title: Garfunkel and Oates

text: In January 2011, Garfunkel and Oates released their debut studio album "All Over Your Face". That same month, the duo signed a deal with HBO for a pilot of their own eponymous TV series. HBO did not give the pilot a full series, but released it as five separate shorts on HBO Go in August 2012, which included a music video for their song "Pregnant Women are Smug". Garfunkel and Oates released a music video for their song "This Party Took a Turn for the Douche" in February 2011, and a music video for their song "Weed Card" in April 2011. In October 2011, the duo performed the song "David Wain Is Sexy" in David Wain's web series "Wainy Days". The following year, Garfunkel and Oates were featured in Comedy Central's stand-up comedy TV series "The Half Hour". They released their second studio album, "Slippery When Moist", on February 21, 2012, which topped "Billboard"s Comedy Albums chart. The duo released their song "29/31" in May 2012.


title: Garfunkel and Oates

text: In June 2013, Garfunkel and Oates released the song "The Loophole", about Christians retaining their technical virginity by practicing anal sex, alongside a music video, which was filmed at a pornographic film studio. It inspired a TikTok trend in 2021. From August to December 2013, the duo went on tour throughout the United States in partnership with the Monster Energy Outbreak Tour as part of their first comedy tour. In September 2014, IFC approved "Garfunkel and Oates", a TV sitcom directed by Fred Savage and starring the duo as fictionalized versions of themselves navigating the Los Angeles comedy scene. The show aired from August to September 2014. It was cancelled by IFC in March 2015.


title: Garfunkel and Oates

text: In September 2015, Garfunkel and Oates released their third studio album "Secretions". They wrote the song "If I Didn't Have You (Bernadette's Song)" for "The Romance Resonance", an episode of the TV sitcom "The Big Bang Theory", in which it was performed by Simon Helberg. In 2016, Garfunkel and Oates released a Vimeo comedy special titled "Garfunkel and Oates: Trying to Be Special". It depicts Micucci and Lindhome hosting a fundraising concert so they can afford to film their own comedy special, and was hosted by Anthony Jeselnik. The special was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics at the 68th Primetime Emmy Awards for the duo's song "Frozen Lullaby". They also wrote the song "Fuck You in Heaven" for a 2016 episode of the TV series "Another Period", which stars Lindhome.


title: Garfunkel and Oates

text: In February 2019, Garfunkel and Oates appeared on the soundtrack for the 2019 film "" with a "Tween Dream" remix of "The Lego Movie" theme song from five years prior, "Everything Is Awesome". Jeremy Konner, the co-creator of the Netflix children's TV series "Waffles + Mochi", reached out to the duo and asked them to write a song about a tomato while he was pitching the series. Former First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama, the show's star and executive producer, heard the demo and chose them to write the music for the series. The show aired in March 2021 and featured seven songs written by Garfunkel and Oates. In August 2021, the duo wrote a musical number for Lindhome's character Kimberly on an episode of the animated sitcom series "Duncanville", "Off with the Braces". They were featured in the music video for George Harrison's song "My Sweet Lord" in December 2021. The upcoming animated musical film "Steps" will be executive produced by Lindhome and Micucci, who will also write all the lyrics.


title: Garfunkel and Oates

text: Garfunkel and Oates has described their music as folk pop and comedy music. Their music has also been described as comedy folk and folk rock. The work has frequently been compared by critics to that of comedy duo Flight of the Conchords. Micucci has stated that the duo's music is inspired by Broadway musicals, specifically those written by Stephen Sondheim, and 1980s pop music. Lindhome and Micucci have stated that their main comedic inspirations are "I Love Lucy" and "The State", respectively. Lindhome plays guitar and performs as Garfunkel, based on Art Garfunkel of Simon & Garfunkel, while Micucci plays ukulele and keyboards and performs as Oates, based on John Oates of Hall & Oates. Their songwriting process typically involves Lindhome writing lyrics and Micucci writing melodies. Much of their music is fast-paced and contains raunchy, "brutally honest", observational lyrics contrasted with "cutesy", "childlike" melodies and "sweet" vocals.


title: Garfunkel and Oates

text: In 2009, Rebecca Dana of "The Wall Street Journal" wrote that Garfunkel and Oates were "fast becoming the darlings of the Los Angeles comedy scene...with their pretty-girl, dirty-mouth act". Chrissie Dickinson of the "Chicago Tribune" called their music "funny and sharply pointed", adding that it "can also be disarmingly touching". NPR's David Greene called the duo "experts at wrapping ugly, hilarious truths into sweet melodies". "The Daily Dot"s Audra Schroeder called them "a Swiss Army knife, at a time when artists often have to be many things to stay afloat". Neal Justin of the "Star Tribune" compared the tone of their music to "Sesame Street". For "Vulture", Joe Berkowitz wrote that the songs "are filled with sharp observations and hilarious stories that are distinctly feminine and quirky", adding, "The blunt, detail-packed way they rebuke potential suitors or reveal embarrassing personal insights seems brutally honest."


title: Garfunkel and Oates

text: Clara Olshansky and Milan Polk of "Men's Health" named Garfunkel and Oates's song "Present Face" one of the funniest Christmas songs of all time. "Paste"s Hudson Hongo named Micucci and Lindhome two of the best comedians of 2014 for their work as Garfunkel and Oates, while the two were included on "Cosmopolitan"s list of "funny women to watch" in 2014.


title: Mario Party

text: After the development of "Mario Party 8", several of Hudson Soft's key designers left to work for Nintendo subsidiary NDcube, developers of "Wii Party". Starting in 2012 with "Mario Party 9", NDcube has taken over development of the series from Hudson Soft. The first instalment in the series on the Nintendo Switch, "Super Mario Party", was released on October 5, 2018.


title: Mario Party

text: The series received generally favorable reception in the beginning, but as the series has progressed, the reception has become more mixed. The series holds the record for the longest-running minigame series. As of December 2014, Nintendo reported cumulative worldwide sales of 39.6 million game copies in the "Mario Party" franchise.


title: Mario Party

text: Over the course of the "Mario Party" series, gameplay has changed to suit the technology of the hardware. There are several game modes available in each of the games, each of which provides its own rules and challenges.


title: Mario Party

text: Every game in the main series has a standard Party Mode in which up to four players play through a board, trying to collect as many stars as possible. In every turn, each player rolls a die (Dice Block) and progresses on the board, which usually has branching paths. Coins are primarily earned by performing well in a minigame played at the end of each turn. On most boards, players earn stars by reaching a star space and purchasing a star for a certain amount of coins. The star space appears randomly on one of several pre-determined locations and moves every time a star is purchased, usually occupying a blue space.


title: Mario Party

text: Every "Mario Party" game contains at least 50 to 100 minigames with a few different types. Four-player games are a free-for-all in which players compete individually. In 2-vs-2 and 1-vs-3 minigames, players compete as two groups, cooperating to win, even though they are still competing individually in the main game. Some minigames in "Mario Party" are 4-player co-op, even though it doesn't say it. In most situations, winners earn ten coins each.


title: Mario Party

text: Battle minigames first appeared in "Mario Party 2". These games are like the four-player games, but instead of winners earning ten coins each, each player contributes a randomly selected number of coins (or all coins if the player falls short of the pot amount). The winner of the minigame receives approximately 70% of the pot, the second-place winner receives the other 30%, and a random player occasionally gets coins left over from rounding.


title: Mario Party

text: Duel minigames debuted in "Mario Party 2", and were omitted in "Mario Party 4" (although the story minigames are all duels) but return again in "Mario Party 5". Duel games pit two players against each other. In Party Mode, one player initiates the duel, wagering coins or even a star against another player. The winner of the duel receives all coins or stars wagered. Starting with "Mario Party 7", the player no longer chooses the wager in a duel, rather, the duel takes place and the prize to the winner, if any, is randomly determined.


