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Asia Minor, which he named Cicilia after him and became a king there. Thasus eventually landed on
the island of Thassos, also gave it his name and reigned there. Phoenix went to Africa. Cadmus, the
youngest and most beloved brother of Europa, asked the Oracle of Delphi what to do. The priests of
the Oracle told him not to worry about his sister because she was safe. They also told him to go to
Boeotia, a region to the north of Athens, and found a town there, which would become rich and
powerful in the years to come. Indeed, Cadmus did this and the town was called Cadmia, later
changed to Thebes. It is said that when Europa died, Zeus transformed her into a constellation and
he himself took again the shape of the white bull to merge into it, as the Taurus Constellation.
Today the name Europa has been given to one of Jupiter's 16 moons discovered by Galileo,
important as evidence for Copernicus’ heliocentric theory. Europa is special as it is believed to have
water on its surface.

Many other things have been named after Europa. These include: a Roman province established by
Diocletian, more or less modern European Turkey; a Metro station in Seville; a new city to be
established in 2024 just outside Paris; a small island near Mozambique; the southernmost point on
Gibraltar; a road on Gibraltar (Gibraltar means ‘Jabal Tariq’ or “Tariq’s Mountain”, after the Arabic
general Tariq-Ibn-Ziyad who captured it for Islam in 711)); a media prize and festival; a square in
Barcelona; a tiny community in Missouri; and the title of five films, three albums, seven songs,
three periodical, two novels, a symphony orchestra, a record label, two radio stations, four
buildings, six companies, , an airline, a rocket, three models of car, numerous ships including Royal
Navy ones, and a range of gasoline engines manufactured in Wisconsin(mostly used in
lawnmowers). There are also two other mythical Europas; an Oceanid or sea-nymph; and a
daughter of an earth-giant and mother of one of sons of Poseidon (god of the sea, earthquakes and
horses) who became an Argonaut.

Do myths offer deeper clues to the reality they become attached to? Is it significant that all three
mythical Europas are associated with the sea, earthquakes and big, fast, sexy animals?