Names of Greek Gods and Heroes Flashcards
Athena
= Virgin goddess of victory, intelligence, self-discipline, war
- Metis (intelligence, swallowed by Zeus) + Zeus
- born from Zeus’ head
- always fully armed, defender of civic life (opposite of Artemis who is wilderness)
- protector of
Dionysus
= god of wine and intoxication, emotional freedom
- born from Zeus’ thigh
- married to Ariadne (mortal) of Crete
- associated with wild plants, wild animals, vital fluids
Muses
9 daughters from Zeus + Mnemosyne (memory)
- daughters are subordinate to Zeus therefore everything the muses say could technically be taken as “said by Zeus”
- since mom is memory, everything muses say is said to be taken from memory and is correct
- Live on Mount Helikon
- -> ADDS lot of AUTHORITY to the MUSES and the STORY OF THE BARD
= divine patrons of poetry and dance, led by Apollo
- entertain the gods
Gaia
= mother Earth
- her bosom is foundation of everything
- asexual: oursons, mountains, sea
- sexual (Ouranos): 12 Titans, 3 Cyclopes, 3 Hundred-handed ones
- sexual (Tartarus): Typhoios dragon
Eros
= desire
- just came into being at the beginning
- important for continuing creation
Ouranos
= sky/heaven
- produced asexually by Gaia, perfectly fits above her
- sexual (Gaia): 12 Titans, 3 Cyclopes, 3 Hundred-handed ones
- from his body (castration): Giants, Furies (from the drops of blood), Aphrodite (genitals + seafoam)
Mnemosyne
= memory
- a titan
Herakles
= Zeus + Alkmene (mortal)
- wins immortality, marries Hebe
- born 13 generation after the 50 daughters
Iapetos
- a titan
- sexual (Clymene): Atlas, Menoitios, Epimetheus, Prometheus
Clymene
- a titan’s daughter
- sexual (Iapetos): Atlas, Meiotios, Epitmetheus, Prometheus
Kronos
- roman = Saturn
- Titan
Epaphus
- son of Io and Zeus
- born by miraculous conception
- founds a line of kings in Egypt
Inachus
river god
- father of Io
Thetis
- her son will be more powerful than the father
- married off to Peleus accord`ing to PB after Zeus finds out the prophecy
Hermes
Mercury - messenger god - Zeus + Maia - associated with caduceus and messenger hat - patron of messengers, traveler, oracles - model of social mobility - trickster, investor, liar, thief - "Argeiphontes" instrument = reed pipes
Zeus
Jove, Jupiter
- divine champion and enforcer of dike, xenia, supplication
- weapon = thunderbolt
- animal = eagle
- cult centre = Dodona
Hera
Juno
- sanctity of marriage
- animal = peacock
Ares
Mars
- god of war and bloodlust
- son of Zeus and Hera
- affair with Aphrodite: Harmonia, Panic, Fear
- hated by all, more respected by Romans
Poseidon
Neptune
= god of sea and natural forces of the earth
- married to Amphitrite
- kids: monsters like Pegasus, Polyphemus
- weapon = trident
- animal = horses, bulls
Hestia
Vesta
= goddess of the hearth
- virgin sister of Zeus
- first and last born
Hades
Dis
= god of the underworld
Aphrodite
Venus
= goddess of sexual attraction, love, deceit, violence
- patron god of Rome
- Hesiod: born out of Ouranos’ genitals and seafoam
- Homer: Zeus and Dione (titan)
- arranged married to Hephaestus, affair with Ares, kid with Anchises
- animal = the dove
- cult centre = Cyprus
Aeneas
- son of Aphrodite + Anchises
- raised my mountain nymphs, given to his father once childhood
- flees Greece during Trojan War carrying Anchises on his back, founds new country (Rome) –> why Aphrodite becomes patron goddess of Rome
Demeter
Ceres
- goddess of the grain and harvest
- “mother”
Persephone
Proserpina
- Zeus + Demeter
Keleos and Metaneira
King and Queen of Eleusis
- 4 daughters and infant son (demophoon)
Leto
daughter of Kronos
- mother of Apollo and Artemis
Apollo
Phoebus
- weapon = bow
- instrument = lyre
- tree = palm tree
- cult centre = Delos
- leader of the muses
Artemis
Diana
- goddess of the hunt
- mistress of wild animals (tamed)
- presided over rites of passage from young girls to adolescence
- tree = olive tree
Eileithyia
goddess of childbirth
Hera stops her from helping Leto give birth
Asclepius
son of Apollo
god of medicine
Niobe
queen with 14 children
- bragged she was better than Leto
- Artemis and Apollo killed all her children in defense
- referenced by Achilles and Antigone
Actaeon
hunter who saw Artemis changing
- changed into a stag
- sparagmos
Hephaestus
Vulcan
- craftsman, technology god
- oversees the Cyclopes
- cult site = Lemnos, volcanic site
- thrown out of Olympus by Hera, cared for by Thetis
- temple = Hephaestion, Athens
Medea
= scary helper-maiden
- daughter of Aeetes
- from Colchis
- speaking name: “active intellect”
Procne
- Athenian princess
- Tereus’ wife
- killed son Ityus to get revenge on her sister being raped
- turned into a nightingale
Philomela
Procne’s sister, raped by Tereus, turned into a swallow
Tereus
- King of Thracia
- raped Procne’s sister, Philomela
- turned into a bird of prey
