunic and he will love you again.” She saved she drops of blood and eventually she ended up putting some of the blood on his tunic, not knowing that the blood was actually mixed with the deadly poison from Hercules’ arrow. When Hercules put on his tunic, he was in such pain that he couldn’t stand the suffering anymore and he ordered his men to build him a funeral pyre, which he jumped into, committing suicide.
Nestor- A son of Neleus and Chloris, and king of Pylos in Triphylia. He took a prominent part in the Trojan War, acting as counselor of the other Grecian chiefs, but he was equally distinguished for his valor in the field of battle. Homer extols his wisdom, justice, bravery, and eloquence. He lived to so great an age that his advice and authority were deemed equal to those of the immortal gods. Hence the name is often found in literature as an appellation denoting wisdom.
Nickar or Hnickar- The name assumed by Odin when he impersonated the destroying principle.
Nickneven- A gigantic and malignant female spirit of the old popular Scottish mythology. The hag is represented riding at the head of witches and fairies at Halloween.
Niflheim- "Mist home" of old Norse mythology, the region of endless cold and everlasting night, ruled over by Hel, daughter of Loki. It consisted of nine worlds, to which were consigned those who died of disease or of old age. This region existed "from the beginning" in the North, and in the middle of it was the well Hvergelmir, from which flowed twelve rivers.
Nike- Comrade of Athena and Zeus, known as the spirit of victory.
Nina- The ancient patron goddess of Nineveh. The Babylonian word sign for her name and that of the city meant "house of the fish."
Niobe- The daughter of Tantalus and the wife of Amphion, king of Thebes. Niobe offended Latona, the mother of Apollo and Artemis, by boasting that she had more children than Latona, and the latter engaged both her children to avenge her; the, by their arrows, slew the seven sons and seven daughters of Niobe, who by grief was changed into stone. She was transported in a whirlwind to the top of Mount Sipylus, where she has ever since remained, her tears flowing unceasingly.
Nisus- A Trojan youth who accompanied Ćneas to Italy after the fall of Troy. He is celebrated for his devoted attachment to his friend Euryalus.
Nithhogg- The dragon that gnaws at the root of Yggdrasil, the tree of the universe in Scandinavian mythology.
Nix- Little creatures not unlike the Scotch brownie and German kobold. They wear a red cap, and are ever ready to lend a helping hand to the industrious and thrifty.
Nokomis- Daughter of the moon in North American Indian myths. Sporting one day with her maidens on a swing made of vine canes, a rival cut the swing, and Nokomis fell to earth, where she gave birth to a daughter named Wenonah. Wenonah later became the mother of Hiawatha.
Norns- The three Fates of Scandinavian mythology, past, present, and future. They spin the events of human life, sitting under the ash tree Yggdrasil, which they carefully tend. Their names are Urd, "the past," Verdandi, "the present," and Skuld, "the future." Besides these three Norns, every human creature has a personal Norn or Fate. The home of the Norns is called in Scandinavian mythology, "Doomstead."
Notus- In Greek mythology, the South Wind.
Nox- The goddess of night, considered among the ancients as one of their oldest divinities and worshipped by them with great solemnity. In the temple of Athena, at Ephesus, was a famous statue of her. She became the mother of Ćther, “air,” and Dies, “day.” She was likewise, according to some, the mother of the inexorable Parć; of the avenging Nemesis, who punishes hidden crime; of the Furies, who torment the wicked; of Charon, the ferryman of hell; and of the twin brothers, Sleep and Death.
Nymphs- The Nymphs of ancient fiction were viewed as holding an intermediate place between men and gods as to the length of life, not being absolutely immortal, yet living a vast length of time. Oceanus was considered as their common father, although the descent of different nymphs varies. Their usual abode was in grottoes. Special groups had their own peculiar duties, each group being distinguished by special names according to the several objects of their patronage, or the regions in which they chiefly resided. Thus, there were the Oreads, or nymphs of the mountains; Naiads, Nereids, and Potamids, nymphs of the fountains, seas, and rivers; Dryads and Hamadryads, nymphs of the woods; Napćć, nymphs of the vales.

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