title: Mario Party

text: Bowser minigames are introduced in "Mario Party 4" in which players try to avoid being burned by Bowser's fire breath if they lose. When this happens, players must give up coins, stars, or items. In "Mario Party 7", a single-player version of the games were introduced and only one person can play.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party 9" introduced a new set of Bowser Jr.-related minigames. In these minigames, Bowser Jr. challenges two players to compete in a minigame to battle him. If they successfully defeat him, both players will receive five Mini Stars. If not, then Bowser Jr. will take five from each player.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party 9" also introduced a car mechanic. In "Mario Party 9" and "Mario Party 10", every player navigates the board in a car rather than move independently of one another. "Mario Party 9" has a lesser focus on strategy, and its minigames do not impact the board game in ways that the previous "Mario Party" games did. Critics heavily censured the car mechanic; "Destructoid" noted, "An over-reliance on random chance over strategy can quickly derail the experience when things go awry at the worst possible time ..." The car mechanic was kept in "Mario Party 10", although "Super Mario Party" finally lets players move individually on the board again.


title: Mario Party

text: In most "Mario Party" games, at the end of a board game, bonus stars can be awarded to players. Three specific stars are awarded in the first six games. All later games have six possible bonus stars, but only three of those stars are awarded per game. These stars add to the player's overall total. If there’s a tie in coins and stars, then a Dice Block tiebreaker will determine the game's final ranking.


title: Mario Party

text: In addition to Party Mode, every "Mario Party" has a minigame mode in which minigames are played without the board game. Minigame modes vary from game to game, but later games have many different variations. In one such example from "Mario Party 5", each player tries to fill a board with as many spaces as possible in his or her colour by winning minigames in Mini-Game Wars. In "Mario Party 6" and onward, there is one game in Minigame mode intended for single-player.


title: Mario Party

text: The following characters appear in all twelve console "Mario Party" games and, except where noted, all five handheld instalments:


title: Mario Party

text: The first four games also add Donkey Kong to this roster. In "Mario Party 5", he is relegated to the Super Duel Mode, and he was omitted from subsequent games as a playable character until "Mario Party 10".


title: Mario Party

text: The default sorting is by first appearance, then by number of appearances. For alphabetical order, click on "Character".


title: Mario Party

text: These characters were included or excluded in portable console releases, starting with "Mario Party DS".


title: Mario Party

text: Mario Party is the first in the series. It was released in 1998 and 1999 for the Nintendo 64. Its roster of playable characters includes Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Donkey Kong (referred to as DK in-game), Yoshi, and Wario. It features 50 minigames, ten of which are single-player-only. "Mario Party"s standard game mode, Party Mode, lets up to four players play on a board interspersed with minigames. The game features eight different boards with varying difficulties. It is hosted by Toad, who guides the characters on their journeys throughout each board.


title: Mario Party

text: In addition to the standard Party Mode, the game also features a single-player mode called Mini-Game Island, where the player's goal is to navigate an island and beat all 50 minigames as supplied. The player starts with four lives and loses a life every time they fail at a minigame. Winning a minigame gives the player coins, and collecting 100 coins grants the player one additional life. "Mario Party" also features Rumble Pak support, which lets players know when their turn has started.


title: Mario Party

text: Upon completing Mini-Game Island, a Bumper Ball Maze is awarded, a single-player minigame playable in the Mini-Game House. The player can unlock two additional Bumper Ball Mazes by completing all 50 minigames in Mini-Game Island and, respectively, setting new time records in the first two Bumper Ball Mazes.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party" received praise for its unique party and social elements; however, "IGN" criticized the slow pacing of the game and the lack of enjoyment when played alone. "GameSpot" said, "The games that are enjoyable to play in multi-player are nowhere near as good in the single player mode. Really, it's that multi-player competitive spark of screaming at and/or cheering for your friends that injects life into these often-simple little games, and without it, they're just simple little games."


title: Mario Party

text: Mario Party 2 is the sequel to "Mario Party" and was released in 1999 and 2000 for the Nintendo 64. While "Mario Party 2" is similar to the original game, it introduced a variety of new gameplay elements, such as collectible items that players can buy from item shops and three new minigame types: "Battle", "Item", and "Duel". Toad returns as the host in "Mario Party 2". The game also has 15 more minigames than the original game, with a total of 65 minigames (or 88 if one counts the different courses in some of the minigames).


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party 2" features the same characters as the original game with no additions; however, each character dresses according to the theme of the board. "Mario Party 2" is the only "Mario Party" game where this occurs. "Mario Party 2" does not reuse any of the original game's boards but does have references to them and reuses some of their gimmicks in the new boards.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party 2" features a mode called Mini-Game Land, where players can buy minigames that the player can play freely from a tree character called Woody.


title: Mario Party

text: "GameSpot" praised "Mario Party 2"s minigames, noting that they were a lot more fun than those of the first game. "IGN" noted that the game is "more of the same" and said that the game might not be worth its price unless the buyer considers themselves a "Mario Party fanatic". "IGN" rated the game a 7.9 out of 10, further noting that the sequel was better than the original but that it did not "offer enough new to warrant a higher score". It recommended the game only to those who did not own the original.


title: Mario Party

text: Mario Party 3 was released in 2000 and 2001 for the Nintendo 64. It features the same cast of playable characters as the previous two games with the addition of Princess Daisy and Waluigi. The most notable difference in this game compared to the previous two games in the series is that each player can hold up to three items instead of only one. It also has 71 minigames, compared to "Mario Party 2"s 65.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party 3"s story revolves around a new character called the Millennium Star, who replaces Toad as the host. Like "Mario Party 2", the game features all new boards, with some boards referencing the boards of the previous game and reusing their gimmicks. "Mario Party 3" is also the first game in the series to feature a single-player story campaign.


title: Mario Party

text: The game's story mode features "battle royal" boards and "duel" boards, where players fight one another for items called "Star Stamps".


title: Mario Party

text: Like "Mario Party 2", "IGN" criticized "Mario Party 3" for not having enough new content. It also criticized the game's new story mode, noting that the player was forced to watch computer-controlled opponents for too long and too often, even while they were playing minigames on their own. It also noted that moving around the board in this mode quickly became tedious and boring. The review author further asserted, "I think it'd be better be classified as a tutorial mode." "GameSpot" noted, "While pure innovation may not be king in the Mario Party world, Hudson's dedication to solid, addictive puzzle gaming that makes for a wholly enjoyable multiplayer experience is apparent."


title: Mario Party

text: "HonestGamers" criticized the game's boards, noting, "They're just not much fun." It further explained, "Some of them are, to be fair." It also criticized the game's options and menus, stating that it is difficult to even begin a new game. Additionally, it censured the game's "down-to-the-wire games", stating, "it's almost impossible to keep stars you win unless you're guarding them very carefully." It further explained that mostly, a player's threat is not their human opponents but rather the computer-controlled players, describing how computer-controlled opponents will quickly steal the player's stars after they get them.


title: Mario Party

text: Mario Party 4 is the first game in the series to appear on a console other than the Nintendo 64. "Mario Party 4" was released for the GameCube in 2002. "Mario Party 4" features the same roster of playable characters as "Mario Party 3" and does not feature any new playable characters. It does, however, feature a new team battle system that allows players to team up in pairs in Party Mode, the standard game mode of the series. This game was the last game to feature Donkey Kong as a playable character up until "Mario Party 10" for the Wii U. Instead of the Millennium Star, "Mario Party 4" features multiple hosts, including Toad and a Koopa Troopa. The game also featured 60 new minigames.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party 4" is the first "Mario Party" game to include side-collectibles, which are in the form of presents. It also introduces the ability for players to create their own custom minigame packs. Elements introduced in the previous game also return, such as the ability for players to team up in Party Mode and the ability to hold up to three items at a time.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party 4" is also the first game in the series to feature boards fully rendered in 3D, although the navigational board space layout remained 2D until "Mario Party 5".


