Most people know the Sphinx asked one riddle. She actually asked two. This is the second one.
“There are two sisters: one gives birth to the other, and she in turn gives birth to the first. Who are they?”
The answer isn’t about people. Think bigger. Think about something that happens every single day, without fail.
Click to Reveal the Answer
Day and Night 🌞
Each one ends where the other begins. Day “gives birth” to night, and night “gives birth” to day. In Ancient Greek, both words are feminine, which is why the riddle calls them “sisters.”
The Story Behind This Riddle
Most people know the Sphinx for her famous riddle about a creature that walks on four legs, then two, then three. But according to some ancient accounts, that was only the first test. If you got it right, she hit you with a second one: this riddle about two sisters.
The story comes from Greek mythology. The Sphinx, a monster with a woman’s head and a lion’s body, sat on a rock outside the city of Thebes and challenged every traveler who tried to pass. Get the answer wrong, and she would strangle and devour you.
Oedipus was the first to answer both riddles correctly. After being outsmarted, the Sphinx threw herself off the rock and died. What makes this riddle clever is how it uses the Greek language itself as a clue. The words for “day” and “night” are both feminine nouns in Ancient Greek, so calling them “sisters” was more than a metaphor. It was a hint hidden in plain sight, but only if you were paying attention to the words, not just the meaning.
