The planet Jupiter has been known since ancient times. It is visible to the naked eye in the night sky and can occasionally be seen in the daytime when the Sun is low. To the Babylonians, this object represented their god Marduk. They used Jupiter's roughly 12-year orbit along the ecliptic to define the constellations of their zodiac. The Romans called it "the star of Jupiter" ("Iuppiter Stella"), as they believed it to be sacred to the principal god of Roman mythology, whose name comes from the Proto-Indo-European vocative compound *"Dyēu-pəter" (nominative: *"Dyēus-pətēr", meaning "Father Sky-God", or "Father Day-God"). In turn, Jupiter was the counterpart to the mythical Greek "Zeus" (Ζεύς), also referred to as "Dias" (Δίας), the planetary name of which is retained in modern Greek.
Mythology
Jupiter
Jupiter | Mythology
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what are the alternating dark and light bands in jupiter’s atmosphere called
user
Lightly colored "zones" and relatively dark "belts."
assistant
what is the atmosphere like in jupiter?
user
It is mostly made of molecular hydrogen and helium in roughly solar proportions; other chemical compounds are present only in small amounts and include methane, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and water.
assistant
how can you describe its structure vertically?
user
The atmosphere of Jupiter is classified into four layers, by increasing altitude: the troposphere, stratosphere, thermosphere and exosphere
assistant
what is the definition of the first mentioned layer?
user
The troposphere is the lowest layer of Earth's atmosphere, and is also where nearly all weather conditions take place.
assistant
what is the flow here like?
user
The flow of the atmosphere generally moves in a west to east direction.
assistant
are there different types of flow?
user
Yes, Zonal flow, Meridional flow and Atmospheric flow
assistant
how do you explain the first type of flow?
user
A zonal flow regime is the meteorological term meaning that the general flow pattern is west to east along the Earth's latitude lines, with weak shortwaves embedded in the flow
assistant
how is the third type of flow?
user
Sorry. I cannot find the answer based on the context.
assistant
what is the density of the last chemical compound found in the planet?
user
Sorry. I cannot find the answer based on the context.
assistant
what is the size of the aforesaid planet?
user
Jupiter's radius is about 1/10 the radius of the Sun
assistant
what is its importance in myth?
user
To the Babylonians, this object represented their god Marduk. They used Jupiter's roughly 12-year orbit along the ecliptic to define the constellations of their zodiac
assistant
what are some names of this god?
user
The planet Jupiter has been known since ancient times. It is visible to the naked eye in the night sky and can occasionally be seen in the daytime when the Sun is low. To the Babylonians, this object represented their god Marduk. They used Jupiter's roughly 12-year orbit along the ecliptic to define the constellations of their zodiac. The Romans called it "the star of Jupiter" ("Iuppiter Stella"), as they believed it to be sacred to the principal god of Roman mythology, whose name comes from the Proto-Indo-European vocative compound *"Dyēu-pəter" (nominative: *"Dyēus-pətēr", meaning "Father Sky-God", or "Father Day-God"). In turn, Jupiter was the counterpart to the mythical Greek "Zeus" (Ζεύς), also referred to as "Dias" (Δίας), the planetary name of which is retained in modern Greek.
Jupiter | Mythology
The ancient Greeks knew the planet as Phaethon (), meaning "shining one" or "blazing star." As supreme god of the Roman pantheon, Jupiter was the god of thunder, lightning and storms, and appropriately called the god of light and sky. The astronomical symbol for the planet, , is a stylized representation of the god's lightning bolt. The original Greek deity "Zeus" supplies the root "zeno-", used to form some Jupiter-related words, such as "zenographic".
Jupiter | Mythology
The name of the god was also adopted as the name of the planet Jupiter; the adjective "jovial" originally described those born under the planet of Jupiter (reputed to be jolly, optimistic, and buoyant in temperament).
Jupiter (mythology) | Name and epithets
Georg Wissowa stressed Jupiter's uniqueness as the only case among Indo-European religions in which the original god preserved his name, his identity and his prerogatives. In this view, Jupiter is the god of heaven and retains his identification with the sky among the Latin poets (his name is used as a synonym for "sky".) In this respect, he differs from his Greek equivalent Zeus (who is considered a personal god, warden and dispenser of skylight). His name reflects this idea; it is a derivative of the Indo-European word for "bright, shining sky". His residence is found atop the hills of Rome and of mountains in general; as a result, his cult is present in Rome and throughout Italy at upper elevations.
Jupiter (mythology) | Jovian theology
The ante-Nicene Christian writer Lactantius routinely uses the Latin theonyms Caelus, Saturn, and Jupiter to refer to the three divine hypostases of the Neoplatonic school of Plotinus: the First God (Caelus), Intellect (Saturn), and Soul, son of the Intelligible (Jupiter).
Caelus | Myth and allegory
Moreover, the initial particle "ve-" which the ancient supposed were part of his name is itself ambivalent as it may have both an accrescitive and diminutive value.
Jupiter (mythology) | Veiove
The Ancient later viewed them as entities separate from Jupiter. The terms are similar in etymology and semantics ("dies", "daylight" and "Dius", "daytime sky"), but differ linguistically. Wissowa considers the epithet "Dianus" noteworthy. "Dieus" is the etymological equivalent of ancient Greece's "Zeus" and of the Teutonics' "Ziu" (genitive "Ziewes"). The Indo-European deity is the god from which the names and partially the theology of Jupiter, Zeus and the Indo-Aryan Vedic Dyaus Pita derive or have developed. The Roman practice of swearing by Jove to witness an oath in law courts is the origin of the expression "by Jove!"—archaic, but still in use.
Jupiter (mythology) | Name and epithets
While these last gods seem to be the Penates of Jupiter, Jupiter himself along with Juno and Minerva is one of the Penates of man according to some authors. This complex concept is reflected in Martianus Capella's division of heaven, found in Book I of his "De Nuptiis Mercurii et Philologiae", which places the "Di Consentes Penates" in region I with the "Favores Opertanei"; "Ceres" and "Genius" in region V; "Pales" in region VI; "Favor" and "Genius" (again) in region VII; "Secundanus Pales", "Fortuna" and "Favor Pastor" in region XI. The disposition of these divine entities and their repetition in different locations may be due to the fact that "Penates" belonging to different categories (of Jupiter in region I, earthly or of mortal men in region V) are intended.
Jupiter (mythology) | Penates
The abstract personification Fides ("Faith, Trust") was one of the oldest gods associated with Jupiter. As guarantor of public faith, Fides had her temple on the Capitol (near that of Capitoline Jupiter).
Jupiter (mythology) | Fides
Some epithets of Jupiter indicate his association with a particular place. Epithets found in the provinces of the Roman Empire may identify Jupiter with a local deity or site (see syncretism). In addition, many of the epithets of Zeus can be found applied to Jupiter, by "interpretatio romana". Thus, since the hero Trophonius (from Lebadea in Boeotia) is called Zeus Trophonius, this can be represented in English (as it would be in Latin) as Jupiter Trophonius. Similarly, the Greek cult of Zeus Meilichios appears in Pompeii as Jupiter Meilichius. Except in representing actual cults in Italy, this is largely 19th-century usage; modern works distinguish Jupiter from Zeus.
