Bormus
A son of Upius, a Mariandynian, was a
youth distinguished for his extraordinary beauty. Once during the
time of harvest, when he went to a well to fetch water for the
reapers, he was drawn into the well by the nymphs, and never
appeared again. For this reason, the country people in Bithynia
celebrated his memory every year at the time of harvest with
plaintive songs, with the accompaniment of their flutes.
(Athen. xiv. p. 620; Aeschyl. Pers. 941; Schol. ad Dionys.
Periey. 791; Pollux, iv. 54.)
From The Golden Bough : A Study Of Magic and Religion
In Bithynia a like mournful ditty, called Bormus or Borimus, was chanted by Mariandynian reapers. Bormus was said to have been a handsome youth, the son of King Upias or of a wealthy and distinguished man. One summer day, watching the reapers at work in his fields, he went to fetch them a drink of water and was never heard of more. So the reapers sought for him, calling him in plaintive strains, which they continued to chant at harvest ever afterwards.
