The Nine Muses

 The Muses were the daughters of Zeus, or Jupiter, the head god, and Mnemosyne, a titan, and the goddess of memory. They were born over many days in Macedonia. There are nine total Muses, who are godesses of arts and sciences.^[1][2]

The Muses

Calliope: The Muse of epic poetry, and considered the cheif Muse. Calliope was also considdered the wisest Muse, because she was the eldest. Widely respected by her sisters, Calliope is also called "Homer's Muse" because she gave the inspiration for the Oddesy and the Illiad. She has a symbol that can either be a writing tablet or a book.^[3]

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 Clio: The Muse of history. Clio in Greek means to make "famous or celebrate." She also created heroic and historical poetry. Because she is the Muse of history, Clio's symbol is the scroll.^[5]

 Euterpe: The Muse of lyric poetry and flute song. She is credited with having created the double-flute. The double-flute is simply two flutes combined that has "haunting" sound. Due to her musical influence, the symbol of Euterpe is a flute. ^[6][7]

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 Erato: The Muse of love poetry, and imitation. The name "Erato" comes from Greek and means "the lovely or beloved". The most famous of the Muses, she carries a lyre with her in nearly every picture of her. Erato's symbol is a lyre.^[9][10]

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 Melpomene: The Muse of tragedy (plays). Ironically, the name Melpomene in Greek means "to use dance and song to celebrate." The tragic mask is the symbol for Melpomene.^[12]

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 Polyhymnia: The Muse of dance and poetry. In Greek Polyhymnia means "hymn." She has no symbol.^[14][15]

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 Thalia: The Muse ofcomedy. In Greek Thalia means "blooming." The symbol of Thalia is the comic mask.^[17][18]

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Urania: The Muse of astronomy. Urania means "Heavenely," which fits because the heavens and stars are both up in the sky. Fittingly, the symbols for Urania are a compass and globe.^[20]

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Terpsichore: The Muse of Choral Songs and Music. Terpsichore comes from the word "terpsichorean," which means related to or pretaining to dance. Some beleive that she is the mother of the Sirens, the demonic mosters that make ships crash into their island. Her symbol is a plectrum.^[22]

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 The Muses In Myths

     The Muses are in many myths, however, no one myth is centered on them. They appear in events that are centered around what they do. Events that exhibit music, or theatre generally include the Muses.  ^[24][25]

The Muses' Lives

      The Muses were born over nine days, in Macedonia, in the foothills of Mount Olympis. They were the children of Zeus and Mnemosyne. Mount Helicon was a favorite place of the nine Muses. Apollo also enjoyed Mount Helicon. The Muses were the Goddesses in the fields of Art and Literature and Science, as well as history. They were prominent Goddesses and even sat near their father, Zeus, and praised him in singing, saying how mighty and powerful he is. Every Muse led their own lives, and most even had children. The most notable are the Sirens. Finally, many words, such as "music," and "museum" come from them.^[26][27]