The Greeks have several deities originating from their homeland. Some of the Greek gods and goddesses names being worshipped or identified by ancient Greek History also originated from some other origins, like Rome and Egypt.
In this write-up, you will learn about many of the gods related one way or the other to the Greek mythology and religion. They were also known as gods of olympus.
Ancient Greek Gods and Goddesses names list
Hercules is a Roman god and hero. He is equivalent to Heracles in the Greek mythology. Heracles was the son of Alcmena and Zeus, who is also comparable to Jupiter. Hercules was a powerful man and known for his numerous daring adventures. Many literary works prefer to use the word Heracles than Hercules, especially in popular culture and western art. Hercules is multifaceted and has different characteristics also. Consequently, writers and artists can choose and pick how they desire to represent him.
The daring adventures of Hercules took him as far as the Greco-Roman world. One cycle of such adventures is termed the Twelve Labours, which include the following
- Capture and bring back Cerberus
- Steal the apples of the Hesperides
- Obtain the cattle of the monster Geryon
- Obtain the girdle of Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons
- Steal the Mares of Diomedes
- Capture the Cretan Bull
- Slay the Stymphalian Birds
- Clean the Augean stables
Zeus was the ruler of the Olympian gods and god of the sky. The name of his father was Cronus, and he overthrew his father to divide his kingdom. He won Hades and Poseidon, his brothers, to his side. A lot was cast to determine who would succeed their father on the thrown and Zeus won. Consequently, he became the supreme leader of the gods. He also became the god of the rain and sky. If anyone defied or displeased him, he would haul thunderbolt, his preferred weapon, at the offender. His primary targets were oathbreakers and liars. The name of his wife was Hear, whom patience he was known to test repeatedly.
He is considered as the most important of the gods because he was the presiding deity of the entire universe. He was also the ruler of the earth and skies. The Greeks call him the ruler of all natural phenomena found in the sky. Other titles include:
- Father of gods and men
- Ruler of the state
- The personification of the laws of nature
Achilles was a Greek hero, and he is well known for his roles during the Trojan War. He was equally a well-known protagonist of the Illiad, Homer’s epic. The name of his father was Peleus, who was also the king of Myrmidons. The name of his mother was Thetis, who was a nymph. His mother attempted to make him immortal after his birth. Therefore, she dipped him in the river Styx, but she also failed to dip his heels into the river since she was holding him by the heels. As a result, all parts of his body became immortal except the heels.
Another version of that story has it that the mother covered him with ambrosia after which she put him on top of a fire that burned away his mortality. The process was said to be interrupted by Peleus, forcing her to abandon the entire process.
Adonis is described as the god of desire and beauty in Greek mythology. He was worshipped originally in Phoenicia, now called Lebanon. The Greek alter adopted him, however.
The name of his father was Theias, who was the king of Syria. On the other hand, the name of his mother was Myrrha, also called Smryna, who was Theias’ daughter. His mother fell in love with her father and then tricked him to have sex with her. This resulted in a pregnancy that gave birth to Adonis.
The father did not like the fact that his daughter tricked him to have sex with her. Consequently, he tried to track her down so that he could kill her. However, Myrrha was transformed into a myrrh tree after she pleaded with the god of mercy. She gave birth to her son, Adonis while she was in the form of the myrrh tree.
Agathos Daimon is referred to as the god of demons. He is also called the god of fortune. He is undoubtedly a Greco-Roman god because both the Greek and Romans worshipped him. In Greece, the city of Alexandria is the primary location where it was worshipped, and his symbol is that of a snake. He had his origin from the androgynous fertility spirit. However, he was later identified as the consort of Agathe Tyche. His worshipers made librations to him on a regular basis after meals. He was equally seen as a friendly household guardian.
This deity is mostly worshipped in privacy, and few drops of wine are poured out to him after each meal. At times, small offerings were also left for him. He usually appeared as a snake around the home of his worshipers. He is among one of the most worshipped deities in Greek mythology. However, the number of worshipers has reduced over time.
Amphion was the twin of Athena, and the two built the city of Thebes. They built the city via the help of Zethus, who drew the plan of the town. History has it that Amphion played the lyre while the city was being built. As a result, the stones used in erecting the buildings leapt on one another in response to the music and the buildings were completed without any human help.
The city was named by Zethus after his wife called Thebe. The husband and wife were having a great time until they started having kids. Amphion got married to Niobe, and the cute looks of the kids got Thebe jealous. She, therefore, planned to kill the kids. She entered the nursery armed with a knife but only ended up killing her one baby. She was then turned by the gods to a nightingale as punishment for her offence. Zethus also killed himself out of depression. The traumatic happening did not affect Niobe and Amphion. They spent their time grooming their kids. Then after a while, they declared their daughters to be more beautiful than Artemis and their sons to be more handsome than Apollo. This angered Apollo, who killed the children using his bows.
See also the best greek mythology books.
A list of some of the most important ancient greek gods and goddessses.
How many gods are there in greek mythology
Even Greek myths always talk about 12 main Greek gods the total number is higher. They were more than 3.000.