GREEK MYTHOLOGY

Lame

1. Unable to walk properly because of a problem with one's feet or legs. 2. Moving with pain or difficulty on account of injury, defect or temporary obstruction of a function: a lame leg, arm or muscle.

Achilles

A Greek hero of the Trojan War and the central character and greatest warrior of Homer's Iliad. Achilles was said to be a demigod; his mother was a nymph, and his Father was a king.

Paphos

A coastal city in the southwest of Cyprus and the capital of Paphos District

Prometheus

A hero and a trickster figure who is credited with the creation of man from clay. He is most well-known for stealing the gift fire from the gods (namely Hephaestus) and giving to mankind, an act that enabled progress and civilization. He is known for his intelligence, and as a champion of humanity.

Semele

A mortal priestess of Zeus and the mother of Dionysus with Zeus

Maia

A mountain nymph and mother of Hermes with Zeus.

Cyclopes

A primordial race of giants, each with a single eye in the middle of his forehead.

The River Styx

A river in Greek mythology that formed the boundary between Earth and the Underworld. The gods were bound by the river and swore oaths on it that were unbreakable

Acropolis

A settlement, especially a citadel, built upon an area of elevated ground—frequently a hill with precipitous sides, chosen for purposes of defense.

Caduceus

A staff carried by Hermes. It is a short staff entwined by two serpents, sometimes surmounted by wings. The caduceus is often mistakenly used as a symbol of medicine and medical practice (especially in North America), due to historical confusion with the traditional medical symbol, the rod of Asclepius. The Rod of Asclepius has only a single snake and no wings, so it is similar in form to the caduceus. The Rod of Asclepius is wielded by the Greek god Asclepius, the god of healing and medicine.

Parthenon

A temple on the Athenian Acropolis, dedicated to the maiden goddess Athena, whom the people of Athens considered their patron deity. Its construction began in 447 BCE when the Athenian Empire was at the height of its power. It was completed in 438 BCE, although decoration of the building continued until 432 BCE. It is the most important surviving building of Classical Greece.

Frigg

As the wife of Odin, Frigg is one of the foremost goddesses of Norse mythology. She is the patron of marriage and motherhood, and the goddess of love and fertility. In that aspect she shows many similarities with Freya, of whom she possibly is a different form

Delphi

Is both an archaeological site and a modern town in Greece. Delphi was the site of the Delphic oracle, the most important oracle in the classical Greek world, and became a major site for the worship of the god Apollo.

Hades

The ancient Greek god of the underworld. Brother of Zeus and Poseidon

Ambrosia

The food and drink of the Greek gods, often depicted as conferring ageless immortality upon whomever consumed it.

Bragi

The god of eloquence and poetry, and the patron of skalds (poets) in Norse mythology. He is regarded as a son of Odin and Frigg. Runes were carved on his tongue and he inspired poetry in humans by letting them drink from the mead of poetry. Bragi is married to Idun, the goddess of eternal youth. Oaths were sworn over the Bragarfull ("Cup of Bragi"), and drinks were taken from it in honor of a dead king. Before a king ascended the throne, he drank from such a cup.

Balder

The god of light, joy, purity, beauty, innocence, and reconciliation. Son of Odin and Frigg, he was loved by both gods and men and was considered to be the best of the gods. He had a good character, was friendly, wise and eloquent, although he had little power

Eros

The god of love

Freya

The goddess of love and fertility, and the most beautiful and propitious of the goddesses. She is the patron goddess of crops and birth, the symbol of sensuality and was called upon in matters of love. She loves music, spring and flowers, and is particularly fond of the elves (fairies). Freya is one of the foremost goddesses of the Vanir.

Muses

The goddesses of the inspiration of science and the arts, especially literature, dance, and music. They were considered the source of the knowledge, and are the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne (the personification of memory).

Sif

The golden-haired wife of the god Thor. There is not much known about her, except that she could originally have been a fertility goddess. Neither does she appear often in the myths.

Loki

The most unpredictable and certainly the most dangerous god in the Northern pantheon was Loki. His activities ran from the merely mischievous to the blatantly malicious. Supremely clever, Loki ensnared everyone in complicated problems, to which he always supplied a remedy - through his solution often engendered even greater troubles.

Leto

The mother of Apollo and Artemis, which Leto conceived after her hidden beauty accidentally caught the eyes of Zeus.

Rhea

The mother of the Olympian gods and goddesses, but not as an Olympian goddess in her own right. Married to Cronus.

Tyr

The original Germanic god of war and the patron god of justice, the precursor of Odin. At the time of the Vikings, Tyr had to make way for Odin, who became the god of war himself.

Helios

The personification of the sun

Ginnungagap

The vast chasm that existed between Niflheim [Land of Mist] and Muspelheim [fire giants] before creation. To the north of Ginnungagap lay the intense cold of Niflheim, to the south the insufferable heat of Muspelheim. At the beginning of time, the two met in the Ginnungagap; and where the heat met the frost, the frost drops melted and formed the substance eitr, which quickened into life in the form of the giant Ymir, the father of all Frost giants. See his entry for the continuation of the Old Norse story of the Creation. It is similar to Chaos Theory.

Odin

_____________ is the chief divinity of the Norse pantheon, the foremost of the Aesir. Odin is a son of Bor and Bestla. He is called Alfadir, Allfather, for he is indeed father of the gods. With Frigg he is the father of Balder, Hod, and Hermod. He fathered Thor on the goddess Jord; and the giantess Grid became the mother of Vidar.

Pandora

_____________ was the first woman on Earth

The Odyssey

________________ is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems written by Homer. It is in part, a sequel to the first major ancient Greek epic poem The Iliad, the other work by Homer. The poem is fundamental to the modern Western literature, and is the second oldest example of Western literature, the Iliad being the oldest. It is believed to have been composed near the end of the 8th century BC, somewhere in Ionia, the Greek coastal region of Anatolia.

Greek Mythology

_________________ is the body of myths and teachings that belong to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, and the nature and origin of the world. - This period lasted from around 800 BCE until about 600 AD. _________________ was part of the religion in Ancient Greece.

Yggdresil

a gigantic tree, thought to connect all the nine worlds of Norse cosmology. It is often suggested to be an ash tree, an interpretation generally accepted in the modern Scandinavian mind

Ve

one of a triad of ancient Scandinavian gods including Odin and Vili - sons of the primordial pair of giants Bor and Bestla. The three brothers created heaven and earth from the slain body of the primeval being Ymir and built the twelve realms. They also created the first pair of humans. The male was named Ask ("ash") and the female the named Embla ("elm"). Ask and Embla became the progenitors of the human race and Midgard was given to them as their residence.

Immortal

someone who can live forever (opposite of mortal, or someone who is liable or subject to death)

Thor

the Norse god of thunder. He is generally depicted as red-headed and bearded.

Ragnarok

the final battle, equivalent to Judgment day in the battle of good and evil, when balance is restored and a new creation begins.

Forseti

the god of justice. He is the son of the god Balder and his mother is Nanna. Forseti rules in the beautiful palace Glitnir, which serves as a court of justice and where all legal disputes are settled. Glitnir has a roof of silver that is supported by pillars of red gold. Forseti can be compared with the Teutonic god Fosite, who was worshipped on Helgoland.

Heimdall

the god of light, the son of nine mothers (variously given as the daughters of Geirrendour the Giant or of Aegir).

The Aesir

the principal gods of the pantheon