In Greek mythology, two sacred mountains are called Mount Ida, the "Mountain of the Goddess": Mount Ida in Crete; and Mount Ida in the ancient Troad region of western Anatolia which was also known as the Phrygian Ida in classical antiquity and is the mountain that is mentioned in the Iliad of Homer and the Aeneid of Virgil. Both are associated with the mother goddess in the deepest layers of pre-Greek myth, in that Mount Ida in Anatolia was sacred to Cybele, who is sometimes called Mater Idaea, while Rhea, often identified with Cybele, put the infant Zeus to nurse with Amaltheia at Mount Ida in Crete. Thereafter, his birthplace was sacred to Zeus, the king and father ofGreek gods and goddesses.
Etymology
The name Ida is of unknown origin. Instances of i-da in Linear A probably refer to the mountain in Crete. Three inscriptions bear just the name i-da-ma-te, and may refer to mount Ida or to the mother goddess of Ida. In Iliad, Ἵδη means wooded hill, and reminds the mountain worship in the Minoan mother goddess religion. The name is related with the nymph Idaea, who according to Diodor was the mother of the ten Kuretes. Idaea was also an epithet of Cybele. Romans knew Cybele as Magna Mater, or as Magna Mater deorum Idaea, equivalent to the Greek title Meter Theon Idaia. Proclus considered it as the "mount of the Ideas", whence its etymology.
Mount Ida, Crete
's Mount Ida is the island's highest summit, sacred to the Goddess Rhea, and wherein lies the legendary Idaean cave ), in which baby Zeus was concealed from his father Cronus. It is one of a number of caves believed to have been the birthplace or hiding place of Zeus. The Kouretes, a band of mythical warriors, undertook to dance their wild, noisy war dances in front of the cave, so that the clamour would keep Cronus from hearing the infant's crying. On the flank of this mountain is the Amari Valley, the site of expansion by the ancient settlement at Phaistos. Its modern name is Psiloritis. The surrounding area and mountain used to be very wooded.
Mount Ida, Anatolia
From the Anatolian Mount Ida, Zeus was said to have abducted Ganymede to Olympus. The topmost peak is Gargarus, mentioned in the Iliad. Zeus was located in the Altar of Zeus during the Trojan War. The modern Turkish name for Mount Ida, Turkey, is Kaz Dağı, pronounced. In the Aeneid, a shooting star falls onto the mountain in answer to the prayer of Anchises to Jupiter.
In July 2019, protesters came to the village of Kirazlı, about forty kilometres away from Mount Ida, to protest against the construction of a new mine by Canadian company Alamos Gold, after the Forestry Department cleared thousands of trees to make way for the construction, despite this region being Forestry lands actively managed by the Ministry of Forests. Local people from Kirazli and other nearby villages, employed in forestry, agriculture and mining strongly support the project. Protesters began a "Water and Conscience Watch" on July 26. A "Great Water and Conscience Meeting" was then held on August 5, during which protesters entered the mining site and symbolically planted trees in front of the press. Images of the land which had been cleared of trees also caused outrage on social media. Artist Zülfü Livaneli wrote an open letter to UNESCO protesting about the destruction of the natural environment in the area.
