| The winds of the Mediterranean |
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Awest wind is awind that originates in thewest and blows in an eastward direction.
In European tradition, it has usually been considered the mildest and most favorable of the directional winds.
In ancientGreek mythology and religion, the godZephyrus was the personification of the west wind and the bringer of light spring and early summer breezes; his Roman equivalent wasFavonius (hence the adjectivefavonian, pertaining to the west wind).
InEgyptian mythology,Ḥutchai is the god of the west wind. He was depicted as a man with the head of a serpent.
Geoffrey Chaucer wrote of the "swete breth" of Zephyrus, and a soft, gentle breeze may be referred to as a zephyr, as inWilliam Shakespeare'sCymbeline (IV, ii): "They are as gentle / As zephyrs blowing below the violet, / Not wagging his sweet head."
InIroquois tradition, the "west wind" is brought by the Panther, ugly and fierce.
In Italian history,Ponente is the west wind and the personification of spring and early summer; his winds are usually calm and lukewarm and very gentle. His ancient Roman equivalent is Favonius.[citation needed]
West winds are inhabited by spirits orJīvas called vāyukāyaekendriya according toJainism.[1]