Jupiter (mythology) | Syncretic or geographical epithets
Along with "Terminus", " Iuventas" (also known as "Iuventus" and "Iuunta") represents an aspect of Jupiter (as the legend of her refusal to leave the Capitol Hill demonstrates. Her name has the same root as Juno (from "Iuu-", "young, youngster"); the ceremonial litter bearing the sacred goose of Juno Moneta stopped before her "sacellum" on the festival of the goddess. Later, she was identified with the Greek Hebe. The fact that Jupiter is related to the concept of youth is shown by his epithets "Puer", "Iuuentus" and "Ioviste" (interpreted as "the youngest" by some scholars). Dumézil noted the presence of the two minor sovereign deities Bagha and Aryaman beside the Vedic sovereign gods Varuna and Mitra (though more closely associated with Mitra); the couple would be reflected in Rome by "Terminus" and "Iuventas".
Jupiter (mythology) | Iuventas
The concept of "di Penates" is more defined in Etruria: Arnobius (citing a Caesius) states that the Etruscan Penates were named Fortuna, Ceres, Genius Iovialis and Pales; according to Nigidius Figulus, they included those of Jupiter, of Neptune, of the infernal gods and of mortal men. According to Varro the Penates reside in the recesses of Heaven and are called "Consentes" and "Complices" by the Etruscans because they rise and set together, are twelve in number and their names are unknown, six male and six females and are the cousellors and masters of Jupiter. Martianus states they are always in agreement among themselves.
Jupiter (mythology) | Penates
D. Sabbatucci has stressed the feature of bearer of instability and antithesis to cosmic order of the god, who threatens the kingly power of Jupiter as "Stator" and "Centumpeda" and whose presence occurs side by side to Janus' on January 1, but also his function of helper to the growth of the young Jupiter. In 1858 Ludwig Preller suggested that Veiovis may be the sinister double of Jupiter. In fact, the god (under the name "Vetis") is placed in the last case (number 16) of the outer rim of the Piacenza Liver—before "Cilens" (Nocturnus), who ends (or begins in the Etruscan vision) the disposition of the gods.
Jupiter (mythology) | Veiove
Jupiter (from or "Iuppiter" , from Proto-Italic "day, sky" + "father", thus "sky father"), also known as Jove (gen. "Iovis" ), is the god of the sky and thunder and king of the gods in Ancient Roman religion and mythology. Jupiter was the chief deity of Roman state religion throughout the Republican and Imperial eras, until Christianity became the dominant religion of the Empire. In Roman mythology, he negotiates with Numa Pompilius, the second king of Rome, to establish principles of Roman religion such as offering, or sacrifice. Jupiter is usually thought to have originated as an aerial god. His identifying implement is the thunderbolt and his primary sacred animal is the eagle, which held precedence over other birds in the taking of auspices and became one of the most common symbols of the Roman army (see Aquila).
Jupiter (mythology) | Introduction
The two emblems were often combined to represent the god in the form of an eagle holding in its claws a thunderbolt, frequently seen on Greek and Roman coins. As the sky-god, he was a divine witness to oaths, the sacred trust on which justice and good government depend. Many of his functions were focused on the Capitoline Hill, where the citadel was located. In the Capitoline Triad, he was the central guardian of the state with Juno and Minerva. His sacred tree was the oak. The Romans regarded Jupiter as the equivalent of the Greek Zeus, and in Latin literature and Roman art, the myths and iconography of Zeus are adapted under the name "Iuppiter".
Jupiter (mythology) | Introduction
The Latin name "Iuppiter" originated as a vocative compound of the Old Latin vocative *"Iou" and "pater" ("father") and came to replace the Old Latin nominative case *"Ious". Jove is a less common English formation based on "Iov-", the stem of oblique cases of the Latin name. Linguistic studies identify the form *"Iou-pater" as deriving from the Proto-Italic vocable *"Djous Patēr", and ultimately the Indo-European vocative compound *"Dyēu-pəter" (meaning "O Father Sky-god"; nominative: *"Dyēus-pətēr"). Older forms of the deity's name in Rome were "Dieus-pater" ("day/sky-father"), then "Diéspiter". The 19th-century philologist Georg Wissowa asserted these names are conceptually- and linguistically-connected to "Diovis" and "Diovis Pater"; he compares the analogous formations "Vedius"-"Veiove" and "fulgur Dium", as opposed to "fulgur Summanum" (nocturnal lightning bolt) and "flamen Dialis" (based on "Dius", "dies").
Jupiter (mythology) | Name and epithets
In the Greek-influenced tradition, Jupiter was the brother of Neptune and Pluto, the Roman equivalents of Poseidon and Hades respectively. Each presided over one of the three realms of the universe: sky, the waters, and the underworld. The Italic Diespiter was also a sky god who manifested himself in the daylight, usually identified with Jupiter. Tinia is usually regarded as his Etruscan counterpart.
Jupiter (mythology) | Introduction
The agricultural ones include "Opitulus", "Almus", "Ruminus", "Frugifer", "Farreus", "Pecunia", "Dapalis", "Epulo". Augustine gives an explanation of the ones he lists which should reflect Varro's: "Opitulus" because he brings "opem" (means, relief) to the needy, "Almus" because he nourishes everything, "Ruminus" because he nourishes the living beings by breastfeeding them, "Pecunia" because everything belongs to him. Dumézil maintains the cult usage of these epithets is not documented and that the epithet Ruminus, as Wissowa and Latte remarked, may not have the meaning given by Augustine but it should be understood as part of a series including "Rumina", " Ruminalis ficus", "Iuppiter Ruminus", which bears the name of Rome itself with an Etruscan vocalism preserved in inscriptions, series that would be preserved in the sacred language (cf.
Jupiter (mythology) | Major epithets
"Dius Fidius" is considered a theonym for Jupiter, and sometimes a separate entity also known in Rome as Semo Sancus Dius Fidius. Wissowa argued that while Jupiter is the god of the "Fides Publica Populi Romani" as "Iuppiter Lapis" (by whom important oaths are sworn), Dius Fidius is a deity established for everyday use and was charged with the protection of good faith in private affairs. Dius Fidius would thus correspond to "Zeus Pistios". The association with Jupiter may be a matter of divine relation; some scholars see him as a form of Hercules. Both Jupiter and Dius Fidius were wardens of oaths and wielders of lightning bolts; both required an opening in the roof of their temples.
Jupiter (mythology) | Dius Fidius
When the Romans studied Greek astronomy, they gave the planets their own gods' names: "Mercurius" (for Hermes), "Venus" (Aphrodite), "Mars" (Ares), "Iuppiter" (Zeus) and "Saturnus" (Cronus). When subsequent planets were discovered in the 18th and 19th centuries, the naming practice was retained with "Neptūnus" (Poseidon). Uranus is unique in that it is named for a Greek deity rather than his Roman counterpart.
