Greek Mythology Names

The following is a list of names in Greek mythology. Included are the names of gods, goddesses, heroes and other figures, and their past and present meanings where available.

English Name	Greek Name	Meaning
Agamemnon	Άγαμέμνων	“very resolute”
The Amazons	Άμαζόνες	Unclear. It may come from a Persian word meaning “warrirors”, though it has also been proposed to mean “manless”.
Anteros	Αντέρως	“love returned”, meaning love that is requited rather than rejected
Aphrodite	Άφροδίτη	The name has come to mean “risen from the foam” after aphros for “foam”, but this is a definition that comes after the name. It originally seems to mean “she who appears at dusk”, a reference to the evening star Venus and Aphrodite’s mesopotamian origins.
Apollo	Άπόλλων	According to the Greek philosopher Plato, the name comes from the Greek words for “redeem”, “purification” and “simple”. It may also have originally meant “assembly”. Eventually, Greek language associated the name with the verb “to destroy”.
Ares	Άρης	“curse”
Artemis	Άρτεμις	The name possibly originated with an Indo-European word for “bear”, but has come to mean “safe” in Greek.
Athena	Άθηνα	Plato explains that Athenians thought it meant “divine mind”. Athena’s name is shared with the city-state of Athens.
Atlas	Άτλας	Potentially means “enduring”, though it is still debated by scholars. It may also mean “to support”. Both are consistent with the myth of Atlas.
Cerberus	Κέρβερος	The latinized name Cerberus comes from the Greek Kerberos, which likely comes from an Indo-European word meaning “spotted”.
Chaos	Χαος	“gaping void” or “chasm”
Clytemnestra	Κλυταιμηστρα	Originally meant “scheme”, but is traditionally thought to mean “famed for her suitors”.
Demeter	Δημητηρ	“earth mother”
Dike	Δικη	“justice”
Dionysus	Διονυσος	The name seems to mean “the Zeus of Nysa”. Nysa was a mythical place where Dionysus was raised by Nymphs. Notably, the worship of Dionysus seems to come from Asia Minor (now Turkey). The Hittites who inhabited part of this rejion called themselves the Nesi, though it is also thought that the myth of Nysa was invented after the god was named.
Electra	Ήλεκτρα	“bright” or “amber”
Eros	Έρως	“intimate love”
Erinyes	Έρινυης	“the angry ones”. Curiously, they are also known as the Eumenides, or “the gracious ones”.
Gaea	Γαια	“earth”
The Gorgons	Γοργων	The term “gorgon” comes from the Greek gorgos, which means “dreadful”.
Hades	Άιδης	“the unseen”
Helen	Έλενη	The meaning of Helen’s name is debated. It may mean “the moon”, “torch” or “to roll”.
Hellen	Έλλεν	The ancient Greeks called themselves the Hellenes. The name of their mythical founder, Hellen, may have come after they adopted the name. It may have similar origins as the name Helen, but is presumably older.
Hephaestus	Ήφαιστος
Hera	Ήρη	Hera’s name may mean “season”, though it may also mean “heifer”, which would be consistent with her common description as cow-eyed.
Heracles	Ήρηκλης	Litterally, it means “the glory of Hera”. Heracles was the son of Zeus, Hera’s husband, and a mortal woman. The name is somewhat comical, since Hera was often eager to see Heracles fail.
Hermes	Ήρμης	The meaning of the name is uncertain, but the name Hermes has come to mean “messenger”, as Hermes was the messenger god.
Io	Ίώ	Unknown
Kronos	Κρονος	The name was confused with Chronos sometime around the 15th century, and there grew an image of Kronos as “father time”. The name may have originally meant “the horned god”.
Laocoön	λαοκοων
Leto	λητώ	Likely means “woman” or “wife”, though it may mean “the hidden one”
Medusa	Μεδουσα	“guardian”
Minos	Μινωσ	Minos was the mythical king of Crete. It is possible that the word minos originally meant “king”, or was merely adopted as the title of the kings after Minos.
Minotaur	Μινώταυροσ	“the bull of Minos”
Moirae	Μοιραι	The “apportioners” from the Greek “part” or portion. The Moirae, or Fates, controlled the parts of mortal lives.
Nike	Νικη	“victory”
Oedipus	Οιδιπους	Oedipus’ name means “with swollen feet”, a reference to the manner in which he was orphaned as a child. The title of the Sophoclean play Oedipus Tyrannus in Greek, or Oedipus Rex in Latin, means “Oedipus the King”.
Ouranos	Ουρανος	“sky”
Pandora	Πανδωρα	“giver of all”
Persephone	Περσεφονη	The meaning of her name is unclear, but Persephone was also known as Kore meaning “girl”.
Phoenix	Φοινιξ	The origin of the name phoenix is unclear. The phoenix is present in the myths of ancient Greeks, Phonecians, Persians, Egyptians and Chinese.
Poseidon	Ποσειδων	Original meaning uncertain. Poseidon was the god of the sea, earthquakes and horses.
Prometheus	Προμηθευς	“forethought”
Rhea	Ρεα	The name Rhea is closest to the Greek word for “ground”, but Plato identified her name with the word “flow”.
Sirens	Σειρην(ης)	The original meaning is uncertain, but the name Siren has come to be synonymous with “temptress”.
Sisyphus	Σισυφος	The term sisyphean is used to indicate a fruitless, endless labour. Its original meaning is unclear.
Themis	Θημις	“law of nature”
Zeus	Ζευς	Zeus is the eventual Greek version of an earlier Indo-European sky god named Dieus. The name descends from Indo-European words meaning “sky”, though the Greek word for sky was assigned to the god Ouranos. Zeus’s name can also be equated with “god”.