title: Mario Party

text: As usual, "GameSpot" praised the minigames of "Mario Party 4". It called the game "arguably the most accomplished entry in the series yet", while further noting, "While more accomplished gamers may find some of the minigames too simplistic, this accessibility ensures that Mario's party is one that just about anyone can enjoy." It also mentioned the improved graphics of the game while further noting that the character models of the game were more simplified compared to their counterparts in "Super Smash Bros. Melee", released about a year before "Mario Party 4". "Game Revolution" also noted the game's improved visuals while explaining that they were not representative of what the GameCube can achieve and criticized the game's textures, noting that they were not greatly detailed. "Game Revolution" did, however, praise its "happy" music but criticized the minigames, saying, "none really stand out". "IGN", however, praised the improved visuals of the game and noted, ""Mario Party 4" is exactly how you would envision it on GameCube: all-new mini-games and better visuals". "IGN" also called the game "an absolute must-rent if you have a few friends over for the weekend" and "definitely an 'everybody' title".


title: Mario Party

text: Mario Party 5 was released in 2003 for the GameCube. It features the same playable character roster as the previous two instalments with the exclusion of Donkey Kong and addition of Toad, Boo, and Koopa Kid. Rather than "Mario Party 4"s large number of hosts, "Mario Party 5" features the Star Spirits, known as the Star Guards in this game, who first appeared in the 2000 "Paper Mario" for the Nintendo 64. The game also features 78 new minigames.


title: Mario Party

text: One of the most major changes that "Mario Party 5" made to the series was replacing collectible items with "capsules" (called "orbs" in later games), which players receive from a capsule machine, a talking robot vending machine that gives the player passing it a random capsule at no charge of coins, on the board. In addition to giving the player who uses it an advantage over the other players, capsules can also allow the player to set up traps for other players by throwing them at a space in front of them. These traps include forcing the player who lands on the capsule space to only be able to roll numbers from one to five on the Dice Block or forcing them to move ten spaces forward on the board.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party 5" also introduces a new mode, Super Duel Mode. This mode is a one-versus-one battle mode where two players face off against each other using custom-assembled vehicles (called "machines" in-game). In this mode, players buy machine parts using points—awarded by playing minigames in either Party Mode or Minigame Mode—and build battle machines to use in different tournaments. There are a total of 44 different parts that can be used to customize a vehicle. To unlock all the parts, the player must play all the tournaments and beat certain opponents.


title: Mario Party

text: "IGN" praised the multiplayer elements of the game, as usual, but criticized its "spotty" single-player mode. It called it "the perfect drinking game for college dorms ... and at the same time a great game for kids to enjoy with their siblings." It called "Mario Party 5" "likely as good as mini-game party games get."


title: Mario Party

text: "GameSpot" criticized how the game's graphics had not been improved from the previous game in the series and said, "the boards are looking a little bland, with some inconsistent texture quality". It further noted, "The minigames, while not terribly visually enticing, tend to do their jobs well enough, without slowdown or glaring visual faults." It also criticized the voice work for, "while generally fitting the cheery tone of the game", being "largely recycled from "Mario Party 4"." It also criticized its music that it noted was "almost painfully cheery tunes that are basically riffs from a few classic ["Super"] "Mario Bros." themes." "GameSpot" said that it was "hard to recommend" the game to owners of the previous game in the series but recommended it to casual fans who had not already played a "Mario Party" game.


title: Mario Party

text: "Eurogamer" called the game a "mixed bag", criticizing its music, slow pace, and lack of originality. It noted that the game "can be a laugh" if "played with the right group" but also noted, "there are far better things to do with your time, your GameCube, and such marvelously entertaining friends", saying, "Western gamers are quite right to ignore this." "Gaming Trend" praised the replay value of the game but criticized the repetitive nature of the game.


title: Mario Party

text: Mario Party 6 was released in 2004 and 2005 for the GameCube. It is the first game in the series to make use of the GameCube's microphone peripheral that was packaged with the game. It features the same cast of playable characters as the previous game with the addition of Toadette, although she has to be unlocked by buying her for thirty stars in the Star Bank, a place in the game where one player can trade stars for prizes and other valuables, including new difficulty levels and rare minigames. "Mario Party 6" features two new characters as its hosts: Brighton and Twila, who depict the sun and the moon, respectively. It also featured 82 new minigames. This marked the last appearance of the "autoplay" function where the game plays itself in Party Mode.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party 6" is famous for its introduction of a day–night cycle system implemented for boards and minigames. This is a concept that had previously only been seen in Horror Land, a board in "Mario Party 2". "Mario Party 6" is the first and only game in the series to feature a day–night cycle system for all boards and minigames.


title: Mario Party

text: "IGN" noted that the graphics, sound, and minigames of the game are "just good enough", further explaining, "But when put together, "Mario Party 6" still manages to generate that glee of unexpectedly trouncing your opponent because you're the only one who knew that you used more capsules and thus deserve another star." "GameSpot" noted, "The fundamental formula isn't so different, but it's different enough that even if you've played all five previous "Mario Party" games, there's still something new for you." It further criticized the game's graphics, comparing it to "Mario Power Tennis", which was released a month before "Mario Party 6". It further criticized the board designs, noting, "While the board designs are new, they're no more inventive in design than what we've seen before, and they certainly don't look any better." It further criticized the game and its developer, noting, "... we can't shake the feeling that Hudson will continue riding the same graphical technology for as long as it can still sell copies."


title: Mario Party

text: Mario Party 7 was released in 2005 and 2006 for the GameCube. It was the series' last instalment on the GameCube. The microphone integration returns from the previous game, and the game introduces a new mode that allows up to 8 players to play together. It features the same roster of playable characters with the exclusion of Koopa Kid and the addition of Birdo and Dry Bones as unlockable characters. Toadette is now unlocked from the start. Rather than the "Mario Party 6"s Brighton and Twila, Toadsworth, who first appeared in the 2002 GameCube game "Super Mario Sunshine", is the host of "Mario Party 7". The game also features 88 new minigames.


title: Mario Party

text: Former "IGN" author Matt Casamassina wrote in a review for "Mario Party 7", ""Mario Party 7" is still entertaining, but I'd be a liar if I wrote that I'm not growing bored with new iterations of the same old formula." He further noted, "To its credit, the title delivers some fun new boards and mini-games, and the multiplayer experience is as robust and enjoyable as ever." He then went on to criticize the game's single-player mode: "But it in contrast dishes out a worthless single-player mode marred by tediously slow computer-controlled character interactions. And the overall presentation of the story, cut-scenes and real-time achievements is only passable." He called the game "a decent sequel to an aging franchise", noting, "the only people that should truly be interested in it are those dedicated to multiplayer parties. Everybody else can either make due with last year's version or avoid the series altogether."


title: Mario Party

text: Former "GameSpot" writer Ryan Davis criticized the game's lack of originality, as he usually does when reviewing "Mario Party" games, but he commended the game's new eight-player multiplayer mode, noting, "The addition of eight-player minigames is really the only new feature worth considering buying the game for, as the rest of the changes are token gestures. So it's otherwise the same old "Mario Party" all over again." He further declared, "this compulsive level of sameness is counterbalanced by the fact that (besides the "Mario Party" series) there are not a lot of other games like this on the GameCube these days—or anywhere else, for that matter."


