ABSTRACT
Every part of Greece had its local legends, as did the Greek islands too and theGreek colonies overseas. Many of the most important of these have already been considered, either in connection with the mythical history of major centres such as Thebes and Athens or as we were tracing the tangled histories of the great families of heroic mythology; but there remain many more, some relating to major figures such as Orpheus and Orion who did not belong to any of the great families, and others that never came to be of more than regional significance, and others again that happened to become famous beyond their regional bounds because they were taken up by some notable poet or were especially attractive in themselves. The present chapter will offer a selection of the more interesting of these remaining stories and bodies of myth, particularly the older ones involving mythical figures of venerable origin. We will approach them on a regional basis, starting at the northern fringes of the Greek world and then passing southwards through Thessaly and Central Greece, before finally venturing overseas to the Aegean islands and further abroad.