Planet | Mythology and naming
The relation of Jupiter to Janus is problematic. Varro defines Jupiter as the god who has "potestas" (power) over the forces by which anything happens in the world. Janus, however, has the privilege of being invoked first in rites, since in his power are the beginnings of things ("prima"), the appearance of Jupiter included.
Jupiter (mythology) | Janus
probably referring to the "Lar Familiaris". Mutunus Tutunus had his shrine at the foot of the Velian Hill near those of the Di Penates and of Vica Pota, who were among the most ancient gods of the Roman community of according to Wissowa.
Jupiter (mythology) | Genius
A dominant line of scholarship has held that Rome lacked a body of myths in its earliest period, or that this original mythology has been irrecoverably obscured by the influence of the Greek narrative tradition. After the influence of Greek culture on Roman culture, Latin literature and iconography reinterpreted the myths of Zeus in depictions and narratives of Jupiter. In the legendary history of Rome, Jupiter is often connected to kings and kingship.
Jupiter (mythology) | Myths and legends
This is also consistent with the etymology of "Summanus", deriving from "sub" and "mane" (the time before morning).
Jupiter (mythology) | Summanus
The god of nighttime lightning has been interpreted as an aspect of Jupiter, either a chthonic manifestation of the god or a separate god of the underworld. A statue of Summanus stood on the roof of the Temple of Capitoline Jupiter, and "Iuppiter Summanus" is one of the epithets of Jupiter. Dumézil sees the opposition Dius Fidius versus Summanus as complementary, interpreting it as typical to the inherent ambiguity of the sovereign god exemplified by that of Mitra and Varuna in Vedic religion. The complementarity of the epithets is shown in inscriptions found on "puteal"s or "bidental"s reciting either "fulgur Dium conditum" or "fulgur Summanum conditum" in places struck by daytime versus nighttime lightning bolts respectively.
Jupiter (mythology) | Summanus
The Greek practice of grafting their gods' names onto the planets was almost certainly borrowed from the Babylonians. The Babylonians named Phosphoros after their goddess of love, "Ishtar"; Pyroeis after their god of war, "Nergal", Stilbon after their god of wisdom Nabu, and Phaethon after their chief god, "Marduk". There are too many concordances between Greek and Babylonian naming conventions for them to have arisen separately. The translation was not perfect. For instance, the Babylonian Nergal was a god of war, and thus the Greeks identified him with Ares. Unlike Ares, Nergal was also god of pestilence and the underworld.
Planet | Mythology and naming
and the ritual of the "lapis manalis", the stone which was brought into the city through the "Porta Capena" and carried around in times of drought, which was named "Aquaelicium". Other early epithets connected with the atmospheric quality of Jupiter are "Pluvius", "Imbricius", "Tempestas", "Tonitrualis", "tempestatium divinarum potens", "Serenator", "Serenus" and, referred to lightning, "Fulgur", "Fulgur Fulmen", later as nomen agentis "Fulgurator", "Fulminator": the high antiquity of the cult is testified by the neutre form "Fulgur" and the use of the term for the "bidental", the lightning well dug on the spot hit by a lightning bolt. A group of epithets has been interpreted by Wissowa (and his followers) as a reflection of the agricultural or warring nature of the god, some of which are also in the list of eleven preserved by Augustine.
Jupiter (mythology) | Major epithets
For instance, the "flamen" may remove his clothes or "apex" (his pointed hat) only when under a roof, in order to avoid showing himself naked to the sky—that is, "as if under the eyes of Jupiter" as god of the heavens. Every time the Flaminica saw a lightning bolt or heard a clap of thunder (Jupiter's distinctive instrument), she was prohibited from carrying on with her normal routine until she placated the god. Some privileges of the "flamen" of Jupiter may reflect the regal nature of Jupiter: he had the use of the curule chair, and was the only priest "(sacerdos)" who was preceded by a lictor and had a seat in the senate.
Jupiter (mythology) | Flamen and Flaminica Dialis
Jupiter assumed atmospheric qualities; he is the wielder of lightning and the master of weather. However, Wissowa acknowledges that Jupiter is not merely a naturalistic, heavenly, supreme deity; he is in continual communication with man by means of thunder, lightning and the flight of birds (his auspices). Through his vigilant watch he is also the guardian of public oaths and compacts and the guarantor of good faith in the State cult. The Jovian cult was common to the Italic people under the names "Iove", "Diove" (Latin) and "Iuve", "Diuve" (Oscan, in Umbrian only "Iuve", "Iupater" in the Iguvine Tables). Wissowa considered Jupiter also a god of war and agriculture, in addition to his political role as guarantor of good faith (public and private) as "Iuppiter Lapis" and "Dius Fidius", respectively.
Jupiter (mythology) | Jovian theology
Scholars have been often puzzled by Ve(d)iove (or Veiovis, or Vedius) and unwilling to discuss his identity, claiming our knowledge of this god is insufficient. Most, however, agree that Veiove is a sort of special Jupiter or anti-Iove, or even an underworld Jupiter. In other words, Veiove is indeed the Capitoline god himself, who takes up a different, diminished appearance ("iuvenis" and "parvus", young and gracile), in order to be able to discharge sovereign functions over places, times and spheres that by their own nature are excluded from the direct control of Jupiter as Optimus Maximus. This conclusion is based on information provided by Gellius, who states his name is formed by adding prefix "ve" (here denoting "deprivation" or "negation") to "Iove " (whose name Gellius posits as rooted in the verb "iuvo" "I benefit").
Jupiter (mythology) | Veiove
Jupiter () is the traditional ruling planet of Sagittarius and Pisces and it is exalted in Cancer. In classical Roman mythology, Jupiter is the ruler of the gods and their guardian and protector, and his symbol is the thunderbolt. The Romans believed that Jupiter granted them supremacy because they had honored him more than any other people had. Jupiter was "the fount of the auspices upon which the relationship of the city with the gods rested." He personified the divine authority of Rome's highest offices, internal organization, and external relations. His image in the Republican and Imperial Capitol bore regalia associated with Rome's ancient kings and the highest consular and Imperial honours.
Planets in astrology | Jupiter
Some epithets describe a particular aspect of the god, or one of his functions:
Jupiter (mythology) | Epithets denoting functionality
"Rumach" Etruscan for Roman). However many scholars have argued that the name of Rome, "Ruma", meant in fact woman's breast. Diva Rumina, as Augustine testifies in the cited passage, was the goddess of suckling babies: she was venerated near the "ficus ruminalis" and was offered only libations of milk. Here moreover Augustine cites the verses devoted to Jupiter by Quintus Valerius Soranus, while hypothesising "Iuno" (more adept in his view as a breastfeeder), i.e. Rumina instead of Ruminus, might be nothing else than "Iuppiter": ""Iuppiter omnipotens regum rerumque deumque Progenitor genetrixque deum..."". In Dumézil's opinion "Farreus" should be understood as related to the rite of the "confarreatio" the most sacred form of marriage, the name of which is due to the spelt cake eaten by the spouses, rather than surmising an agricultural quality of the god: the epithet means the god was the guarantor of the effects of the ceremony, to which the presence of his flamen is necessary and that he can interrupt with a clap of thunder.
