For an unrelated project, I’ve been doing a ton of research on the Amazons, the mythical race of warrior-women described by the Greeks. The idea of the Amazon has persisted in our collective imagination ever since, and references or comparisons to Amazons pop up throughout the centuries, applied to a variety of different women.
And so I am declaring May to be Amazon Month!
Each Friday in May will feature an Extraordinary Lady like usual, but they will all have some connection to the Amazons – either they came from cultures believed to have inspired the legends, or they were later compared to the Amazons.
We’ll kick off Amazon Month this Friday with Queen Tomyris, a warrior-queen who brought an end to Cyrus the Great! We’ll also cover the Dahomey Amazons, the legend of Queen Califia and a few other surprises!