title: Mario Party

text: In its review of the game, "Nintendo World Report" praised its support for up to eight players and large number of minigames but censured its relatively small roster of playable characters (16), poor microphone implementation, and the long waiting times when playing with computer-controlled opponents.


title: Mario Party

text: Mario Party 8 was the first "Mario Party" game for the Wii, released in 2007 and 2008. It was also the last home-console game in the series to be developed by Hudson Soft, before NDcube took over the games' development starting from the next game in the series. The game features 73 new minigames, most of which utilize the motion control capabilities of the Wii Remote.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party 8" features all the characters from the last game with the addition of Blooper and Hammer Bro. Players can also play as their Mii character in certain modes. The game features new items called "candies", which replace "capsules", or "orbs", from the last three games in the series. These items are found throughout the boards and can be collected by players to aid themselves or hinder the progress of opponents. Positive effects range from getting to roll two dice blocks instead of one to getting to move to another player's board space. Other candies may let players steal stars from opponents or change the position of other player characters on the board.


title: Mario Party

text: The game's story revolves around a ringmaster, named MC Ballyhoo, and his talking hat, Big Top. After inviting Mario and his friends to a carnival, called the Star Carnival, Ballyhoo promises that whoever wins is crowned the Superstar and receives a year's supply of candy. This begins the board games.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party 8" takes use of the Wii Remote's motion control features, allowing the player to wave it, point and shoot, and more during minigames. In addition to the standard Party Mode, the game also features a single-player mode called Star Battle Arena, where the player can compete with a computer-controlled character on boards and in minigames.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party 8" sold nearly nine million copies, making it the eleventh best-selling Wii game. Despite the impressive sales numbers, "IGN" and "GameSpot" criticized the game's lack of originality. "IGN" lambasted the game, citing the game's few changes from the last games in the series, slow pace, lacklustre single-player mode, and "loose attention to detail". It finally noted, "In spite of our issues with the game, people who loved Mario Party 7 will probably enjoy Mario Party 8, too, but we've chosen not to reward Nintendo with an undeserved high score for a copy/paste sequel."


title: Mario Party

text: Similarly, "GameSpot" said that the game's developer, Hudson Soft, had gotten "a little too comfortable" with "Mario Party" being "the only persistent minigame [series] for years". It further noted, "The fact that there are more interesting minigame collections out there now, like "Rayman Raving Rabbids", puts that laziness in stark relief and makes it more difficult to tolerate. If you've got the patience to dig past the skill-free board game portions of "Mario Party 8", there are some genuinely inventive minigames to be played. The point, though, is that you shouldn't have to dig at all." "GameSpot" also criticized the game's "lacklustre presentation", noting its "garish color palette" and "stomping, blaring marching-band soundtrack". It explained that the visual fidelity of the game had not been improved in the move from the GameCube and further noted, "in some ways, it actually looks worse now." It criticized the game's aliasing and how the game would not fill a widescreen display during gameplay, instead using black borders, further describing, "It's awkward, and it's borderline embarrassing that a Nintendo-published Wii game doesn't have full widescreen support."


title: Mario Party

text: "Eurogamer" noted the game's many "obvious missed opportunities", criticizing the limitation of the Mii character and how it could only be played in a few game modes. Like "GameSpot", "Eurogamer" criticized the lack of widescreen support, lack of originality, and poor motion controls. Additionally, it criticized the game's single-player mode, calling it "so utterly wretched it scarcely warrants discussion", further noting, "To add insult to injury, you have to go through it twice to unlock the mere two extra characters." Finally, "Eurogamer" said, "Fun could be had here, but even with the most forgiving group of friends, it's going to be short-lived."


title: Mario Party

text: Mario Party 9 was released in 2012 and 2013 for the Wii. It was the first game in the series to be developed by NDcube instead of Hudson Soft, who developed all the previous "Mario Party" games. The game's playable character roster consists of the same characters as in the previous game with the exclusion of Toadette, Boo, Dry Bones, Blooper, and Hammer Bro; and the addition of Koopa Troopa, Shy Guy, and Magikoopa, named "Kamek" in the PAL version of the game. The game features 82 new minigames.


title: Mario Party

text: Replacing MC Ballyhoo and Big Top as the hosts of the game is Yellow Toad, who hosts the board games, and Blue Toad, who hosts the minigames. A green Toad also appears near the end of board games to initiate an event similar to the "Last Five Turns Event" from past "Mario Party" games.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party 9" also introduces the Mini Stars and Mini Ztars. Mini Stars are small white stars that the characters need to obtain in order to advance on each board. Mini Ztars are the counterpart to Mini Stars, being small, dark, and purple stars that cause a player to lose as many Mini Stars as the amount of Mini Ztars they collected.


title: Mario Party

text: The most notable feature that "Mario Party 9" introduced to the series was the car mechanic. In "Mario Party 9" and "Mario Party 10", every player navigates the board in a car rather than move independently of one another. "Mario Party 9" has a lesser focus on strategy, and its minigames do not impact the board game in ways that the previous "Mario Party" games did. Critics heavily censured the car mechanic; "Destructoid" noted, "An over-reliance on random chance over strategy can quickly derail the experience when things go awry at the worst possible time ..."


title: Mario Party

text: In an interview with "Nintendo Life", Shuichiro Nishiya, a game redirector from NDcube, said in relation to the car mechanic, "In past instalments, everyone would move separately through the board. As a result, the actions of the other players often didn't affect you. You could just look at the TV screen when it was your turn and during the minigames." He further noted, "In "Mario Party 10", though, players move together in a car, so each player's action will affect the others, meaning you'll need to keep an eye on the TV screen."


title: Mario Party

text: In spite of the infamous car mechanic, "IGN" called "Mario Party 9" "the best Mario Party since the series reached its heights in the early GameCube days", further noting, "But throughout its many generations, Mario Party has carried a fatal flaw ...: In spite of your proficiency at mini-games, or penchant for board game strategy, [the "Mario Party" series] is dictated by the dice roll. Randomness, which "Mario Party 9" flaunts with a particularly annoying brand of euphoric abandon, ultimately ruins what could be a very good game."


title: Mario Party

text: "GameSpot" once again criticized the lack of originality. It also criticized one "problematic" minigame where the motion controls were "fussy" and "needlessly [complicated]". It complimented the game's minigames, noting that they make the game "entertaining for a few hours, and there's enough content to make it worth coming back for more"; however, it noted that it is "highly preferable to play with friends" due to the game's focus on luck rather than strategy. "GameSpot" also criticized the game's single-player story campaign, describing it as "[not] very engaging". It noted that each game lasts for too long and that it was unfortunate that the player is forced to beat the single-player mode to unlock the game's sixth board and two of the twelve playable characters. It finally called the game "a decent package with a lot of content, even if the Story mode is something you'll wish you could avoid." It then went on to say, "It's colorful, good looking, and fun with others, but after so many games, the appeal just isn't going to last for many people. There's no denying that what "Mario Party 9" does, it largely does well; it's just that it's largely been doing it well for nine console games and two handheld games. Once you've spent a few hours with mates, seen all the different boards, and played all the minigames, there's very little incentive to return. Much like that high school reunion, it is fun for a night, but you won't have any hesitation about moving on."


title: Mario Party

text: Mario Party 10 was released in 2015 for the Wii U. It was the first and only "Mario Party" game for the system, and most of the playable characters from the previous game return, although Birdo, Koopa Troopa, Shy Guy, and Magikoopa are absent. The game does, however, introduce Rosalina, Spike, and Bowser (playable in the Bowser Party mode) as playable characters for the first time in the series and additionally re-introduces Donkey Kong, who had not been in a "Mario Party" game since "Mario Party 4", and Toadette. The game also introduced two new modes: Bowser Mode and amiibo Party. It also re-introduces the car mechanic from the previous game, where players navigate the board together in a car rather than move individually as seen in older games in the series.


