I was reading Plato in middle school, and become so obsessed with Greek mythology I got a PhD in Comparative Literature… but that was a long time ago, when I was a poor grad student learning to write ancient Greek and Chinese characters by hand at the train station.
Now I write novels, and it’s super rewarding – especially when I get to base my stories on classic Greek mythology. My books go deep on more obscure myths from world folklore, but I hope to share my passion for these characters by creating a new series featuring lore, legends and fan art from each ancient god, goddess, demigod, supernatural creature or demon…
For now, start with free dictionary of mythology, organized by region/culture. It’s quick cheatsheet and will be very cool once I add art.
Greek Mythology
- Zeus (Zues): The king of the gods, ruler of Mount Olympus, and god of the sky, lightning, thunder, and law.
- Athena: Goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration, and warfare.
- Aphrodite: Goddess of love and beauty.
- Ares: God of war.
- Artemis: Goddess of the hunt, wilderness, and childbirth.
- Atlas: Titan condemned to hold up the sky for eternity.
- Eros: God of love and desire.
- Hekate (Hecate): Goddess of magic, witchcraft, and crossroads.
- Scylla: A monstrous sea nymph turned into a creature with six dog heads.
- Hades: God of the underworld.
- Persephone: Queen of the underworld, wife of Hades, and goddess of spring growth.
- Dionysus: God of wine, pleasure, and festivity.
- Minotaur: A creature with the head of a bull and the body of a man, confined to the Labyrinth in Crete.
- Hephaestus: God of metalworking and craftsmanship.
- Ares: God of war.
- Hydra: A multi-headed serpent that regrows its heads when cut off.
- Hera: Queen of the gods and goddess of marriage and childbirth.
- Aeolus: Keeper of the winds.
- Basilisc: A serpent or dragon known to kill with its gaze.
- Adonis: A youth loved by both Aphrodite and Persephone.
- Daphne: A nymph who was turned into a laurel tree to escape Apollo’s advances.
- Cerberus: The three-headed dog guarding the gates of the underworld.
- Morpheus: God of dreams.
- Centaur: A creature with the upper body of a human and the lower body of a horse.
- Nemesis: Goddess of retribution.
- Nymph: Minor nature goddesses.
- Chimera: A creature with parts from different animals, often lion, goat, and serpent.
- Hestia: Goddess of the hearth and home.
- Helios: Titan god of the sun.
- Medusa: Once a beautiful woman, Medusa was cursed with snake hair and a gaze that turns anyone to stone.
- Erinyes: Deities of vengeance.
- Echidna: Mother of monsters and half-woman, half-snake.
- Hyperion: Titan of heavenly light.
- Sirens: Creatures that lured sailors with their enchanting music.
- Nyx: Primordial goddess of the night.
- Prometheus: Titan who defied Zeus to bring fire to humanity.
- Thanatos: God of death.
- Perseus: A hero known for beheading Medusa.
- Gorgon: Three sisters, including Medusa, known for their petrifying gaze.
- Manticore: A creature with the body of a lion, wings of a bat, and the face of a man.
- Rhea: Titaness and mother of many Olympian gods.
- Harpy: A creature with the body of a bird and the head of a woman.
- Poisedon (Poseidon): God of the sea.
- Satyr: Creatures with human upper bodies and the legs of goats.
- Thalia: Muse of comedy and pastoral poetry.
- Priapus: Minor god of fertility.
- Maia: One of the Pleiades and mother to Hermes.
- Psyche: Mortal woman who became the wife of Eros.
- Io: Mortal woman and lover of Zeus, turned into a cow to hide her from Hera.
- Lamia: A woman turned into a child-eating monster.
- Chiron: The wisest of all centaurs.
Japanese Mythology
- Shinto God of War: There isn’t one specific god of war in Shinto mythology, but several kami (deities) have martial attributes. One example is Hachiman, the god of war and archery.
- Shinigami: Spirits associated with death, similar in nature to the Western Grim Reaper, though they can be plural.
- Qilin: While Qilin is often associated with Chinese mythology, it’s known in Japan as “Kirin.” It’s a mythical hooved chimerical creature known throughout various East Asian cultures.
Egyptian Mythology
- God of Death: Anubis, god of mummification and afterlife. He has a jackal’s head and is known for guiding souls in the underworld.
- Eye of Horus: An ancient Egyptian symbol of protection, royal power, and good health.
- Osiris: God of the afterlife, death, and resurrection.
- Ankhesenamun: Wife of the famous Pharaoh Tutankhamun, not a goddess but a significant figure in Egyptian history.
- Ashera: Often associated with Canaanite mythology rather than Egyptian. Asherah is a mother goddess.
