Midas: King of Phrygia; given gift of turning to gold all he touched.
Minerva:See Athena.
Minos: King of Crete; after death, one of three judges of dead in Hades; son of Zeus and Europa.
Minotaur: Monster, half man and half beast, kept in Labyrinth in Crete; slain by Theseus.
Mnemosyne: Goddess of memory; mother by Zeus of Muses.
Moirae: One of several Fates.
Momus: God of ridicule.
Morpheus: God of dreams.
Mors:See Thanatos.
Morta: One of several Fates.
Muses: Goddesses presiding over arts and sciences: Calliope (epic poetry), Clio (history), Erato (lyric and love poetry), Euterpe (music), Melpomene (tragedy), Polymnia or Polyhymnia (sacred poetry), Terpsichore (choral dance and song), Thalia (comedy and bucolic poetry), Urania (astronomy); daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne.
Naiads: Nymphs of waters, streams, and fountains.
Napaeae: Wood nymphs.
Narcissus: Beautiful youth loved by Echo; in punishment for not returning her love, he was made to fall in love with his image reflected in pool; pined away and became flower.
Nemesis: Goddess of retribution.
Neoptolemus: Son of Achilles; slew Priam; also known as Pyrrhus.
Neptune:See Poseidon.
Nereids: Sea nymphs; attendants on Poseidon.
Nestor: King of Pylos; noted for wise counsel in expedition against Troy.
Nike: Goddess of victory.
Niobe: Daughter of Tantalus; wife of Amphion; her children slain by Apollo and Artemis; changed to stone but continued to weep her loss.
Nona: One of several Fates.
Notus: One of several Winds.
Nox:See Nyx.
Nymphs: Beautiful maidens; minor deities of nature.
Nyx (Nox): Goddess of night.
Oceanids: Ocean nymphs; daughters of Oceanus.
Oceanus: Eldest of Titans; god of waters.
Odysseus (Ulysses): King of Ithaca; husband of Penelope; wandered ten years after fall of Troy before arriving home.
Oedipus: King of Thebes; son of Laius and Jocasta; unwittingly murdered Laius and married Jocasta; tore his eyes out when relationship was discovered.
Oenone: Nymph of Mount Ida; wife of Paris, who abandoned her; refused to cure him when he was poisoned by arrow of Philoctetes at Troy.
Ops:See Rhea.
Oreads: Mountain nymphs.
Orestes: Son of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra; brother of Electra; slew Clytemnestra and Aegisthus; pursued by Furies until his purification by Apollo.
Orion: Hunter; slain by Artemis and made heavenly constellation.
Orpheus: Famed musician; son of Apollo and Muse Calliope; husband of Eurydice.
Pales: Roman goddess of shepherds and herdsmen.
Palinurus: Aeneas' pilot; fell overboard in his sleep and was drowned.
Pan (Faunus): God of woods and fields; part goat; son of Hermes.
Pandora: Opener of box containing human ills; mortal wife of Epimetheus.
Parcae: One of several Fates.
Paris: Son of Priam; gave apple of discord to Aphrodite, for which she enabled him to carry off Helen; slew Achilles at Troy; slain by Philoctetes.
Patroclus: Great friend of Achilles; wore Achilles' armor and was slain by Hector.
Pegasus: Winged horse that sprang from Medusa's body at her death; ridden by Bellerophon when he slew Chimera.
Pelias: King of Ioclus; seized throne from his brother Aeson; sent Jason for Golden Fleece; slain unwittingly by his daughters at instigation of Medea.
Pelops: Son of Tantalus; his father cooked and served him to gods; restored to life; Peloponnesus named for him.
Penates: Roman household gods.
Penelope: Wife of Odysseus; waited faithfully for him for many years while putting off numerous suitors.
Pephredo: One of several Graeae.
Periphetes: Giant; son of Hephaestus; slain by Theseus.
Persephone (Proserpine): Queen of infernal regions; daughter of Zeus and Demeter; wife of Pluto.
Perseus: Son of Zeus and Danaë; slew Medusa; rescued Andromeda from monster and married her.
Phaedra: Daughter of Minos; wife of Theseus; caused the death of her stepson, Hippolytus.
Phaethon: Son of Helios; drove his father's sun chariot and was struck down by Zeus before he set world on fire.
Philoctetes: Greek warrior who possessed Hercules' bow and arrows; slew Paris at Troy with poisoned arrow.
Phineus: Betrothed of Andromeda; tried to slay Perseus but turned to stone by Medusa's head.
Phlegethon: One of several Rivers of Underworld.
Phosphor: Morning star.
Phrixos: Brother of Helle; carried by ram of Golden Fleece to Colchis.
Pirithous: Son of Ixion; friend of Theseus; tried to carry off Persephone from Hades; bound to enchanted rock by Pluto.
Pleiades: Alcyone, Celaeno, Electra, Maia, Merope, Sterope or Asterope, Taygeta; seven daughters of Atlas; transformed into heavenly constellation, of which six stars are visible (Merope is said to have hidden in shame for loving a mortal).
Pluto (Dis): God of Hades; brother of Zeus.
Plutus: God of wealth.
Pollux: One of Dioscuri.
Polyhymnia:See Polymnia.
Polymnia (Polyhymnia): One of several Muses.
Polynices: Son of Oedipus; he and his brother Eteocles killed each other; burial rite, forbidden by Creon, performed by his sister Antigone.
Polyphemus: Cyclops; devoured six of Odysseus's men; blinded by Odysseus.
Polyxena: Daughter of Priam; betrothed to Achilles, whom Paris slew at their betrothal; sacrificed to shade of Achilles.