title: Mario Party

text: In "Mario Party 10", the game's standard board game mode is called "Mario Party". In this mode, players compete to get the most Mini Stars, as in previous games. In the game's new Bowser Party mode, one player controls Bowser using the primary controller for the Wii U, the Wii U GamePad, and up to four other players control Mario and his friends using Wii Remotes. In this mode, Mini Stars are replaced by hearts, which serve as the players' health points. The goal of the player playing as Bowser is to deplete the health of the players in Team Mario, while the goal of the other players is to reach the Super Star at the end of the board with at least one player with at least one heart remaining. If Bowser catches up to Team Mario, every player has to play a randomly-selected "Bowser Battle" minigame, where the hearts of players on Team Mario are lost if they are hit by Bowser's attacks. If Team Mario's players lose all their hearts, Bowser wins.


title: Mario Party

text: The game also introduces the amiibo Party mode. In this mode, up to four players can scan the amiibo for a character and play as that character on small boards. Players compete for the most stars, which can be bought with coins. Rather than traditional characters, the players control Amiibo figures of the characters whose Amiibo they scanned. If a player does not own an Amiibo figure, they play as a cardboard cutout as a character instead.


title: Mario Party

text: "GameSpot" and "TrustedReviews" criticized "Mario Party 10" for being too similar to the previous games in the series. "GameSpot" further criticized the game's lack of strategy and cited that the game has "an annoying habit of stealing stars away from whoever is in the lead", explaining that this makes the any effort the player has put into the minigames "largely [moot]." It was also censured for keeping the car mechanic from the previous game. "Den of Geek!" criticized the game's new Bowser Party mode, calling it "basically a sprint to the finish line, with no depth or complexity, and one that is typically over in a handful of uneventful turns." It praised the fun minigames of the standard mode, "Mario Party" but further criticized the game, saying "it never matters whether you actually win or lose in any of the game modes", noting that most of what the game offers is already unlocked from the start. It noted that the game lacks inspiration and stated that despite the fun minigames, "everything else feels incredibly deflated" and "Bowser Party comes across as gimmicky and mundane, other modes are restricted by Amiibo and controller types, and a clear 'everyone's a winner' mentality strips away any sense of challenge that could have been had here."


title: Mario Party

text: "IGN" criticized the new amiibo Party mode, describing, "The integration of amiibo amounts to little more than constantly tapping the figures to a sensor in the corner of the GamePad. You tap to roll, tap to stop random spinners, tap to use items... You tap the GamePad a lot." It also criticized the minigames' infrequency, noting that in the standard game mode, "Mario Party", the players only get to play a minigame if one of them lands on a minigame board space, further noting that these spaces are rare on the boards. It did, however, praise the Bowser Party mode, calling it "Mario Party 10"s "greatest achievement and one of the best uses of the Wii U GamePad yet".


title: Mario Party

text: "Eurogamer" noted the game's "prudent" motion controls but called the Amiibo implementation "decidedly mixed", noting that the boards are "far less dynamic", further explaining, "it's the same board repurposed slightly depending on which compatible figures you own; they look different, but are otherwise functionally similar." However, like "IGN", "Eurogamer" praised the Bowser Party mode and called it the "unlikely champion" of the Wii U's various uses of the GamePad in games. Finally, it said, "This is, at least, in the upper echelons of the series: a little short of the Hudson Soft heyday, maybe, but better than every entry since the fifth, and certainly superior to the anaemic eighth entry and the pointless handheld versions."


title: Mario Party

text: "Super Mario Party" was released in 2018 for the Nintendo Switch. The game features the largest roster of playable characters in any "Mario Party" game, featuring nearly every character from "Mario Party 10" (minus Spike), with the addition of Dry Bones, Goomba, Boo, Koopa Troopa, Hammer Bro, Shy Guy, Bowser Jr., Diddy Kong, Pom Pom, and Monty Mole. Additionally, Bowser, who had only previously been playable in "Mario Party 10"s Bowser Party and amiibo Party modes, is now playable in the standard Party Mode.


title: Mario Party

text: "Super Mario Party"s most notable change is the removal of the car mechanic. In this game, players navigate the board individually like in past "Mario Party" instalments. The game also introduces a new mode called "Toad's Rec Room", where players can pair up two Nintendo Switch units to form a single connected board to play minigames on.


title: Mario Party

text: "Super Mario Party" also introduces online multiplayer for the first time in the series. While the standard board games are restricted to the game's standard Party Mode, players are able to play the game's 80 minigames with other players either locally or online, independent of the board games, in the game's new "Online Mario-thon" mode. In this mode, players compete in five randomly-selected minigames, aiming to get the highest score. It also features leaderboards and a ranking system, as well as rewards that the players can receive for playing the mode.


title: Mario Party

text: Some sources criticized the game's lack of an online board game mode, although others still praised the lack of the infamous car mechanic and the focus on traditional "Mario Party" gameplay. Nearly three years after release, a late patch has made the board game mode available for online play for the first time in the series.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party Advance" was released for the Game Boy Advance in 2005. It was the first "Mario Party" game for a handheld console and was the only "Mario Party" game for the Game Boy Advance. It features four playable characters: Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, and Yoshi. The hosts of the game are Tumble, Toad, Professor Elvin Gadd, and Toadette. Its antagonists are Bowser and three of his children: Blue Koopa Kid, Green Koopa Kid, and Red Koopa Kid.


title: Mario Party

text: Its standard mode is "Shroom City", in which the player takes control of one of the playable characters and travels around the city Shroom City, completing quests and collecting minigames and "Gaddgets" to play in other modes.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party DS" was released in 2007 for the Nintendo DS. It was the first and only "Mario Party" game for the Nintendo DS. It was also the last game in the series overall to be developed by Hudson Soft. It featured 73 minigames, many of which took use of the Nintendo DS's touchscreen, microphone, and unique dual screen capabilities, in addition to traditional-style minigames using the D-pad and buttons. The game features Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Wario, Waluigi, Yoshi, and Toad as playable characters.


title: Mario Party

text: "IGN" noted that it was "honestly very difficult to get excited for yet another Mario Party, even though it's the first time it's been made for the Nintendo DS system." It noted that "Mario Party DS" is "a solid multiplayer mini-game experience with a lot of the flaws of the previous versions." It further explained, "It doesn't do anything truly special than create a bunch of touch screen and microphone-centric minigames (and even then we've seen variations of them in other DS titles), but it at least comes together as a better title than the last console "Mario Party" design." "GameSpot" praised the large number of minigames and their quality, noting, "Typically, a collection like this made for the Nintendo DS will give you 20 or 30 minigames. This one has more than 70. Remarkably, despite that lofty number, there aren't many duds." It criticized the single-player mode but described the multiplayer aspect of the game as "an outright blast".


