1. Hesiod is a system which uses existing DNS functionality to provide access to databases of information that changes infrequently. It is often used to distribute information kept in the /etc/passwd, /etc/group, and /etc/printcapfiles, among others. From Redhat 8.0 RPM

2. Utilities for Project Athena's service name resolution protocol Hesiod is a name service library that can provide general name service for a variety of applications. It is derived from BIND, the Berkeley Internet Name Daemon, and leverages the existing DNS infrastructure of a network. It is used on a number of university networks, including MIT and Iowa State University. If you will not be using this system on a network that already uses Hesiod, you probably do not need this package. From Debian 3.0r0 APT