1. A sacred
spring on the southern slopes of Mount
Parnassus. The ancient
Greeks thought it to be a source of poetic
inspiration to those who bathed in it. It is named for a
nymph who either jumped into the spring or was turned into the spring while attempting to escape the lecherous advances of the god
Apollo. The nine
muses were sometimes called “
Castalides” after this spring, which they held sacred. The priestesses of
Apollo at
Delphi would bathe in the spring before making their pronouncements. Sometimes spelled
Castalie or
Castaly.
2. A
genus of aquatic plant in the
water lily family, characterized by round, floating flowers and large, bright flowers.
3.
Asteroid 4769 Castalia (1989 PB), discovered by
Eleanor F. Helin of
Caltech using the
Palomar Observatory telescope. It is shaped roughly like a
dumbell (perhaps because it is the product of a gentle collision of two asteroids) and is 1.1 miles (1.8 km) wide.
4. The name of several small towns and cities in the
United States:
Castalia, IA,
Castalia, NC, and
Castalia, OH.