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party: Island Tour" was the first "Mario Party" game for the Nintendo 3DS, released in 2013 and 2014. It features 81 minigames, many of which utilize the 3DS's touch screen and dual screen capabilities, as well as the system's other unique features. It features Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, Wario, Waluigi, Yoshi, Boo, Toad, and Bowser Jr. as playable characters. It was the first "Mario Party" game to feature Bowser Jr. as a playable character.


title: Mario Party

text: "IGN" criticized "Mario Party: Island Tour" for its "mostly bland" minigames, additionally noting, "a handful are just bad." "If you’ve played a "Mario Party" game before, you’ll recognize that a majority of the games are based around returning ideas", "IGN" said. It cited that some of the game's minigames used the Nintendo 3DS's touchscreen "effectively" but rated the game 5.5 out of 10 for its "mostly boring minigames unfortunate system-jerking motion control."


title: Mario Party

text: "GameSpot" said that many of the minigames do a good job of taking advantage of the 3DS's unique features in their design but noted, "there are still some stinkers in the mix." "Strictly luck-based minigames turn up in the rotation frequently, and they're not any fun," "GameSpot" said. It also cited the game's "sluggish controls that hamper your ability to move well." Finally, it said, "It's not a perfect party by any means, but some good design considerations, better-than-average variety, and always-enjoyable "Mario" thematics put "Mario Party: Island Tour" a few notches above your average video game bash-in-a-box." It rated the game 7 out of 10.


title: Mario Party

text: "Nintendo Life" said that winning minigames is "inconsequential ... in the grand scheme of things". It called the game's visuals "satisfactory, getting the job done without doing anything to wow." It finally noted, "The "Mario Party" series isn't changing much, and when it does, it doesn't seem to be for the better. The pieces of Island Tour that work the best are the ones sticking to the form established early in the series — fun, accessible mini-games that don't over-complicate things. It's the game boards that need better ideas, and the "less is more" approach would suit future instalments better. The focus on luck, swapping places at random, and — specific to this instalment — the short length all conspire to hamper what could easily have been a much more enjoyable experience. There's still a ton of rowdy multiplayer fun to be had, but it's unfortunate that a whole portion of the game is so hit-or-miss."


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party: Star Rush" was the second "Mario Party" game for the Nintendo 3DS. Released in 2016 and 2017, the game was the first "Mario Party" game on a handheld console to be compatible with Amiibo figures. The game features Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, Wario, Waluigi, Yoshi, Toad, Toadette, Rosalina, Donkey Kong, and Diddy Kong as playable characters. Blue Toad, Yellow Toad, Red Toad, and Green Toad are also playable in the "Toad Scramble" mode, the standard game mode of "Star Rush". The Additionally, Bowser, Bowser Jr., and Boo can be played as by tapping their Amiibo figures in the "Mario Shuffle" mode. The only character that is not available in the "Mario Shuffle" mode is Toadette. "Mario Party: Star Rush" has a total of 53 minigames.


title: Mario Party

text: In the game's main mode, Toad Scramble, up to four players start out with a Toad, where their colour corresponds to each player. The goal of the mode is to amass the most stars; players can retrieve stars by placing first in the boss minigames. Players can battle bosses by landing on the space in front of them on the board, and every time a boss minigame is completed, a new boss appears on the board at a different spot. Up to five bosses may appear on a board.


title: Mario Party

text: In the Mario Shuffle mode, two players race across a linear, one-way board to a goal as Amiibo figures. The red team's goal is to reach the very right of the board, while the blue team's goal is to reach the left side. Players roll two dice each, and when a player crosses an opponent's Amiibo figure, the player knocks it back to the start of the board. Players can land on spaces that either make their figure continue moving farther on the board or move backwards. If players do not have an Amiibo figure, a cardboard cut-out of a character is used instead. A total amount of six characters can be used, each split into two teams of three. The first team who makes it across the board to their goal wins the game.


title: Mario Party

text: "Star Rush" also features five other game modes: Coinathlon, Balloon Bash, Rhythm Recital, Challenge Tower, and Boo's Block Party. In Coinathlon, up to four players collect as many coins as they can in a set of three sixty-second coin-designated minigames. In Balloon Bash, up to four players collect coins and stars while rolling the Dice Block on a small board with 10, 20, or 30 turns and minigames. In Rhythm Recital, up to four players cooperate and play classic "Mario" tunes by timing touchscreen taps button presses correctly. In Challenge Tower, a single-player mode, the player climbs a tower with LED spaces on it, trying to hit the right colours and avoid Amp enemies. And finally, in the Boo's Block Party mode, a puzzle game, players spin the sides of numbered blocks to match them up for points. "Star Rush" also features the Character Museum, which lets players view characters and their biographies, similar to the trophy system in the "Super Smash Bros." games.


title: Mario Party

text: "IGN" criticized "Mario Party: Star Rush", criticizing the slow pacing of the gameplay, saying, "but "Mario Party: Star Rush"s modes all start slow and never find ways to pick up the pace." It further criticized the board game modes for "[unfolding] nearly the same way every time." It also mentioned the luck factor of the game, noting "almost everything here hinges on luck, and there are few opportunities for sneaky plays to employ smart strategies to shift its competitive games in your favor. A lot of them boil down to roll the dice and try to make the best of what’s available on the board." However, it praised the improvements to the sluggish gameplay of the previous "Mario Party" games and also praised the "wacky spirit" of the minigames. It did, however, end its review with "After a few trips through "Mario Party: Star Rush"s modes, you'll have seen nearly everything it has to offer."


title: Mario Party

text: "Nintendo Life" noted that "Star Rush"s modes and minigames are "decent", noting, "There are some enjoyable highlights, some decent alternatives and one or two outright duds; overall the positive inclusions outweigh the weak points." It mentioned that there are a limited number of minigames in the standard mode, Toad Scramble, but noted, "they're some of the stronger examples in the game and the heat of the battle is rather addictive." It also noted that Balloon Bash is "the best mode for playing the broadest ariety of minigames." It did, however, explain that the Mario Shuffle mode "feels like an odd misstep" but praised the Boo's Block Party mode. Finally, it explained, "Mario Party: Star Rush may not excel in many ways, but it addresses some complaints from past entries and delivers some harmless entertainment."


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party: The Top 100" was the third "Mario Party" game for the Nintendo 3DS, released in 2017. Unlike traditional "Mario Party" games, "The Top 100" is a compilation of 100 remade minigames originally featured in the previous ten home console games in the series. It features Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, Wario, Waluigi, Yoshi, and Rosalina as playable characters. "The Top 100" has the most minigames out of all games in the "Mario Party" series.


title: Mario Party

text: The main game mode of "The Top 100" is 100 Minigames, where players can play all 100 minigames individually, outside of a board. Its second mode, Minigame Island, is a single-player mode, where Toad is the host. After the player selects their character, they can choose a computer-controlled teammate for two-versus-two minigames. The game's third mode is Minigame Match, which serves as the game's only board game mode. It plays similarly to Balloon Bash from the previous instalment, "Star Rush". It is a multiplayer mode where players travel around a small board and roll a Dice Block that determines their movement on the board. In this mode, players need to pop "Star Balloons" across the board; collecting stars is vital to winning the game. "The Top 100"s next game mode, Championship Battles, is one hosted by Toadette and has players battling other players in random minigames from a "minigame pack", a concept first introduced in "Mario Party 4". Whichever player receives the best of three or five rounds wins the mode. "The Top 100"s final mode, Decathlon, has players play either five or ten minigames against other players. The player earns points depending on how well they played the minigame, rather than whether they won, and the score in the minigame converts to points to the overall score in the mode.


title: Mario Party

text: At the beginning of its review, "Nintendo Life" said, "Just because a game has a great concept, doesn't mean the end product will be the same." It explained that "The Top 100" is "an incredible idea on paper" and cited that it is a "joy" to see the 100 classic minigames return but explained, "the rest of the package nevertheless delivers a lacklustre experience." It called it a "blast" to play the 100 returning minigames but criticized the small amount of content and the low replay value. It noted that the game accomplished remastering 100 classic minigames "with great results" and called the initial time spent playing the game "an awesome walk through nostalgia lane" but criticized the rest of the game as "a rushed project" and noted that it "fails to live up to its full potential." Similarly, "Polygon" explained that "The Top 100" "goes hard on the minigames and light on everything else". It criticized the Minigame Island mode for feeling like "a random, obligatory grind". It noted that "The Top 100" "does a very good thing by giving us tons of minigames to play" but criticized the structure board game aspect of the game.


