The Odyssey & the Trojan War — 21 Names the Myth Left Behind
Odysseus became “odyssey,” Achilles became “Achilles’ heel.”
21 published myths, rearranged into three acts.
The 21 names of the Odyssey and the Trojan War survive today as words such as odyssey, Achilles’ heel, trojan, and the Cassandra syndrome. This page rearranges 21 already-published stories into three acts so you can see, in one place, which word each name became.
A recent film adaptation has brought these names back into view. Here they are in the original myth.
Act I — “The Homecoming That Took Ten Years” · 9
Why did it take Odysseus ten years to sail from Troy to Ithaca?
Ten years from Troy to Ithaca — a homecoming survived by wit, not force
길고 파란만장한 여정·대장정
Trapped by a one-eyed giant, Odysseus called himself “Nobody” and walked free
고유명사로만 남음, 독립 영어 낱말로 굳어지지 않음
Not an enemy but a sweet fruit stole the will to go home
현실에서 도피해 안락한 망각에 젖어 사는 사람
A fair wind held in hand, turned back into a storm by one companion’s suspicion
바람에 의해 생기는·바람이 울리는
An island where a spell turns men into beasts — and counsel opens only to the one who stands his ground. A year’s stay
홀리도록 매혹적이지만 위험한
Sight lost, insight gained — a prophet’s voice that stays clear even beyond death
진실을 꿰뚫어 보는 눈먼 예언자의 상징
A song so beautiful it makes you let go of life — he had to be bound to the mast to hear it
경보음·사이렌
A narrow strait dangerous on both sides — every choice carried a price
양쪽 모두 위험할 때 어느 쪽을 골라도 대가를 치러야 하는 진퇴양난
An island that offered immortality and still could not keep him — seven years of pleading
토성의 위성 이름·카리브해 음악 장르
Act II — “The One Who Waited in Ithaca” · 2
Twenty years of waiting — the ground Penelope and Athena held
Woven by day, unpicked by night — twenty years held by waiting, not by force
신의를 지키며 기다리는 여인의 상징
The goddess of wisdom who shadowed Odysseus the whole way home
학술원·도서관
Act III — “Why That War Began” · 10
How the Trojan War began, and how it ended
A judgment that chose the sweetest promise — and seeded a war
중대한 결과를 부르는 운명적 선택의 상징
Beauty as both praise and fetter — the name that launched a thousand ships
더없이 아름다운 얼굴을 이르는 관용 표현
Invulnerable everywhere but one small place
치명적 약점 · 발뒤꿈치 힘줄
He wore his friend’s armor in his stead — and that loss turned the hero back to the field
목숨을 나눈 우정의 대명사
A shield who stood before his city knowing he could not win
으르대다·위협하다 (동사)
The strongest arm in the camp, thirsting to be acknowledged
고유명에서 나온 상표·구단 이름
A king who won the war and fell at his own threshold — glory eaten by pride
비극의 대명사로 남은 왕의 이름
A prophet who saw the truth and was believed by no one
불길한 진실을 알리나 무시당하는 사람
A threat wheeled inside the walls as a trophy — the gate that carelessness opened
안에 위협을 숨긴 계략 · 악성 프로그램
A step toward new land with the ruins on his back — a beginning born at the end
로마 건국을 노래한 대서사시
Frequently Asked Questions
How many years does the Odyssey cover?
Odysseus was away from Ithaca for twenty years in total: ten years of the Trojan War and ten more on the way home, seven of them on Calypso’s island. ONGO reads those twenty years as time survived by patience and wit rather than by force.
Where does the word “odyssey” come from?
The English word odyssey — a long, eventful journey — comes from the Greek name of Odysseus, Ὀδυσσεύς. His ten-year voyage home from Troy to Ithaca became the word itself.
Why did Odysseus tell Polyphemus his name was “Nobody”?
Trapped in the cave of the one-eyed giant Polyphemus, Odysseus gave his name as “Nobody.” After the escape, when the other giants asked who had hurt him, Polyphemus could only answer that “Nobody” had done it. ONGO presents the scene as wisdom that hides its own name.
Did the Trojan Horse really exist?
It is not confirmed. Archaeologists identify the site of Hisarlik in Türkiye with Troy and grant the war some historical core, but many hold that the horse itself is closer to a symbol left by Homeric epic. Either way, the name “Trojan horse” survives today for a scheme that hides a threat inside — and for malicious computer software (trojan).
What is the Cassandra syndrome?
The Cassandra syndrome is a psychological term for a situation in which an accurate warning or truth is spoken and no one around believes it. It is named after Cassandra of Troy, whose gift of prophecy from Apollo came with the fate of never being believed. ONGO calls it the right voice that goes unheard.
Is the recent film the same story as the myth of the Odyssey?
The same-titled film released in 2026 is a new adaptation based on Homer’s epic the Odyssey. This ONGO collection is unaffiliated with that film; it deals with the original myth, written around the 8th century BCE, and the words those names left behind.
Source: Homer’s Odyssey and Iliad (c. 8th century BCE, public-domain text). The narrative reading and the etymological connections are ONGO originals.
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