Jupiter (mythology) | Major epithets
Faced by a period of bad weather endangering the harvest during one early spring, King Numa resorted to the scheme of asking the advice of the god by evoking his presence. He succeeded through the help of Picus and Faunus, whom he had imprisoned by making them drunk. The two gods (with a charm) evoked Jupiter, who was forced to come down to earth at the Aventine (hence named "Iuppiter Elicius", according to Ovid). After Numa skilfully avoided the requests of the god for human sacrifices, Jupiter agreed to his request to know how lightning bolts are averted, asking only for the substitutions Numa had mentioned: an onion bulb, hairs and a fish.
Jupiter (mythology) | Numa
In the Neoplatonist philosophy and religion of Late Antiquity, the Olympian gods were sometimes considered to number 12 based on their spheres of influence. For example, according to Sallustius, "Jupiter, Neptune, and Vulcan fabricate the world; Ceres, Juno, and Diana animate it; Mercury, Venus, and Apollo harmonize it; and, lastly, Vesta, Minerva, and Mars preside over it with a guarding power." The multitude of other gods, in this belief system, subsist within the primary gods, and Sallustius taught that Bacchus subsisted in Jupiter. In the Orphic tradition, a saying was supposedly given by an oracle of Apollo that stated "Zeus, Hades, [and] Helios-Dionysus" were "three gods in one godhead." This statement apparently conflated Dionysus not only with Hades, but also his father Zeus, and implied a particularly close identification with the sun-god Helios.
Dionysus | Late Antiquity
Juno Caelestis was the Romanised form of the Carthaginian Tanit. Grammatically, the form "Caelestis" can also be a masculine word, but the equivalent function for a male deity is usually expressed through syncretization with Caelus, as in "Caelus Aeternus Iuppiter," "Jupiter the Eternal Sky."
List of Roman deities | "Caelestis"
Jupiter was worshipped also under the epithets of "Imperator Maximus" in Praeneste, "Maius" in Tusculum, "Praestes" in Tibur, " Indiges" at Lavinium and "Anxurus" at Anxur (now Terracina), where he was represented as a young man without beard. In Umbro-Oscan areas he was "Iuve Grabovius" in the Iguvine Tables, "Iuppiter Cacunus" (of the top of mountains, cf. Latin "cacumen" and "Iuppiter Culminalis"), "Iuppiter Liber" (see section on "Liber" above), "Diuve Regature" in the Table of Agnone that Vetter interprets as "Rigator", he who irrigates, and Dumézil as "Rector", he who rules and "Diuve Verehasus" tentatively rendered by Vetter as "Vergarius".
Epithets of Jupiter | Other Italic Jupiters
Moreover, Jupiter promised that at the sunrise of the following day he would give to Numa and the Roman people pawns of the "imperium". The following day, after throwing three lightning bolts across a clear sky, Jupiter sent down from heaven a shield. Since this shield had no angles, Numa named it "ancile"; because in it resided the fate of the "imperium", he had many copies made of it to disguise the real one. He asked the smith Mamurius Veturius to make the copies, and gave them to the Salii. As his only reward, Mamurius expressed the wish that his name be sung in the last of their "carmina".
Jupiter (mythology) | Numa
The divine couple received from Greece its matrimonial implications, thence bestowing on Juno the role of tutelary goddess of marriage ("Iuno Pronuba"). The couple itself though cannot be reduced to a Greek apport. The association of Juno and Jupiter is of the most ancient Latin theology. Praeneste offers a glimpse into original Latin mythology: the local goddess Fortuna is represented as milking two infants, one male and one female, namely Jove (Jupiter) and Juno. It seems fairly safe to assume that from the earliest times they were identified by their own proper names and since they got them they were never changed through the course of history: they were called Jupiter and Juno.
Jupiter (mythology) | Juno and Fortuna
Varro states that his teacher Aelius Stilo called this god "Diovis filium", i.e. "Dius Filius" as the Greek "Διόσκορον Castorem" on the grounds of the alteration of the letters "d" and "l" in the Sabine tongue. He identified him in Sabine, Sancus and in Greek, Hercules. This assumption is not linguistically correct, because in the Iguvine Tables the god is named "Fis(i)us" or "Fisovius Sancius". However, his interpretation, based on unknown theological documents, tallies with that of some modern scholars. The god, at some points, was certainly not a mere aspect of Jupiter but a separate entity, known in Rome for some time as Semo Sancus Dius Fidius.
Dius Fidius | Theology
"Favor(es)" may be the Etruscan masculine equivalent of "Fortuna".
Jupiter (mythology) | Penates
In Greek and Roman religion, instead, the homonymous gods "*Diou-" and "Διϝ-" evolved into atmospheric deities; by their mastery of thunder and lightning, they expressed themselves and made their will known to the community. In Rome, Jupiter also sent signs to the leaders of the state in the form of auspices in addition to thunder. The art of augury was considered prestigious by ancient Romans; by sending his signs, Jupiter (the sovereign of heaven) communicates his advice to his terrestrial colleague: the king ("rex") or his successor magistrates. The encounter between the heavenly and political, legal aspects of the deity are well represented by the prerogatives, privileges, functions and taboos proper to his "flamen" (the "flamen Dialis" and his wife, the "flaminica Dialis").
Jupiter (mythology) | Jovian theology
The divine couple received from Greece its matrimonial implications, thence bestowing on Juno the role of tutelary goddess of marriage ("Iuno Pronuba"). The association of Juno and Jupiter is of the most ancient Latin theology. Praeneste offers a glimpse into original Latin mythology: the local goddess Fortuna is represented as nursing two infants, one male and one female, namely Jove (Jupiter) and Juno. It seems fairly safe to assume that from the earliest times they were identified by their own proper names and since they got them they were never changed through the course of history: they were called Jupiter and Juno.
Juno (mythology) | Juno and Jupiter
On the southern top was to be found the most ancient sanctuary of the god: the shrine of "Iuppiter Feretrius" allegedly built by Romulus, restored by Augustus. The god here had no image and was represented by the sacred flintstone ("silex"). The most ancient known rites, those of the "spolia opima" and of the fetials which connect Jupiter with Mars and Quirinus are dedicated to "Iuppiter Feretrius" or "Iuppiter Lapis". The concept of the sky god was already overlapped with the ethical and political domain since this early time. According to Wissowa and Dumézil "Iuppiter Lapis" seems to be inseparable from "Iuppiter Feretrius" in whose tiny templet on the Capitol the stone was lodged.
Jupiter (mythology) | Major epithets
As one of the eleven spawn of Tiamat in the Enûma Eliš vanquished by Marduk, he was displayed as a trophy on doorways to ward off evil and later became an apotropaic figurine buried in buildings for a similar purpose. He became identified as or with the constellation known by the Greeks as Wolf (Lupus).
Uridimmu | Mythology
Accordingly, his name was sometimes given as "Hipponicus".