title: Mario Party

text: On June 15, 2021, Nintendo announced "Mario Party Superstars" for the Nintendo Switch. It is a compilation of 100 classic mini-games and five game boards stretching all the way back to the first "Mario Party" on Nintendo 64, all remade with HD graphics. It includes full online compatibility for playing with both friends and strangers. The game was released on October 29, 2021.


title: Mario Party

text: In addition to the home console games, 6 arcade games were also developed, and released exclusively in Japan. They typically retain the core mechanics of "Mario Party", such as moving around a board and playing minigames, but add arcade specific features such as a coin pusher or claw device.


title: Mario Party

text: "Mario Party-e" is a card game that makes optional use of the Nintendo e-Reader and was released on February 18, 2003. It was the only "Mario Party" game for the Nintendo e-Reader. Many of these cards contain "dot-codes" that, when scanned into the e-Reader, allow players to play minigames similar to those found in the regular "Mario Party" series. The "Mario Party-e" set contains a Play Mat, an instruction book and a pre-constructed deck consisting of sixty-four cards. An extra card was included as a promotion in an issue of GamePro.


title: Mario Party

text: The "Mario Party" sub-series have generally performed well in sales. "Super Mario Party", released in 2018, is the series' best-selling game with 18.35 million units sold, and "Mario Party DS", released in 2007, is the best-selling portable entry.


title: Mario Party

text: In the original 1998 "Mario Party" game for the Nintendo 64, some minigames required players to rotate the controller's analogue stick as fast as they could, including one in which the player is challenged to wind up Fly-Guy at the minigame house. Some players used the palms of their hands, rather than their thumbs, to rotate the analogue stick. As a result, they would often endure blisters. In an act of contrition, Nintendo gave away free gaming gloves to the victims of these blisters. Some wore away the stick because it was not very durable. The analogue stick rotation has no longer been used since "Mario Party 2". The exceptions are the mini-game in "Mario Party 5" in which the player only needs to rotate it once and the mini-game in "Mario Party 3" in which players throw Bowser in a manner similar to "Super Mario 64" and do not need to use the palm of their hand to move the analogue stick. "" resumed using these types of minigames because players can spin the Nintendo 3DS' analogue stick safely. In "Mario Party Superstars", since the game utilizes analog sticks again, a disclaimer is placed on the rules screen for the minigames Tug o' War and Cast Aways warning players to not use their palms to turn the stick to avoid hand injury and stick damage. A similar warning appears for the Nintendo Switch Online version of "Mario Party" when starting the game.


title: Mario Party

text: In July 2007, "Mario Party 8" for Nintendo's Wii home console was withdrawn from stores in the United Kingdom shortly after its release date. This was allegedly caused by Kamek using the word "spastic." Complaints were raised from consumers because the term is used to refer to an intellectually disabled person and is considered highly offensive in the United Kingdom. In August 2007, Nintendo re-released the game, replacing "spastic" with the word "erratic".


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Proto-Indo-European mythology is the body of myths and deities associated with the Proto-Indo-Europeans, the hypothetical speakers of the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European language. Although the mythological motifs are not directly attested – since Proto-Indo-European speakers lived in preliterate societies – scholars of comparative mythology have reconstructed details from inherited similarities found among Indo-European languages, based on the assumption that parts of the Proto-Indo-Europeans' original belief systems survived in the daughter traditions.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The Proto-Indo-European pantheon includes a number of securely reconstructed deities, since they are both cognates – linguistic siblings from a common origin –, and associated with similar attributes and body of myths: such as *"Dyḗws Ph₂tḗr", the daylight-sky god; his consort *"Dʰéǵʰōm", the earth mother; his daughter *"H₂éwsōs", the dawn goddess; his sons the Divine Twins; and "*Seh₂ul", a solar goddess. Some deities, like the weather god *"Perkʷunos" or the herding-god "*Péh₂usōn", are only attested in a limited number of traditions – Western (European) and Graeco-Aryan, respectively – and could therefore represent late additions that did not spread throughout the various Indo-European dialects.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Some myths are also securely dated to Proto-Indo-European times, since they feature both linguistic and thematic evidence of an inherited motif: a story portraying a mythical figure associated with thunder and slaying a multi-headed serpent to release torrents of water that had previously been pent up; a creation myth involving two brothers, one of whom sacrifices the other in order to create the world; and probably the belief that the Otherworld was guarded by a watchdog and could only be reached by crossing a river.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Various schools of thought exist regarding possible interpretations of the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European mythology. The main mythologies used in comparative reconstruction are Indo-Iranian, Baltic, Roman, and Norse, often supported with evidence from the Celtic, Greek, Slavic, Hittite, Armenian, Illyrian, and Albanian traditions as well.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The mythology of the Proto-Indo-Europeans is not directly attested and it is difficult to match their language to archaeological findings related to any specific culture from the Chalcolithic. Nonetheless, scholars of comparative mythology have attempted to reconstruct aspects of Proto-Indo-European mythology based on the existence of linguistic and thematic similarities among the deities, religious practices, and myths of various Indo-European peoples. This method is known as the comparative method. Different schools of thought have approached the subject of Proto-Indo-European mythology from different angles.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The Meteorological or Naturist School holds that Proto-Indo-European myths initially emerged as explanations for natural phenomena, such as the Sky, the Sun, the Moon, and the Dawn. Rituals were therefore centered around the worship of those elemental deities. This interpretation was popular among early scholars, such as Friedrich Max Müller, who saw all myths as fundamentally solar allegories. Although recently revived by some scholars like Jean Haudry and Martin L. West, this school lost most of its scholarly support in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The Ritual School, which first became prominent in the late nineteenth century, holds that Proto-Indo-European myths are best understood as stories invented to explain various rituals and religious practices. Scholars of the Ritual School argue that those rituals should be interpreted as attempts to manipulate the universe in order to obtain its favours. This interpretation reached the height of its popularity during the early twentieth century, and many of its most prominent early proponents, such as James George Frazer and Jane Ellen Harrison, were classical scholars. Bruce Lincoln, a contemporary member of the Ritual School, argues for instance that the Proto-Indo-Europeans believed that every sacrifice was a reenactment of the original sacrifice performed by the founder of the human race on his twin brother.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The Functionalist School, by contrast, holds that myths served as stories reinforcing social behaviours through the meta-narrative justification of a traditional order. Scholars of the Functionalist School were greatly influenced by the trifunctional system proposed by Georges Dumézil, which postulates a tripartite ideology reflected in a threefold division between a clerical class (encompassing both the religious and social functions of the priests and rulers), a warrior class (connected with the concepts of violence and bravery), and a class of farmers or husbandmen (associated with fertility and craftsmanship), on the basis that many historically known groups speaking Indo-European languages show such a division. Dumézil's theory had a major influence on Indo-European studies from the mid-20th century onwards, and some scholars continue to operate under its framework, although it has also been criticized as aprioristic and too inclusive, and thus impossible to be proved or disproved.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The Structuralist School argues that Proto-Indo-European mythology was largely centered around the concept of dualistic opposition. They generally hold that the mental structure of all human beings is designed to set up opposing patterns in order to resolve conflicting elements. This approach tends to focus on cultural universals within the realm of mythology rather than the genetic origins of those myths, such as the fundamental and binary opposition rooted in the nature of marriage proposed by Tamaz V. Gamkrelidze and Vyacheslav Ivanov. It also offers refinements of the trifunctional system by highlighting the oppositional elements present within each function, such as the creative and destructive elements both found within the role of the warrior.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: One of the earliest attested and thus one of the most important of all Indo-European mythologies is Vedic mythology, especially the mythology of the "Rigveda", the oldest of the Vedas. Early scholars of comparative mythology such as Friedrich Max Müller stressed the importance of Vedic mythology to such an extent that they practically equated it with Proto-Indo-European myths. Modern researchers have been much more cautious, recognizing that, although Vedic mythology is still central, other mythologies must also be taken into account.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Another of the most important source mythologies for comparative research is Roman mythology. The Romans possessed a very complex mythological system, parts of which have been preserved through the characteristic Roman tendency to rationalize their myths into historical accounts. Despite its relatively late attestation, Norse mythology is still considered one of the three most important of the Indo-European mythologies for comparative research, due to the vast bulk of surviving Icelandic material.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Baltic mythology has also received a great deal of scholarly attention, as it is linguistically the most conservative and archaic of all surviving branches, but has so far remained frustrating to researchers because the sources are so comparatively late. Nonetheless, Latvian folk songs are seen as a major source of information in the process of reconstructing Proto-Indo-European myth. Despite the popularity of Greek mythology in western culture, Greek mythology is generally seen as having little importance in comparative mythology due to the heavy influence of Pre-Greek and Near Eastern cultures, which overwhelms what little Indo-European material can be extracted from it. Consequently, Greek mythology received minimal scholarly attention until the first decade of the 21st century.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Although Scythians are considered relatively conservative in regards to Proto-Indo-European cultures, retaining a similar lifestyle and culture, their mythology has very rarely been examined in an Indo-European context and infrequently discussed in regards to the nature of the ancestral Indo-European mythology. At least three deities, Tabiti, Papaios and Api, are generally interpreted as having Indo-European origins, while the remaining have seen more disparate interpretations. Influence from Siberian, Turkic and even Near Eastern beliefs, on the other hand, are more widely discussed in literature.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: There was a fundamental opposition between the never-aging gods dwelling above in the skies and the mortal humans living beneath on earth. The earth "*dʰéǵʰōm" was perceived as a vast, flat and circular continent surrounded by waters ("the Ocean"). Although they may sometimes be identified with mythical figures or stories, the stars ("*h₂stḗr") were not bound to any particular cosmic significance and were perceived as ornamental more than anything else. According to Martin L. West, the idea of the world-tree ("axis mundi") is probably a later import from north Asiatic cosmologies: "The Greek myth might be derived from the Near East, and the Indic and Germanic ideas of a pillar from the shamanistic cosmologies of the Finnic and other peoples of central and northern Asia."


