The Olympian GodsThe Gods known as the "Olympian Gods" in antiquity refer to those Gods who constituted the current ruling class in what we might call historical times - Zeus, his siblings, and his children. In his Theogony, Hesiod tells us about the succession of power among the Gods - from Ouranos, to Cronos, and finally to Zeus. Zeus was able to stop the cycle of son forcibly wresting power from father, while father took extreme measures to prevent son from coming to maturity, by eating the goddess Metis, who was prophesied to have a son who would overthrow Zeus. Metis was pregnant at the time, and Zeus gave birth to that child - the goddess Athena - who was born from his head, thus securing his perpetual role as the "Father of Gods and Men" and overcoming the male inability to give birth (the one thing that only those pesky females could do). (This myth is referred to as the "Succession Myth".)
Zeus and his family, then, became the ruling class of gods. They were called the Olympians because they lived on Mount Olympus. Traditionally, there are said to be 12 Olympian Gods, but there are actually 14 Gods who are considered to be members of the pantheon. Persephone is not one of the major Olympian gods, but I have included her here because she is still a major deity, and it is difficult to speak of her mother, Demeter, without speaking of Persephone. |
Zeus |
Poseidon |
Roman: Neptune
God of Sea |
Hades |
Roman: Pluto
God of the Underworld |
Hera |
Roman: Juno
Goddess of Marriage |
Aphrodite |
Roman: Venus
Goddess of Love |
Demeter |
Roman: Ceres
Goddess of Grain and Growing Things |
Persephone |
Roman: Prosperina
Daughter of Demeter, Wife of Hades |
Hestia |
Roman: Vesta
Goddess of the Hearth |
Hermes |
Roman: Mercury
God of travelers |
Athena |
Roman: Minerva
Goddess of war, wisdom, and weaving |
Ares |
Roman: Mars
The God of War |
Apollo |
Roman:
The Sun God, also the God of Music |
Artemis |
Roman: Diana
The Goddess of Young Women, Childbirth, and the Hunt |
Dionysus |
Roman: Bacchus
The God of Theatre and Wine |
Hephaestus |
Roman: Vulcan
The God of Craftsmen |