Alabandus | Mythology
Even the majestic Jupiter, the ruler of the gods, was honored for the aid his rains might give to the farms and vineyards. In his more encompassing character he was considered, through his weapon of lightning, the director of human activity. Due to his widespread domain, the Romans regarded him as their protector in their military activities beyond the borders of their own community. Prominent in early times were the gods Mars and Quirinus, who were often identified with each other. Mars was a god of war; he was honored in March and October. Modern scholars see Quirinus as the patron of the armed community in time of peace.
Roman mythology | Religion and myth
Belus or Belos (Ancient Greek: Βῆλος, "Vitalos") in classical Greek or classical Latin texts (and later material based on them) in a Babylonian context refers to the Babylonian god Bel Marduk. Though often identified with Greek Zeus and Latin Jupiter as Zeus Belos or Jupiter Belus, in other cases Belus is euhemerized as an ancient king who founded Babylon and built the ziggurat. He is recognized and worshipped as the God of war. Eusebius of Caesarea ("Praeparatio Evangelica" 9.18) cites Artabanus as stating in his "Jewish History" that Artabanus found in anonymous works that giants who had been dwelling in Babylonia were destroyed by the gods for impiety, but one of them named Belus escaped and settled in Babylon and lived in the tower which he built and named the Tower of Belus.
Belus (Babylonian) | Introduction
Juventas and Terminus were the gods who, according to legend, refused to leave their sites on the Capitol when the construction of the temple of Jupiter was undertaken. Therefore, they had to be reserved a "sacellum" within the new temple. Their stubbornness was considered a good omen; it would guarantee youth, stability and safety to Rome on its site. This legend is generally thought by scholars to indicate their strict connection with Jupiter. An inscription found near Ravenna reads "Iuppiter Ter.", indicating that Terminus is an aspect of Jupiter. Terminus is the god of boundaries (public and private), as he is portrayed in literature.
Jupiter (mythology) | Terminus
This perception is possibly derived from earlier Proto-Indo-European religion, in which the Sun is believed to have been envisioned as the eye of *"Dyḗus Pḥtḗr" (see Hvare-khshaeta). An Orphic saying, supposedly given by an oracle of Apollo, goes: "Zeus, Hades, Helios-Dionysus, three gods in one godhead!" When quoting this in his "Hymn to King Helios", Emperor Julian substituted the name Dionysus with Serapis, whose Egyptian counterpart Osiris was identified with Dionysus. On the basis of this oracle, Julian concluded that "among the intellectual gods, Helios and Zeus have a joint or rather a single sovereignty." Diodorus Siculus of Sicily reported that the Chaldeans called Cronus (Saturn) by the name Helios, or the sun, and he explained that this was because Saturn was the most conspicuous of the planets.
Helios | Identification with other gods
Another most ancient epithet is "Lucetius": although the Ancients, followed by some modern scholars such as Wissowa, interpreted it as referring to sunlight, the "carmen Saliare" shows that it refers to lightning. A further confirmation of this interpretation is provided by the sacred meaning of lightning which is reflected in the sensitivity of the "flaminica Dialis" to the phenomenon. To the same atmospheric complex belongs the epithet "Elicius": while the ancient erudites thought it was connected to lightning, it is in fact related to the opening of the rervoirs of rain, as is testified by the ceremony of the "Nudipedalia", meant to propitiate rainfall and devoted to Jupiter.
Jupiter (mythology) | Major epithets
While Latin "deus" can be translated as and bears superficial similarity to Greek θεός "theós", meaning "god", it should be warned these are false cognates. A true cognate is Ancient Greek Zeus, king of the Olympian gods in Greek mythology (, or ; , ). In the archaic period, the initial Zeta would have been pronounced such that Attic Ζεύς would phonetically transliterate as "Zdeús" or "Dzeús", from Proto-Hellenic "*dzéus". By combining a form of "deus" with the Ancient Roman word for "father" (, ), one derives the name of the mythical Roman equivalent of Zeus: the sky god "Diespiter" (), later called "Iuppiter" or Jūpiter, from Proto-Italic "*djous patēr", descended from Proto-Indo-European root "*Dyḗws*Pahtḗr" literally meaning 'Sky Father'.
Deus | Cognates
This minor planet was named for Ajax the Great, a Greek warrior of great strength and courage in the Trojan War. He is the half brother of Teucer and son of king Telamon, who kills himself because Achilles armor was awarded to Odysseus. The Jupiter trojans , and and are all named after these figures from Greek mythology. The official naming of "Ajax" was first cited in "The Names of the Minor Planets" by Paul Herget in 1955 ().
1404 Ajax | Naming
Few of the characteristic attributes of Jupiter appear in the representation of Jupiter Dolichenus, apart from the thunderbolt, a beard, and at times the eagle. In all other respects the god is a new creation which blends "oriental" with Hellenistic conventions. The god always appears dressed in a military fashion, armed and dressed in a cuirass. This does not necessarily mean that his cult was especially militaristic; rather, the attributes signify power and royalty. The cuirass in particular is a Hellenistic artistic convention to portray divinity. The weapon that the god carries is usually a double-headed axe (a "labris"), a weapon often associated with the kings of Thrace and Asia Minor and not a common soldier's weapon.
Jupiter Dolichenus | Art and iconography
During the Republican era, more fixed holidays on the Roman calendar were devoted to Jupiter than to any other deity.
Jupiter (mythology) | Festivals
Such a derivation would find support only in epigraphic documents, primarily from the Osco-Sabellic area. Wissowa sets the position of "Iuppiter Liber" within the framework of an agrarian Jupiter. The god also had a temple in this name on the Aventine in Rome, which was restored by Augustus and dedicated on September 1. Here, the god was sometimes named "Liber" and sometimes "Libertas". Wissowa opines that the relationship existed in the concept of creative abundance through which the supposedly-separate Liber might have been connected to the Greek god Dionysos, although both deities might not have been originally related to viticulture.
Jupiter (mythology) | Liber
Zibelthiurdos (Zbelthiourdes, Zbelthourdos, Zbelsourdos, Zbeltiurdus, Svelsurdus) is a Thracian god of heaven, lightning and rain, whose name is known mainly from epigraphic monuments. The only known reference to this god so far in ancient literature is in Cicero's speech against Pizon, where he is mentioned under the name "Jovi Vrii" ("Iuppiter Urius"). According to Cicero, Jupiter Urius had the most ancient and venerated of the barbarian temples, which was sacked by invading armies and resulted in diseases from which those afflicted never recovered. There is not enough information to draw clear conclusions about his cult, worship, or functions. The preserved images give reason to connect Zibelthiurdos with the ancient Greek God Zeus the Thunderer; he is depicted holding a lightning bolt in his raised right hand, and to his right an eagle with wings spread out.
Zibelthiurdos | Introduction
The Greek creation myth is similar to the Hurrian creation myth. In Hurrian religion Anu is the sky god. His son Kumarbis bit off his genitals and spat out three deities, one of whom, Teshub, later deposed Kumarbis. In Sumerian mythology and later for Assyrians and Babylonians, Anu is the sky god and represented law and order. It is possible that Uranus was originally an Indo-European god, to be identified with the Vedic , the supreme keeper of order who later became the god of oceans and rivers, as suggested by Georges Dumézil, following hints in Émile Durkheim, "The Elementary Forms of Religious Life" (1912).
