Greek and Roman Gods

Zeus/ Jupiter Zeus/ Jupiter was the king of all the gods. He had many magical powers. He could shape shift and make himself look like anybody. He could throw his lightning bolts and do all kinds of damage. He could throw his voice and make himself sound like anybody.

Hera/ Juno Hera/Juno was the

queen of all the gods, and

also the goddess of

marriage. She was Zeus'

sister. She was also his

wife. The gods did things

like that.

Poseidon/Neptune There were three very important brothers in the ancient Greek god world - Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon. Zeus was the king of all the gods. Hades ran the Underworld. Poseidon was the Lord of the Sea.

Poseidon was not at all jealous of his brothers or their power. He did not want to be in charge of the Underworld. And he certainly did not want all the responsibility that Zeus had shouldered. He was very happy being Lord of the Sea.

Ares/Mars

Ares was the god of war. He was true royalty as far as the gods were concerned. His parents were the king and queen of the ancient Greek god world. His father was Zeus and his mother was Hera.

Ares was tall. He was handsome. He was mean. He was self-centered. Nobody liked him much.

Hermes/Mercury

Hermes was Zeus' youngest son.

Hermes' mother was Maia.

Zeus liked having his son Hermes

around, even as a baby. Hermes was

always full of fun. He was very bright.

He had great ideas. He was a natural

athlete. He had a mischievous grin. He

seemed to be able to talk others into

just about anything.

Both gods and humans liked and trusted

Hermes. Their trust was well placed.

Hermes could keep a secret. Zeus

decided to make him the messenger

and the deal maker of the gods.

Apollo/Apollo Apollo was the son of Zeus, king of all the gods. His mother was the gentle Leto. Apollo had a twin sister, Artemis, the huntress. Apollo had lots of jobs in the ancient Greek god world. One of them was to bring up the sun. Another was to watch over music and musicians. Apollo was a gentle god. But he could lose his temper if provoked enough. When he did, Apollo always got even in very clever ways.

Artemis/Diana

Artemis was the goddess of the hunt and the goddess of the moon. She was Apollo's twin sister. Her father was Zeus, king of all the gods. Her mother was the gentle Leto.

Artemis was Apollo's opposite. Her brother could be warm and loving. But Artemis was not like that. She adored her dogs. She loved her twin brother. She loved her Mom. She respected her Dad. She even liked most of her half-siblings. But to others, Artemis was cold and pitiless.

Athena/Minerva Athena was the goddess of wisdom. She could get angry, but more typically, she was wise, and kind, and understanding. Athena was born very oddly. Her father was the mighty Zeus. But she did not have a mother. Instead, as the myth goes, she was born directly out of Zeus' brain. Zeus loved all his children. But one of his favorites was Athena.

Hestia/Vesta Hestia had two sisters. One was Hera, the queen of all the gods, and the goddess of marriage. The other was Demeter, the important goddess of the harvest. Hestia also had an important job. She was the goddess of hearth and home. To the ancient Greek women, Hestia was the most important goddess of all.

Demeter/Ceres Zeus, the king of all the gods, had two brothers and three sisters. Each had an important job. His sister, Demeter, was in charge of the harvest. If Demeter did not do her job, the crops could die, and everyone would starve. It was important to keep Demeter happy. Everyone helped out with that - both gods and mortals. It was that important.

Aphrodite/Venus

Aphrodite was the goddess of love and beauty. Some people believed she was the daughter of Zeus, king of all the gods. Others insist she simply appeared one day, riding to shore on a wave of sea foam. Zeus had many daughters. As far as he was concerned, the lovely Aphrodite was welcome to be one of them. Nobody actually knows where she came from, but once she arrived, she became part of many Greek myths

Hephaestus/Vulcan

Hephaestus and Ares were the

sons of Hera and Zeus, the

king and queen of the gods.

Ares was the god of war. He

liked to destroy things.

Hephaestus was his opposite.

He liked to build things.

Heracles/Hercules

Hercules was half man and half

god. His mother was a mortal.

But his father was a king - a

very special king, the king of all

the gods, the mighty Zeus. But

Hercules did not know he was

part god until he had grown into

a man.

Eros/Cupid

Cupid was the son of Venus,

the goddess of love and

beauty. There are myths

about Cupid and his arrows.

Cupid's arrows could make

you fall in love. But one of

our favorite myths is about

Cupid & Psyche, who fell in

love.

Dionysus/Bacchus

Dionysus was the Greek god of wine and theatre. He had quite a sense of humor and a dramatic flair.

Some gods were shape shifters. They could change their shape at will. They could turn into just about anything. Dionysus was very good at shape shifting.

Orpheus/Orpheus

Orpheus was the son of the

god Apollo and Calliope (kuh-

LIE-uh-pee), the muse of

epic poetry. Orpheus

became a great musician.

His voice was more

melodious than any other of

his fellow-mortals.

Echo/Echo

Echo was a magical wood nymph.

Echo had the most beautiful voice.

She was very musical and

possessed a good and loving

heart. Echo lived deep in the

woods and rejected all suitors,

which made her, of course, a

favorite of the goddess Artemis

Pan/Faunus Pan was Hermes son. His

mother was a wood nymph.

Pan was a bit of a shock

when he was born. He had

two horns coming out of his

forehead. He had the legs of

a goat. He had a crooked

nose and pointed ears.

Hades/Pluto

Hades, Poseidon, and Zeus were brothers. Each ruled over some part of the universe. Poseidon ruled the seas. Hades ruled the Underworld. Zeus accepted the most demanding job of all - Zeus was chosen to rule over all of the gods and all of the earth and all of the heavens. Hades was not the lord of death. He did not decide who lived and who died up on earth. His job was to run things down in the Underworld, the place where you went after you died.