Pomona: Roman goddess of fruits.
Pontus: Sea god; son of Gaea.
Poseidon (Neptune): God of sea; brother of Zeus.
Priam: King of Troy; husband of Hecuba; ransomed Hector's body from Achilles; slain by Neoptolemus.
Priapus: God of regeneration.
Procris: Wife of Cephalus, who accidentally slew her.
Procrustes: Giant; stretched or cut off legs of victims to make them fit iron bed; slain by Theseus.
Proetus: Husband of Anteia; sent Bellerophon to Iobates to be put to death.
Prometheus: Titan; stole fire from heaven for man. Zeus punished him by chaining him to rock in Caucasus where vultures devoured his liver daily.
Proserpine:See Persephone.
Proteus: Sea god; assumed various shapes when called on to prophesy.
Psyche: Beloved of Eros; punished by jealous Aphrodite; made immortal and united with Eros.
Pygmalion: King of Cyprus; carved ivory statue of maiden which Aphrodite gave life as Galatea.
Pyramus: Babylonian youth; made love to Thisbe through hole in wall; thinking Thisbe slain by lion, killed himself.
Python: Serpent born from slime left by Deluge; slain by Apollo.
Quirinus: Roman war god.
Remus: Brother of Romulus; slain by him.
Rhadamanthus: One of three judges of dead in Hades; son of Zeus and Europa.
Rhea (Ops): Daughter of Uranus and Gaea; wife of Cronus; mother of Zeus; identified with Cybele.
Rivers of Underworld: Acheron (woe), Cocytus (wailing), Lethe (forgetfulness), Phlegethon (fire), Styx (across which souls of dead were ferried by Charon).
Romulus: Founder of Rome; he and Remus suckled in infancy by she-wolf; slew Remus; deified by Romans.
Sarpedon: King of Lycia; son of Zeus and Europa; slain by Patroclus at Troy.
Saturn:See Cronus.
Satyrs: Hoofed demigods of woods and fields; companions of Dionysus.
Sciron: Robber; forced strangers to wash his feet, then hurled them into sea where tortoise devoured them; slain by Theseus.
Scylla: Female monster inhabiting rock opposite Charybdis; menaced passing sailors.
Selene: Goddess of moon.
Semele: Daughter of Cadmus; mother by Zeus of Dionysus; demanded Zeus appear before her in all his splendor and was destroyed by his lightning bolts.
Sibyis: Various prophetesses; most famous, Cumaean sibyl, accompanied Aeneas into Hades.
Sileni: Minor woodland deities similar to satyrs (singular: silenus). Sometimes Silenus refers to eldest of satyrs, son of Hermes or of Pan.
Silvanus: Roman god of woods and fields.
Sinis: Giant; bent pines, with which he hurled victims against side of mountain; slain by Theseus.
Sirens: Minor deities who lured sailors to destruction with their singing.
Sisyphus: King of Corinth; condemned in Tartarus to roll huge stone to top of hill; it always rolled back down again.
Sol:See Helios.
Somnus:See Hypnos.
Sphinx: Monster of Thebes; killed those who could not answer her riddle; slain by Oedipus. Name also refers to other monsters having body of lion, wings, and head and bust of woman.
Sterope (Asterope): One of several Pleiades.
Stheno: One of several Gorgons.
Styx: One of several Rivers of Underworld. The souls of the dead were ferried across the Styx by Charon.
Symplegades: Clashing rocks at entrance to Black Sea; Argo passed through, causing them to become forever fixed.
Syrinx: Nymph pursued by Pan; changed to reeds, from which he made his pipes.
Tantalus: Cruel king; father of Pelops and Niobe; condemned in Tartarus to stand chin-deep in lake surrounded by fruit branches; as he tried to eat or drink, water or fruit always receded.
Tartarus: Underworld below Hades; often refers to Hades.
Taygeta: One of several Pleiades.
Telemachus: Son of Odysseus; made unsuccessful journey to find his father.
Tellus: Roman goddess of earth.
Terminus: Roman god of boundaries and landmarks.
Terpsichore: One of several Muses.
Terra: Roman earth goddess.
Thalia: One of several Graces. Also one of several Muses.
Thanatos (Mors): God of death.
Themis: Titan goddess of laws of physical phenomena; daughter of Uranus; mother of Prometheus.
Theseus: Son of Aegeus; slew Minotaur; married and deserted Ariadne; later married Phaedra.
Thisbe: Beloved of Pyramus; killed herself at his death.
Thyestes: Brother of Atreus; Atreus killed three of his sons and served them to him at banquet.
Tiresias: Blind soothsayer of Thebes.
Tisiphone: One of several Furies.
Titans: Early gods from which Olympian gods were derived; children of Uranus and Gaea.
Tithonus: Mortal loved by Eos; changed into grasshopper.
Triton: Demigod of sea; son of Poseidon.
Turnus: King of Rutuli in Italy; betrothed to Lavinia; slain by Aeneas.
Ulysses:See Odysseus.
Urania: One of several Muses.
Uranus: Personification of Heaven; husband of Gaea; father of Titans; dethroned by his son Cronus.
Venus:See Aphrodite.
Vertumnus: Roman god of fruits and vegetables; husband of Pomona.
Vesta:See Hestia.
Vulcan:See Hephaestus.
Winds: Aeolus (keeper of winds), Boreas (Aquilo) (north wind), Eurus (east wind), Notus (Auster) (south wind), Zephyrus (Favonius) (west wind).
Zephyrus: One of several Winds.
Zeus (Jupiter): Chief of Olympian gods; son of Cronus and Rhea; husband of Hera.
