By: Garrett Hancock
For Mrs. Oblas’ 2nd period class
Myths
 The word "myth" comes from the Greek word mythos,
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which means a spoken or written story.
The purpose of a myth is to explain human experience.
Many events in a myth are not realistic or based on fact,
since the message communicated by the story is more
important than telling about an actual event.
Because all groups of people have myths, and often myths
are associated with religion, the stories have been passed
down through the ages to become the basis a of society.
A collection of myths is called "mythology."
People study mythology because the stories provide a way
of understanding ancient cultures.
Myths
 Ancient civilizations, such as the Greeks, Romans,
Egyptians, Aztecs, and Mayas, created myths to
explain many aspects of life: how they came into
existence as a people; the reasons for good and evil; the
seasons; the weather; and the movements of the sun,
moon, and stars.
 Purposes: Explain Natural occurrences, entertain,
religion, teach lessons.
 Remember that myths where passed down by word of
mouth.
Greek gods: Zeus
 ZEUS (Roman name
Jupiter) was the supreme
god of the Olympians.
He was the father of the
heroes Perseus and
Heracles.
Note you don’t need to know the
roman names for the test.
Hera
 HERA (Roman name
Juno) was the goddess of
marriage. Hera was the
wife of Zeus and Queen
of the Olympians.
Note you don’t need to know the
roman names for the test.
Aphrodite
 APHRODITE (Roman
name Venus) was the
goddess of love, beauty
and fertility. She was also
a protector of sailors.
Note you don’t need to know the
roman names for the test.
Apollo
 APOLLO (Roman name
Apollo) was the god of
prophesy, music and
healing.
Note you don’t need to know the
roman names for the test.
Ares
 ARES (Roman name
Mars) was the god of
war.
Note you don’t need to know the
roman names for the test.
Artemis
 ARTEMIS (Roman name
Diana) was the virgin
goddess of the hunt. She
helped women in
childbirth.
Note you don’t need to know the
roman names for the test.
Athena
 ATHENA (Roman name
Minerva) was the goddess
of crafts and the domestic
arts and also those of war.
She was the patron
goddess of Athens. Her
symbol was the owl. She is
also known as the goddess
of wisdom.
Note you don’t need to know the
roman names for the test.
Demeter
 DEMETER (Roman
name Ceres) was the
goddess of agriculture.
Demeter is the sister of
Zeus and the mother of
Persephone.
Note you don’t need to know the
roman names for the test.
Dionysus
 DIONYSUS (Roman
name Bacchus) was the
god of wine. Dionysus
was the son of Zeus.
Note you don’t need to know the
roman names for the test.
Hephaestus
 HEPHAESTUS (he-FESS-
tus; Roman name Vulcan)
was the lame god of fire,
crafts, and blacksmiths.
Hephaestus was the son of
Zeus and Hera. He limped
because he was born lame,
which caused his mother
to throw him off Mount
Olympus.
Note you don’t need to know the
roman names for the test.
Hermes
 HERMES (Roman name
Mercury) was the
messenger of the gods and
guide of dead souls to the
Underworld. A prankster
and inventive genius from
birth, Hermes aided the
heroes Odysseus and
Perseus in their quests.
Note you don’t need to know the
roman names for the test.
Zeus
 POSEIDON (Roman name
Neptune) was the god of
the sea, earthquakes and
horses. Although he was
officially one of the
supreme gods of Mount
Olympus, he spent most of
his time in his watery
domain.
Note you don’t need to know the
roman names for the test.
Hades
 Hades (Roman name was Pluto)-For a while
Hades ruled the underworld together with
Persephone, whom he had abducted from the
upperworld (Mt. Olympus), but Zeus ordered
him to release Persephone back into the care of
her mother Demeter. However, before she left he
gave her a pomegranate and when she ate of it, it
bound her to the underworld forever.
Note you don’t need to know the
roman names for the test.
Finished