Nature Names, Greek Mythological Names

English and French speaking countries

Derived from the Greek alkyon (kingfisher), which is from hals (sea). Halcyone was the name given to a legendary bird said to have a calming effect on the seas during winter storms. The name has taken on the descriptive definition of halcyon (calm, tranquil, happy).

In Greek myth this name belonged to a daughter of Aeolus and the wife of Ceyx. After her husband was killed in a shipwreck she threw herself into the water, but the gods saved her and turned them both into kingfishers. This is also the name of the brightest of the Pleiades, the seven stars in the constellation Taurus.