Uranus (mythology) | Hurrian mythology
The epithets of a Roman god indicate his theological qualities. The study of these epithets must consider their origins (the historical context of an epithet's source). Jupiter's most ancient attested forms of cult belong to the State cult: these include the mount cult (see section above note n. 22). In Rome this cult entailed the existence of particular sanctuaries the most important of which were located on "Mons Capitolinus" (earlier "Tarpeius"). The mount had two tops that were both destined to the discharge of acts of cult related to Jupiter. The northern and higher top was the "arx" and on it was located the observation place of the augurs "(auguraculum)" and to it headed the monthly procession of the "sacra Idulia".
Jupiter (mythology) | Major epithets
Macrobius writes this issued from his Samothracian mystery beliefs.
Jupiter (mythology) | Tarquin the Elder
Other early epithets connected with the amospheric quality of Jupiter are "Pluvius", "Imbricius", "Tempestas", "Tonitrualis", "tempestatium divinarum potens", "Serenator", "Serenus" and, referred to lightning, "Fulgur", "Fulgur Fulmen", later as nomen agentis "Fulgurator", "Fulminator": the high antiquity of the cult is testified by the neutre form "Fulgur" and the use of the term for the "bidental", the lightningwell dug on the spot hit by a lightningbolt.
Epithets of Jupiter | Lightning and rain
The most honest "matronae" were supposed to publicly crown the "phallus" with flowers, to ensure a good harvest and repeal the "fascinatio" (evil eye). In Rome representations of the sex organs were placed in the temple of the couple "Liber Libera", who presided over the male and female components of generation and the "liberation" of the semen. This complex of rites and beliefs shows that the divine couple's jurisdiction extended over fertility in general, not only that of grapes. The etymology of "Liber" (archaic form "Loifer, Loifir") was explained by Émile Benveniste as formed on the IE theme *leudh- plus the suffix -es-; its original meaning is "the one of germination, he who ensures the sprouting of crops".
Jupiter (mythology) | Liber
People from myth of Castor and Pollux (twins)
Planetary nomenclature | <a href="Janus%20%28moon%29">Janus</a>
In astronomy, the planet Saturn is named after the Roman deity. It is the outermost of the Classical planets (the astronomical planets that are visible with the naked eye).
Cronus | Roman mythology and later culture
With the Greek revival of the 19th century, however, Greek names began to be used more often, with both "Zeus" and "Jove" being widely used as the name of the supreme god of the classical pantheon.
Classical mythology | Introduction
The Capitoline Triad was introduced to Rome by the Tarquins. Dumézil thinks it might have been an Etruscan (or local) creation based on Vitruvius' treatise on architecture, in which the three deities are associated as the most important. It is possible that the Etruscans paid particular attention to Menrva (Minerva) as a goddess of destiny, in addition to the royal couple Uni (Juno) and Tinia (Jupiter). In Rome, Minerva later assumed a military aspect under the influence of Athena Pallas (Polias). Dumézil argues that with the advent of the Republic, Jupiter became the only king of Rome, no longer merely the first of the great gods.
Jupiter (mythology) | Capitoline Triad
Zeus later re-created the shape of the white bull in the stars, which is now known as the constellation Taurus. It should not be confused with the Cretan Bull that fathered the Minotaur and was captured by Heracles. Roman mythology adopted the tale of the "Raptus", also known as "The Abduction of Europa" and "The Seduction of Europa", substituting the god Jupiter for Zeus. The myth of Europa and Zeus may have its origin in a sacred union between the Phoenician deities `Aštar and `Aštart (Astarte), in bovine form. Having given birth to three sons by Zeus, Europa married a king Asterios, this being also the name of the Minotaur and an epithet of Zeus, likely derived from the name "`Aštar".
Europa (consort of Zeus) | Mythology
This minor planet was named from Greek mythology after Priam (Priamus; Priamos), the king of Troy during the Trojan War. The Jupiter trojans 624 Hektor and 3317 Paris are named after his sons Paris and Hector. The official naming of "Ajax" was first cited in "The Names of the Minor Planets" by Paul Herget in 1955 ().
884 Priamus | Naming
Festus calls him "a god endowed with the power of doing everything", then citing an Aufustius: "Genius is the son of the gods and the parent of men, from whom men receive life. Thence is he named my genius, because he begot me". Festus's quotation goes on saying: "Other think he is the special god of every place", a notion that reflects a different idea. In classic age literature and iconography he is often represented as a snake, that may appear in the conjugal bed, this conception being perhaps the result of a Greek influence. It was easy for the Roman concept of Genius to expand annexing other similar religious figures as the Lares and the Greek δαίμων ἀγαθός.
Juno (mythology) | Juno and Genius
In Martianus Capella's division of heaven, he is found in region XV with the "dii publici"; as such, he numbers among the infernal (or antipodal) gods. The location of his two temples in Rome—near those of Jupiter (one on the Capitoline Hill, in the low between the "arx" and the Capitolium, between the two groves where the asylum founded by Romulus stood, the other on the Tiber Island near that of "Iuppiter Iurarius", later also known as temple of Aesculapius)—may be significant in this respect, along with the fact that he is considered the father of Apollo, perhaps because he was depicted carrying arrows.
Jupiter (mythology) | Veiove
Vitruvius includes him among celestial gods whose temple-buildings "(aedes)" should be built open to the sky. As a sky god, he became identified with Jupiter, as indicated by an inscription that reads "Optimus Maximus Caelus Aeternus Iupter".
Caelus | Identity
The name is Celtic for "tiller" or "God of the plowed field". Sometimes it is also used for the local god of the Roman-Celtic settlement Arrubium (Măcin, Romania held), his followers would have spread his religious practices in other areas. The name may be analogous with Arawn. In the Gallo-Roman period Arubianus was identified with the god Jupiter, so it is perhaps a sky god or father of the gods. On the other hand, Jupiter was regarded as a protective god of the Roman settlements, so that can also apply to a local deity.
Arubianus | Mythology and Etymology
A series of identical embossed gold plaques were recovered at Camiros in Rhodes; they date from the archaic period of Greek art in the seventh century, but the winged bee goddesses they depict must be far older. In "Prometheus Bound", attributed to the Athenian tragic playwright Aeschylus, a gadfly sent by Zeus's wife Hera pursues and torments his mistress Io, who has been transformed into a cow and is watched constantly by the hundred eyes of the herdsman Argus. Shakespeare alludes to the myth: "Io: Ah! Hah! Again the prick, the stab of gadfly-sting! O earth, earth, hide, the hollow shape—Argus—that evil thing—the hundred-eyed."
