Twelve OlympiansIn ancient Greek religion and mythology, the twelve Olympians are the major deities of the Greek pantheon, commonly considered to be Zeus, Poseidon, Hera, Demeter, Aphrodite, Athena, Artemis, Apollo, Ares, Hephaestus, Hermes, and either Hestia or Dionysus. They were called Olympians because, according to tradition, they resided on Mount Olympus. Besides the twelve Olympians, there were many other cultic groupings of twelve gods.
TitansIn Greek mythology, the Titans (Ancient Greek: Τιτᾶνες, romanized: Tītânes; sing., Τιτάν, Tītā́n) were the deities who preceded the Olympians. According to the Theogony of Hesiod, they were the twelve children of the primordial deities Uranus (Sky) and Gaia (Earth).
Greek mythologyGreek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of ancient Greek folklore, today absorbed alongside Roman mythology into the broader designation of classical mythology. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives of deities, and heroes and the significance of the ancient Greeks' cult and ritual practices.
HesiodHesiod ( or ; Ancient Greek: ἩσίοδοςHēsíodos; fl. c. 700 BC) was an Ancient Greek poet generally thought to have been active between 750 and 650 BC, around the same time as Homer. Several of Hesiod's works have survived in their entirety.
Creation of life from clayThe creation of life from clay (or soil, earth, dust, or mud) appears throughout world religions and mythologies, some of the earliest occurring in the creation myths about the origin of man in the cosmology of the ancient Near East. The idea occurs in both biblical cosmology and Quranic cosmology. The clay represents an unformed, chaotic material which is shaped and given form by the gods in a creative process. A related motif is the use of clay to seed or create the world.
ZeusZeus (, Ancient Greek: Ζεύς) is the supreme deity of the Greek pantheon. He is a sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion and mythology, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus. Zeus is the child of Cronus and Rhea. In most traditions, he is married to Hera, by whom he is usually said to have fathered Ares, Eileithyia, Hebe, and Hephaestus. At the oracle of Dodona, his consort was said to be Dione, by whom the Iliad states that he fathered Aphrodite.
Theft of fireThe theft of fire for the benefit of humanity is a theme that recurs in many world mythologies, symbolizing the acquisition of knowledge, or technology, and its transformative impact on civilization. Its recurrent themes include trickster figures as the thief, and supernatural heroic guardians who hoard fire from humanity, often out of mistrust for humans.
Prometheus in popular cultureThe figure and name of Prometheus from classical mythology has appeared in various art and literature.
Ancient GreekAncient Greek (Ἑλληνική, Hellēnikḗ [hellɛːnikɛ̌ː]) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (c. 1400 – c. 1200 BC), Dark Ages (c. 1200 – c. 800 BC), the Archaic or Homeric period (c. 800 – c. 500 BC), and the Classical period (c. 500 – c. 300 BC).
DeucalionIn Greek mythology, Deucalion (Ancient Greek: Δευκαλίων; pronounced /djuːˈkeɪliən/ or /djuːˈkæl-/, dyoo-KAY-lee-ən or doo-KAL-ee-on) was the son of Prometheus; ancient sources name his mother as Clymene, Hesione, or Pronoia. He is closely connected with a flood myth in Greek mythology. The trans-Neptunian object (53311) Deucalion, discovered in 1999, was named in his honor.
Greek hero cultHero cults were one of the most distinctive features of ancient Greek religion. In Homeric Greek, "hero" (ἥρως, hḗrōs) refers to the mortal offspring of a human and a god.
Flood mythA flood myth or a deluge myth is a narrative in which a great flood—usually sent by one or more deities—destroys civilization, typically as an act of divine retribution. Parallels are often drawn between the floodwaters of these myths and the primordial cosmic ocean that appears in certain creation myths, because the floodwaters are described as a means of social cleansing or purifying humanity of its corruption, for example, in preparation for rebirth.
PrometheusRelated word or term.PrometheanRelated word or term.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.