The Acheron reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Apr-2004 (provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

Acheron

The Acheron river is in north west Greece. Acheron translates as "river of woe" and, contrary to popular belief, is also the river that in ancient Greek mythology Charon ferried the newly dead souls across into Hades.

The word is also occasionally used as a metaphor for Hades itself.

The god of the river, an Oceanid and son of Oceanus and Tethys, fathered Ascalaphus with Orphne.

Virgil VI, 107

In Dante's Inferno, the Acheron river forms the border of hell, in the Ante-Inferno. Following with Greek mythology, Charon ferries souls across this river to Hell.

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