Insects in mythology | Gods and mortals
The ancient Greeks and Romans knew of only five "wandering stars" ( ): Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. Following the discovery of a sixth planet in 1781 using a telescope, there was long-term disagreement regarding its name. Its discoverer William Herschel named it Georgium Sidus (The Georgian Star) after his monarch George III. This was the name preferred by English astronomers, but others such as the French preferred "Herschel". Finally, the name "Uranus" became accepted in the mid-19th century, as suggested by astronomer Johann Bode as the logical addition to the existing planets' names, since Mars ("Ares" in Greek), Venus, and Mercury were the children of Jupiter, Jupiter ("Zeus" in Greek) the son of Saturn, and Saturn (Cronus in Greek) the son of Uranus.
Uranus (mythology) | Planet Uranus
According to the Roman historian Livy, Jupiter Indiges is the name given to the deified hero Aeneas. In some versions of his story, he is raised up to become a god after his death by Numicius, a local deity of the river of the same name, at the request of Aeneas' mother Venus. The title Pater Indiges or simply Indiges is also used. The Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus notes that when the body of Aeneas was not found after a battle between his group of Trojan exiles in Italy and the native Rutulians, it was assumed that he had been taken up by the gods to become a deity.
Jupiter Indiges | Introduction
The name "Juno" was also once thought to be connected to "Iove" (Jove), originally as "Diuno" and "Diove" from "*Diovona". At the beginning of the 20th century, a derivation was proposed from "iuven-" (as in Latin "iuvenis", "youth"), through a syncopated form "iūn-" (as in "iūnix", "heifer", and "iūnior", "younger"). This etymology became widely accepted after it was endorsed by Georg Wissowa. "Iuuen-" is related to Latin "aevum" and Greek "aion" (αἰών) through a common Indo-European root referring to a concept of vital energy or "fertile time". The "iuvenis" is he who has the fullness of vital force. In some inscriptions Jupiter himself is called "Iuuntus", and one of the epithets of Jupiter is "Ioviste", a superlative form of "iuuen-" meaning "the youngest".
Juno (mythology) | Etymology
The fetials were a college of 20 men devoted to the religious administration of international affairs of state. Their task was to preserve and apply the fetial law "(ius fetiale)", a complex set of procedures aimed at ensuring the protection of the gods in Rome's relations with foreign states. Iuppiter Lapis is the god under whose protection they act, and whom the chief fetial "(pater patratus)" invokes in the rite concluding a treaty. If a declaration of war ensues, the fetial calls upon Jupiter and Quirinus, the heavenly, earthly and chthonic gods as witnesses of any potential violation of the "ius".
Jupiter (mythology) | Fetials
He is also considered to be the unbearded Jupiter. The dates of his festivals support the same conclusion: they fall on January 1, March 7 and May 21, the first date being the recurrence of the Agonalia, dedicated to Janus and celebrated by the king with the sacrifice of a ram. The nature of the sacrifice is debated; Gellius states "capra", a female goat, although some scholars posit a ram. This sacrifice occurred "rito humano", which may mean "with the rite appropriate for human sacrifice". Gellius concludes by stating that this god is one of those who receive sacrifices so as to persuade them to refrain from causing harm.
Jupiter (mythology) | Veiove
At the same time it must not be supposed that Gad was always regarded as an independent deity. The name was doubtless originally an appellative, meaning "the power that allots". Hence any of the greater gods supposed to favour men might be thought of as the giver of good fortune and be worshiped under that title; it is possible that Jupiter, the planet, may have been the "Gad" thus honoured - among the Arabs the planet Jupiter was called "the greater Fortune" (Venus was styled "the lesser Fortune"). Gad is the patron of a locality, a mountain (Kodashim, tractate Hullin 40a), of an idol (Genesis Rabbah, lxiv), a house, or the world (Genesis Rabbah, lxxi.).
Gad (deity) | Israelite connection
Marduk made likenesses of the gods in the constellations, and defined the days of the year from them. He created night and day, and the moon also. He created clouds and rain, and their water made the Tigris and Euphrates. He gave the 'Tablet of Destinies' to Anu. Statues of the eleven monsters of Tiamat were made and installed at the gate of Apsu.
Enûma Eliš | Tablet 5
Christian-Joseph Guyonvarc'h has proposed the identification with the Irish name "Olcan" (Ogamic "Ulccagni", in the genitive). Gérard Capdeville finds a continuity between Cretan Minoan god "Velchanos" and Etruscan "Velchans". The Minoan god's identity would be that of a young deity, master of fire and companion of the Great Goddess.
Vulcan (mythology) | Etymology
Richard Allen, in "Star-names and Their Meanings", lists names for the constellation as follows: In Ancient Greece, Aratus called the crab "Καρκινος" ("Karkinos"), which was followed by Hipparchus and Ptolemy. The Alfonsine tables called it "Carcinus", a Latinized form of the Greek word. Eratosthenes extended this as "Καρκινος", "Ονοι", "και Φατνη" ("Karkinos", "Onoi", "kai Fatne"): the Crab, Asses, and Crib. In Ancient Rome, Manilius and Ovid called the constellation "Litoreus" (shore-inhabiting). "Astacus" and "Cammarus" appear in various classic writers, while it is called "Nepa" in Cicero's "De Finibus" and the works of Columella, Plautus, and Varro; all of these words signify crab, lobster, or scorpion.
Cancer (constellation) | Names
Jupiter is a planet in the Solar System, named after Jupiter (mythology), the chief god of the Ancient Roman state religion. Jupiter may also refer to:
Jupiter (disambiguation) | Introduction
Dumézil maintains that Jupiter is not himself a god of war and agriculture, although his actions and interest may extend to these spheres of human endeavour. His view is based on the methodological assumption that the chief criterion for studying a god's nature is not to consider his field of action, but the quality, method and features of his action. Consequently, the analysis of the type of action performed by Jupiter in the domains in which he operates indicates that Jupiter is a sovereign god who may act in the field of politics (as well as agriculture and war) in his capacity as such, i.e.
Jupiter (mythology) | Jovian theology
His view is grounded in the sphere of action of the god (who intervenes in battle and influences the harvest through weather). In Georges Dumézil's view, Jovian theology (and that of the equivalent gods in other Indo-European religions) is an evolution from a naturalistic, supreme, celestial god identified with heaven to a sovereign god, a wielder of lightning bolts, master and protector of the community (in other words, of a change from a naturalistic approach to the world of the divine to a socio-political approach). In Vedic religion, Dyaus Pitar remained confined to his distant, removed, passive role and the place of sovereign god was occupied by Varuna and Mitra.
Jupiter (mythology) | Jovian theology
Kings of Alba Longa would have claimed to be descendants of Jupiter as Virgil demonstrates in the Aeneid. He represents the Alban kings as being crowned with a civic oak-leaf crown. The Roman kings then adopted the crown, becoming personifications of Jupiter on earth. Latinus was thought to have become "Jupiter Latiaris" after "vanishing" during a battle with Mezentius (king of Caere). So too, Aeneas disappeared from a battle with Mezentius or with Turnus, and became "Jupiter Indiges". Romulus (not unlike his Alban predecessors) became Quirinus, the "Oak-god", when he was called up to heaven.
