In Greek religion every aspect of nature and human life had its deity: rivers, springs, winds, sleep, victory, even justice. Here are the most important "minor" deities, who often appear in myths and art. See the twelve Olympians.
The nine Muses
Daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, Memory, the Muses live on Mount Helicon or Parnassus, accompany Apollo and inspire poets, musicians and scholars. They give us the words music and museum, the "place of the Muses".
| Muse | Domain | Symbol |
|---|---|---|
| Calliope | epic poetry | writing tablet and stylus |
| Clio | history | scroll |
| Euterpe | music and lyric poetry | flute |
| Erato | love poetry | lyre |
| Melpomene | tragedy | tragic mask |
| Thalia | comedy | comic mask |
| Terpsichore | dance | lyre |
| Polyhymnia | sacred hymns | veil |
| Urania | astronomy | globe and compass |
Other divine groups
- The Graces (Charites): Aglaea, Euphrosyne and Thalia, goddesses of beauty, joy and festivity.
- The Hours: goddesses of the seasons and the order of nature.
- The Fates (Moirai): Clotho spins the thread of life, Lachesis measures it and Atropos cuts it; not even Zeus could oppose them. The Romans called them the Parcae.
- The Erinyes, or Furies: goddesses of vengeance who pursue those who commit crimes against family.
Gods of nature and sky
- Helios, the Sun, who crosses the sky every day in his fiery chariot; his son Phaethon tried to drive it and nearly burned the world. See metamorphoses.
- Selene, the Moon, and Eos, "rosy-fingered" Dawn.
- Aeolus, king of the winds, who kept them shut in a bag; he gave it to Odysseus.
- Pan, god of shepherds and woods, half man and half goat, who played the reed pipes and frightened travellers with sudden shrieks: hence the word panic.
Personifications and other gods
- Eros, god of love, son of Aphrodite, with bow and arrows.
- Nike, winged Victory, companion of Athena and Zeus; the famous Winged Victory of Samothrace is in the Louvre.
- Nemesis, who punishes arrogance and excessive good fortune.
- Hypnos, Sleep, and his twin brother Thanatos, Death.
- Iris, the rainbow, Hera's messenger.
- Hebe, youth, cupbearer of the gods and later wife of Heracles.
- Asclepius, son of Apollo, god of medicine, worshipped at Epidaurus.
Nymphs and spirits
Nymphs are young nature deities: Naiads of springs and rivers, Dryads of trees, Oreads of mountains, and the Nereids, fifty daughters of the sea god Nereus, including Thetis, mother of Achilles. Satyrs, companions of Dionysus, dance with them.
See also myths and words and the glossary.