Twelve Olympians, The 12 Olympian Gods of Mount Olympus

Twelve Olympians or The 12 Olympian Gods of Mount Olympus are the major deities of the Greek pantheon, commonly considered to be Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Hermes, and either Hestia or Dionysus. They were called Olympians because, according to tradition, they resided on Mount Olympus.

Mount Olympus

Zeus, who formed the third line of gods after Uranus and Cronus, began to dwell on Olympus, ruling the universe from there together with his siblings and children. The Twelve great gods of the Greeks were known as the Olympians. They presided over every aspect of human life. The goddess Hestia (listed here in the second rank) was sometimes included amongst the Twelve.

First denoted merely as a mountain, Olympus took on an eternal connotation later. In a literal sense, it means a high mountain. Therefore, high mountains in Greece and Crete, as well as those in Anatolia such as Uludağ, were named Olympus. However, what actually comes to mind when one speaks of Olympus of countless peaks and observed what went on in the world. The palaces were made from bronze by Hephaestus, the blacksimtih god.

Zeus and the Olympians

The Olympian gods (“Theoi Olympioi“) presided over ever facet of ancient life and were often grouped according to their common functions. Zeus would sit on his golden throne, while gods organized festivities before him, and thus they led a happy life. Zeus is the god of sky and thunder. He is the child of Cronus and Rhea, and is the youngest of his siblings. He is married to Hera, although, he is known to have fathered many children with other women.Their food and drink were not like those mortals. They consumed ‘ambrosia’and ‘nectar’. Ambrosia meaning ‘immortal’, was a type of honey made of multiple flower essences. Thus, the gods who fed on this would remain youthful and remain immortal. Goddess Hebe would servet the drinks inside golden cups. Afterwards, Zeus commissioned Ganymede (son of King Tros of Troy) to serve the drinks. Apollo and the Muses would jollify the festivities with their instruments and songs.

Gods would dress up like people, become angry and sad, and suffer like them. They would engage in fights and sometimes would be injured too. Even thought their wounds hurt them, they would never kill them. Flowing in their bodie was not blood but a fluid called ‘ichor’. On one occation, Aphrodite and Ares hd deep wounds and were writhing in pain, yet they did not die. The god Apollo applied a salve on their wounds and healed them.

There weren’t always festivities in Olympus, at times there would be fights too. One time Hephaestus the blacksmith god enraged Zeus and Zeus threw him down from Olympus and crippled him. On another occasion some gods plotted a conspiracy against Zeus. This outraged Zeus and he punished Apollo and Poseidonby condemning them to work in the service of the king of Troy for one year.

Gods would never go against the order of Zeus, the absolute ruler of Olympus.He was the head and king of gods and owner of the heavens. His order was law and his thunderbolts the symbol of his absolute dominion with which he would hit when angry.Although all the palaces of gods were in Olympus, Hades did not live in Olympus because he ruled the underworld. Beside Zeus, Hera, Hestia, Apollo, Artemis, Athena, Aphrodite, poseidon, Ares, hermes and Demeter, there were also secondary gods in Olympus. Of these deities, the Muses, the divine Chrites and the Horae would entertain the Olympians with their songs. The mother of Horae Themis, would sit near the throne of Zeus and spread justice. The gods would sometimes be distinguised as humans and go among them. As mentioned before, Zeus ruled the world from Olympus together with his siblings and childer. Altogether, these gods were known as the twelve gods of Olympus.

Now the Greek and Latin names of these will be provided along with the natural powers they represented. And afterwards, we shall discuss the gods of Olympus one by one.

The 12 Olympian Gods of Mount Olympus (Greek and Latin names)

 

Greek	Latin (Roman)	Representation – Charasteristics – Symbols
Aphrodite	Venus	Goddess of love, romance, and beauty. Her son was Eros, god of Love (though he is not an Olympian.) in Roman mythology also goddess of the fields and gardens. (Symbol: Dove)
Apollo	Phoebus	Beautiful god of prophecy, light, medicine and archery (later Greco-Roman mythology: god of the Sun) (Symbol: Bow, lyre)
Ares	Mars	Dark god of war who loves Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty (Symbol: Helmet, spear)
Artemis	Diana	Independent goddess of the hunt, the forest, wildlife, childbirth, and the moon. Sister to Apollo. (later Greco-Roman mythology: goddess of the Moon) (Symbol: Stag, Crescent)
Asclepius	Aesculapius	God of medicine
Athena	Minerva	Daughter of Zeus and goddess of wisdom, war, arts and crafts. She presides over the Parthenon and her namesake city, Athens. Sometimes spelled “Athene”.Helper of heroes (later Greco-Roman mythology: Goddess of Reason) (Symbol: Shield, olive branch)
Chronos	Saturn	God of heaven, ruler of the Titans (Roman mythology: god of agriculture)
Demeter	Ceres	Goddess of grain, harvest, soil fertility, agriculture and mother of Persephone (again, her offspring is not considered to be an Olympian.) (Symbol: Wheat ears, sickle)
Dionysus	Bacchus	God of wine and vegetation
Eros	Cupid	God of love
Gaia	Terra	Mother Earth
Hephaestus	Vulcan	Lame god of fire, forge and blacksmith of the gods. Sometimes spelled Hephaistos. The Hephaestion near the Acropolis is the most beautifully preserved ancient temple in Greece. Mated to Aphrodite. (Symbol: Hammer, anvil)
Hera	Juno	Goddess of marriage and fertility, protector of married women, pregnant women, she presided over the birth and watched over infants; wife of Jupiter, queen of the gods, mother of Mars, the moon goddess.
Hermes	Mercury	Messenger of the gods, protector of travelers, thieves and merchants
Hestia	Vesta	Calm goddess of home and homelife, symbolized by the hearth which holds the continually-burning flame. (Symbol: Holy fire)
Hypnos	Somnus	God of sleep
Hades	Pluto	Although he was an important god and the brother of Zeus and Poseidon, was not generally considered to be one of the twelve Olympians since he dwelled in the underworld. Similarly, Demeter’s daughter Persephone is also omitted from the list of the Olympians, though she dwells there for one-half or one-third of the year, depending on which mythological interpretation is preferred.
Poseidon	Neptune	God of the sea,  horses and earthquakes
Rea	Ops	Wife of Chronos / Saturn, mother goddess
Uranus	Caelus	God of heaven, father of the Titans
Zeus	Jupiter	Ruler of the Olympian gods. It was the most important Roman deity. He is the god of heaven and light. He rules the atmospheric phenomena like lightning and rain. Protector of agriculture and farmers. He presided over the feast of the harvest. His attributes are the eagle, the scepter in one hand and a beam in the other hand. His temple on the Capitoline Hill in Rome was the religious center of the entire Roman Empire.(Symbol: Eagle, thunderbolt)