Kings of Alba Longa | Roman mythology
It is often found in association with the sun god and another mythical being called the Bison-man, which is supposedly related to the Greek constellation of Centaurus. In Arab Folk Astronomy, Lupus, together with Centaurus were collectively called الشماريخ "al-Shamareekh", meaning the dense branches of the date palm's fruit.
Lupus (constellation) | History and mythology
In Babylonian astronomy, the stars Castor and Pollux were known as the Great Twins. The Twins were regarded as minor gods and were called Meshlamtaea and Lugalirra, meaning respectively 'The One who has arisen from the Underworld' and the 'Mighty King'. Both names can be understood as titles of Nergal, the major Babylonian god of plague and pestilence, who was king of the Underworld. In Greek mythology, Gemini was associated with the myth of Castor and Pollux, the children of Leda and Argonauts both. Pollux was the son of Zeus, who seduced Leda, while Castor was the son of Tyndareus, king of Sparta and Leda's husband.
Gemini (constellation) | Mythology
Phaethon (; , "Phaéthōn", ) was the son of the Oceanid Clymene and the solar deity Helios in Greek mythology. His name was also used by the Ancient Greeks as an alternative name for the planet Jupiter, the motions and cycles of which were personified in poetry and myth.
Phaethon | Introduction
The god's name in the nominative is ("Zeús"). It is inflected as follows: vocative: (""); accusative: (); genitive: (); dative: (). Diogenes Laërtius quotes Pherecydes of Syros as spelling the name . "Zeus" is the Greek continuation of *"," the name of the Proto-Indo-European god of the daytime sky, also called *' ("Sky Father"). The god is known under this name in the Rigveda (Vedic Sanskrit "Dyaus/Dyaus Pita"), Latin (compare "Jupiter", from "Iuppiter", deriving from the Proto-Indo-European vocative *'), deriving from the root *"dyeu"- ("to shine", and in its many derivatives, "sky, heaven, god"). Zeus is the only deity in the Olympic pantheon whose name has such a transparent Indo-European etymology.
Zeus | Name
The idea that gods were in control of the nature was translated in the suffix *"-nos" (feminine "-nā"), which signified "lord of". According to West, it is attested in Greek Ouranos ("lord of rain") and Helena ("mistress of sunlight"), Germanic "*Wōðanaz" ("lord of frenzy"), Gaulish Epona ("goddess of horses"), Lithuanian Perkūnas ("lord of oaks"), and in Roman Neptunus ("lord of waters"), Volcanus ("lord of fire-glare") and Silvanus ("lord of woods").
Proto-Indo-European mythology | Epithets and names
The three functions are interrelated with one another, overlapping to some extent; the sovereign function, although essentially religious in nature, is involved in many ways in areas pertaining to the other two. Therefore, Jupiter is the "magic player" in the founding of the Roman state and the fields of war, agricultural plenty, human fertility and wealth. This hypothesis has not found widespread support among scholars.
Jupiter (mythology) | Archaic Triad
The worship of gods connected with them is denounced, but without any manifest intention of referring to the heavenly bodies. Thus, Gad and Meni () are, no doubt, the "greater and the lesser Fortune" typified throughout the East by Jupiter and Venus; "Neba", the tutelary deity of Borsippa (), shone in the sky as Mercury, and "Nergal", transplanted from Assyria to "Kutha" (), as Mars.
Biblical astronomy | Planets
"Marduk" is the Babylonian form of his name. The name "Marduk" was probably pronounced "Marutuk". The etymology of the name "Marduk" is conjectured as derived from "amar-Utu" ("immortal son of Utu" or "bull calf of the sun god Utu"). The origin of Marduk's name may reflect an earlier genealogy, or have had cultural ties to the ancient city of Sippar (whose god was Utu), dating to the third millennium BC. By the Hammurabi period, Marduk had become astrologically associated with the planet Jupiter.
Marduk | Introduction
The god here had no image and was represented by the sacred flintstone ("silex"). The most ancient known rites, those of the "spolia opima" and of the fetials, connect Jupiter with Mars and Quirinus, and are dedicated to "Iuppiter Feretrius" or "Iuppiter Lapis". From this earliest period, the concept of the sky god encompassed the ethical and political domain.
Epithets of Jupiter | Capitoline cult
Some of these bodies have exactly the same name, referring to the same mythological character. The earliest such conflicts possibly arose through not considering certain mythological names as "official"; for instance, the names Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto for the Galilean satellites of Jupiter were not used in astronomical literature of a certain era, their place being taken by "Jupiter I, Jupiter II, Jupiter III, Jupiter IV" (cf. Naming of moons).
Name conflicts with minor planets | Bodies with identical names and referents
The Ancient Greeks called Triangulum "Deltoton" (Δελτωτόν), as the constellation resembled an upper-case Greek letter delta (Δ). It was transliterated by Roman writers, then later Latinised as Deltotum. Eratosthenes linked it with the Nile Delta, while the Roman writer Hyginus associated it with the triangular island of Sicily, formerly known as Trinacria due to its shape. It was also called "Sicilia", because the Romans believed Ceres, patron goddess of Sicily, begged Jupiter to place the island in the heavens. Greek astronomers such as Hipparchos and Ptolemy called it "Trigonon" (Τρίγωνον), and later, it was Romanized as Trigonum. Other names referring to its shape include Tricuspis and Triquetrum.
Triangulum | History and mythology
In still different accounts, Iulus was the son not of Aeneas, but of Ascanius. Perhaps an indigenous origin of the name is suggested by the "De Origo Gentis Romanae" of Aurelius Victor, in which Iulus and Ascanius are identical. Described as the son of Jupiter, he was originally known as "Jobus", and then "Julus". This calls to mind the use of "Jove" for Jupiter, and the "Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology" suggests that "Iulus" might be a diminutive of "Dius", which is also the root of "Jupiter". Furthermore, Livy reports that after his death Aeneas was worshiped as "Jupiter Indiges", "the local Jove".
Julia gens | Iulus
The name of Caelus indicates that he was the Roman counterpart of the Greek god Uranus (Οὐρανός, "Ouranos"), who was of major importance in the theogonies of the Greeks. Varro couples him with Terra (Earth) as "pater" and "mater" (father and mother), and says that they are "great deities" ("dei magni") in the theology of the mysteries at Samothrace. Although Caelus is not known to have had a cult at Rome, not all scholars consider him a Greek import given a Latin name; he has been associated with Summanus, the god of nocturnal thunder, as "purely Roman." Caelus begins to appear regularly in Augustan art and in connection with the cult of Mithras during the Imperial era.
Caelus | Identity
Other regulations concern his ritual purity and his separation from the military function; he was forbidden to ride a horse or see the army outside the sacred boundary of Rome "(pomerium)." Although he served the god who embodied the sanctity of the oath, it was not religiously permissible "(fas)" for the Dialis to swear an oath. He could not have contacts with anything dead or connected with death: corpses, funerals, funeral fires, raw meat. This set of restrictions reflects the fulness of life and absolute freedom that are features of Jupiter.
Jupiter (mythology) | Flamen and Flaminica Dialis