Dryads and Hamadryads – Mythopedia Dryads and Hamadryads were nymphs—minor female divinities who represented various aspects of nature Originally, Dryads and Hamadryads formed two different categories of nymphs connected with oak trees (both terms come from the ancient Greek word for “oak tree”)
Nymphs – Mythopedia Dryás) and Hamadryads (Greek Ἁμαδρυάδες, translit Hamadryádes; sing Hamadryad, Greek Ἁμαδρυάς, translit Hamadryás) They were perhaps originally conceived as nymphs who lived in oak trees (their name comes from the Greek word for “oak tree”) but eventually came to represent all nymphs who lived in specific trees
Oreads - Mythopedia However, “Oread” was a very loose classification within the Greek taxonomy of nymphs It could include any number of subcategories, especially other land nymphs, such as tree nymphs (Dryads, Hamadryads) and grove nymphs (Alseids) The Oreads sometimes even overlapped with the spring or water nymphs, who usually comprised a separate category
Nereids - Mythopedia The Nereids were the fifty daughters of the sea gods Nereus and Doris Numbered among the nymphs—female divinities who took the form of beautiful young women—the Nereids were widely regarded as kind and helpful sea deities The most famous among them were Amphitrite, Galatea, and Thetis