The Olympian gods
The twelve Olympians: who they are, and who is not on the list
Short answer: The twelve Olympians are usually given as Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Hephaestus and Hermes, plus either Hestia or Dionysus as the twelfth. Hades is usually left out because his realm is the underworld, not Olympus. Ancient sources show that Greeks spoke of "the twelve gods", but they do not all name the same twelve.
The usual list
| Olympian | Roman name | Known for |
|---|---|---|
| Zeus | Jupiter | King of the gods, sky and thunder |
| Hera | Juno | Marriage, women and childbirth |
| Poseidon | Neptune | The sea and earthquakes |
| Demeter | Ceres | Grain and the harvest |
| Athena | Minerva | Wisdom, strategy and crafts |
| Apollo | Apollo | Music, prophecy and healing |
| Artemis | Diana | The hunt and wild nature |
| Ares | Mars | War |
| Aphrodite | Venus | Love and beauty |
| Hephaestus | Vulcan | Fire and metalwork |
| Hermes | Mercury | Messages, trade and travel |
| Hestia or Dionysus | Vesta or Bacchus | The hearth or wine and ecstasy |
Hestia or Dionysus: the twelfth seat
Lists differ on the twelfth place. Hesiod gives Hestia as the first-born of Rhea and Cronus, one of the older generation of gods who include Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter and Hades (Theogony 453–458). Dionysus belongs to a younger generation: Hesiod says Zeus fathered him with Semele, the daughter of Cadmus, so that he is "a mortal woman's immortal son" (Theogony 940–942). Modern lists choose one or the other, and some count both and so name thirteen gods.
Why Hades is usually left out
In the Iliad, Poseidon tells Zeus that Rhea bore three brothers to Cronus, and that when they divided the world by lot, the sea fell to Poseidon, the darkness below to Hades, and the sky to Zeus (Iliad 15.187–193). Hades keeps his own realm below the earth rather than a seat among the gods on Olympus, which is the reason usually given for leaving him out. He is still one of the six children of Cronus and Rhea, and the archive treats him as a major god: see Hades / Pluto.
What ancient sources say about "the twelve gods"
Thucydides records that Peisistratus, the son of Hippias, dedicated the altar of the twelve gods in the market place of Athens while he was archon (Thucydides 6.54.6). The passage shows that a group called "the twelve gods" had a cult at Athens, but it does not list their names.
Because the ancient evidence names the group without giving one fixed list, books today differ on the twelfth member. When you read a modern list, treat it as a convention rather than an ancient rule.
Who is not an Olympian
- The Titans are the generation before the Olympians. Cronus and Rhea are the parents of the first Olympians, but are not Olympians themselves.
- Persephone is the queen of the underworld and daughter of Zeus and Demeter in Hesiod (Theogony 912–914), but she is not on the usual list. See Persephone / Proserpina.
- Heracles is a mortal hero raised to the gods and is not counted among the twelve. See Heracles / Hercules.
- Roman gods without a Greek counterpart such as Janus are not part of the Greek group.
See also the top 20 gods for the twelve in context, the family tree, and Greek and Roman names compared.
Sources
- Hesiod, Theogony 453–458: read the passage; 912–914 and 940–942: read the passage
- Homer, Iliad 15.187–193: read the passage
- Thucydides 6.54: read the passage