Greek Mythology

The Greek Mythology is an amazing collection from wonderful myths. Almost every Greek child will grow up with those famous stories. Among the most famous are the Epic poems of Homer, the Iliad, the story the Trojan war and the Odyssey who tells about the journeys of Odysseus after the end of the Trojan war. The Epics of Homer have kept alive the Greek Spirit alive for more than 3000 years. Great Alexander's favourite book was the Iliad, but most of the Greeks have been grown up with those stories since then .The famous fables of Aesop was the first fables that had always a teaching meaning. Many fairy tale writers used the fables of Aesop as a base like the famous La Fontaine.

The story of Jason and the Argonauts its another Great and popular story from the Greek Mythology. It tells about the journey and the adventures of Jason to the Mythic land of the Golden Fleece. In that story among the Heroes who are in Jason's quest is the Greatest Hero of Greece, Hercules. There are many stories about Hercules and his labours also popular like the stories of Odysseus. Hercules  like most of the Mythical Greek Heroes was a half son of Zeus. His most famous quests or labours (Athloi in Greek) was the  quest for the Amazon apples, the killing of the Nemea Lion and the Hydra of Lerne, the cleaning of the stables of King Augeas and many others that until nowadays is a source for many fiction books and films. 

Another great Hero was Theseus, he as well had to fulfille several quests, among the most famous was the killing of the Minotaur and the liberation of the 12 Athenian young boys and girls that Athens had to pay as a tax every year to the Cretan King Minos. Also his journey to Athens was an adventure as he had to kill the 3 bandits (Sinis, Prokroustis and Perifetes) on the way from Corinth to Elefsis.

The story of Perseus has inspired also many fiction books and films with the adventures of Perseus in his quest to kill the Medusa in order to liberate Andromeda. In many Greek myths you will find as main heroes 2 persons like the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. There are myths and stories for almost every God of the Greek Pantheon. The mythology of the Greek gods is what made the Ancient Greek culture and civilisation so much different then any other civilisation of this time. The Ancient Greeks show their gods as humans with human feelings and passions. Their difference from the humans was the immortality and their power but they where personalised as humans and not as animals or nature creatures.

To the right is a list of mythological characters and creatures. The Greek mythology is very rich, so this list is far from complete. Hopefully you will find the name you are looking for. Since myth and history sometimes mix, you might not find the name you want here, but in the Who is Who in Antiquity section.

The usual practice when naming a child in Greece is to use one of the grandparents' name. Ancient names from history and myth are getting more and more popular and there are many Aphrodite and Socrates around. You might also have a Greek name without even knowing it. Have a look at "Greek names?" to find out.

Most people have heard of the ancient Greek gods, who lived on Mt Olympos. The twelve major Gods were: Zeus, Hera, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Aphrodite, Ares, Demeter, Poseidon, Hermes, Hestia and Hephaestus. There were of course hundreds of lesser gods, semigods and heroes, some of which you will find here.