Norse Mythology
- Sakaar: It’s not from Norse mythology but a fictional planet from the Marvel Universe. However, Thor, a Norse god, is featured there in the Marvel adaptations.
- Jormungandr: The Midgard Serpent, a sea serpent so large it can encircle the world.
- Asgard: The heavenly realm where the Aesir tribe of deities resides.
- Freya: Goddess associated with love, beauty, fertility, and war.
- Mimir: A being known for his knowledge and wisdom.
- Helm of Awe: A symbol of protection and might, but also of the power to achieve one’s aims.
- Ragnarok: The series of events that will bring about the end of the world, where gods, giants, and creatures will perish in battle.
- Valknut: A symbol associated with the god Odin, death, and the afterlife.
- Niflheim: One of the Nine Worlds, a place of ice, cold, and mist.
Slavic Mythology
- Baba Yaga: A witch-like character who flies around in a mortar, wielding a pestle. She can be malevolent or benevolent, depending on specific tales.
- Koschei: Often known as Koschei the Deathless, he’s a powerful and evil figure associated with a particular tale of kidnapping the hero’s wife.
Other Mythologies and Folklore
- Medusa (Greek): A gorgon with snakes for hair. Those who look into her eyes turn to stone.
- Cleopatra (Historical): Not a mythical figure but the last active ruler of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt.
- Phoenix Bird (Various): A mythical bird that is cyclically regenerated or reborn. Associated with the sun, a phoenix obtains new life by arising from the ashes of its predecessor.
- Pied Piper (German Legend): A rat-catcher from Hamelin who lured rats and then children away with his magical pipe.
- Emerald Tablets (Alchemy): A text attributed to Hermes Trismegistus and influential on alchemists.
- Wendigo (Algonquian folklore): A mythical man-eating creature or evil spirit.
- Immurement (Practice): The practice of entombing someone within a structure, where they die from lack of food and water. Not a mythological creature but a dark historical practice.
- Enochian (Magical system): A system of ceremonial magic centered on the evocation and commanding of spirits. It’s based on the 16th-century writings of John Dee and Edward Kelley.
- Oshun (Yoruba): A goddess of love, beauty, wealth, and divine order.
- Baron Samedi (Vodou): One of the Loa of Haitian Vodou, Baron Samedi is the loa of the dead.
- Seal of Solomon: A magical signet ring attributed to King Solomon in medieval Islamic tradition, later also in Jewish and Western occultism.
- Charybdis (Greek): A sea monster or whirlpool that threatens sailors.
- Faerie (Celtic): Mythological creatures or spirits, often described as metaphysical, supernatural, or preternatural.
- Jian Shi (Jiangshi, Chinese): Also known as a hopping vampire or hopping corpse, it’s a reanimated corpse in Chinese legends and folklore.
- Lilith (Jewish folklore): Often associated with the mythological female demon, later folklore portrays Lilith as Adam’s first wife.
- Greek Fire (Byzantine Empire): Not a myth but a weapon. It was a technological invention of the Byzantine Empire, an incendiary weapon used in naval warfare.
- Aztlan (Aztec): The ancestral home of the Nahua tribes, believed to be an island.
- Tiamat (Babylonian): A chaos monster, a primordial goddess of the ocean.
- Jacob’s Ladder (Biblical): A ladder to heaven that the biblical Patriarch Jacob dreams about.
- Centurion (Roman): Not mythical, but historical. A centurion was a professional officer in the Roman army.
- Fertility Goddess (Various): A goddess that represents fertility and motherhood. Examples include Isis from Egyptian mythology and Freyja from Norse mythology.
- Aluxe (Mayan): Also known as Alux, these are spirits of the forest in Mayan tradition.
- Manananggal (Philippine folklore): A creature known to sever its upper torso to fly at night and suck the blood from sleeping victims.
- Hatshepsut (Historical): A female pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt.
- Kratos (Greek): Represents strength and might, but notably, the God of War video games depict Kratos in a narrative that is not traditional to ancient myths.
- Orichalcum: A metal mentioned in several ancient writings, most famously in the story of Atlantis as described by Plato.
- Fiji Mermaid: A common feature of sideshows, it’s an object comprising the torso and head of a juvenile monkey sewn to the back half of a fish.
- Lovelock Cave: An archaeological site in Nevada, not a myth but has ties to Paiute Native American legends.
- Ark of the Covenant: A gold-covered wooden chest described in the Book of Exodus that contains the two stone tablets of the Ten Commandments.
- Vajra (Buddhist): A ritual object symbolizing both the properties of a diamond (indestructibility) and a thunderbolt (irresistible force).
WORK IN PROGRESS...