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: There is no scholarly consensus as to which of the variants is the most accurate reconstruction of the Proto-Indo-European cosmogonic myth. Bruce Lincoln's reconstruction of the Proto-Indo-European motif known as "Twin and Man" is supported by a number of scholars such as Jaan Puhvel, J. P. Mallory, Douglas Q. Adams, David W. Anthony, and, in part, Martin L. West. Although some thematic parallels can be made with traditions of the Ancient Near East, and even Polynesian or South American legends, Lincoln argues that the linguistic correspondences found in descendant cognates of "*Manu" and "*Yemo" make it very likely that the myth has a Proto-Indo-European origin. According to Edgar C. Polomé, "some elements of the [Scandinavian myth of Ymir] are distinctively Indo-European", but the reconstruction proposed by Lincoln "makes too [many] unprovable assumptions to account for the fundamental changes implied by the Scandinavian version". David A. Leeming also notes that the concept of the Cosmic Egg, symbolizing the primordial state from which the universe arises, is found in many Indo-European creation myths.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Lincoln reconstructs a creation myth involving twin brothers, *' ("Man") and *' ("Twin"), as the progenitors of the world and humankind, and a hero named "*" ("Third") who ensured the continuity of the original sacrifice. Regarding the primordial state that may have preceded the creation process, West notes that the Vedic, Norse and, at least partially, the Greek traditions give evidence of an era when the cosmological elements were absent, with similar formula insisting on their non-existence: "neither non-being was nor being was at that time; there was not the air, nor the heaven beyond it..." ("Rigveda"), "...there was not sand nor sea nor the cool waves; earth was nowhere nor heaven above; Ginnunga Gap there was, but grass nowhere..." ("Völuspá"), "...there was Chasm and Night and dark Erebos at first, and broad Tartarus, but earth nor air nor heaven there was..." ("The Birds").


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: In the creation myth, the first man Manu and his giant twin Yemo are crossing the cosmos, accompanied by the primordial cow. To create the world, Manu sacrifices his brother and, with the help of heavenly deities (the Sky-Father, the Storm-God and the Divine Twins), forges both the natural elements and human beings from his remains. Manu thus becomes the first priest after initiating sacrifice as the primordial condition for the world order, and his deceased brother Yemo the first king as social classes emerge from his anatomy (priesthood from his head, the warrior class from his breast and arms, and the commoners from his sexual organs and legs). Although the European and Indo-Iranian versions differ on this matter, Lincoln argues that the primeval cow was most likely sacrificed in the original myth, giving birth to the other animals and vegetables, since the pastoral way of life of Proto-Indo-Iranian speakers was closer to that of Proto-Indo-European speakers.To the third man Trito, the celestial gods then offer cattle as a divine gift, which is stolen by a three-headed serpent named *"" ("serpent"; and the Indo-European root for negation). Trito first suffers at his hands, but the hero eventually manages to overcome the monster, fortified by an intoxicating drink and aided by the Sky-Father. He eventually gives the recovered cattle back to a priest for it to be properly sacrificed. Trito is now the first warrior, maintaining through his heroic actions the cycle of mutual giving between gods and mortals.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: According to Lincoln, Manu and Yemo seem to be the protagonists of "a myth of the sovereign function, establishing the model for later priests and kings", while the legend of Trito should be interpreted as "a myth of the warrior function, establishing the model for all later men of arms". The myth indeed recalls the Dumézilian tripartition of the cosmos between the priest (in both his magical and legal aspects), the warrior (the Third Man), and the herder (the cow).


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The story of Trito served as a model for later cattle raiding epic myths and most likely as a moral justification for the practice of raiding among Indo-European peoples. In the original legend, Trito is only taking back what rightfully belongs to his people, those who sacrifice properly to the gods. The myth has been interpreted either as a cosmic conflict between the heavenly hero and the earthly serpent, or as an Indo-European victory over non-Indo-European people, the monster symbolizing the aboriginal thief or usurper.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Some scholars have proposed that the primeval being Yemo was depicted as a two-fold hermaphrodite rather than a twin brother of Manu, both forming indeed a pair of complementary beings entwined together. The Germanic names "Ymir" and "Tuisto" were understood as "twin", "bisexual" or "hermaphrodite", and some myths give a sister to the Vedic Yama, also called "Twin" and with whom incest is discussed. In this interpretation, the primordial being may have self-sacrificed, or have been divided in two, a male half and a female half, embodying a prototypal separation of the sexes.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Cognates deriving from the Proto-Indo-European First Priest "*Manu" ("Man", "ancestor of mankind") include the Indic Manu, legendary first man in Hinduism, and Manāvī, his sacrificed wife; the Germanic Mannus (PGmc "*Mannaz"), mythical ancestor of the West Germanic tribes; and the Persian Manūščihr (from Aves. "Manūš.čiθra"), a Zoroastrian high priest of the 9th century AD. From the name of the sacrificed First King "*Yemo" ("Twin") derive the Indic Yama, god of death and the underworld; the Avestan Yima, king of the golden age and guardian of hell; the Norse Ymir (from PGmc *"Jumijaz"), ancestor of the giants ("jötnar"); and most likely Remus (from Proto-Latin "*Yemos" or "*Yemonos", with the initial "y"- shifting to "r"- under the influence of "Rōmulus"), killed in the Roman foundation myth by his twin brother Romulus. Cognates stemming from the First Warrior "*Trito" ("Third") include the Vedic Trita, the Avestan Thrita, and the Norse þriði.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Many Indo-European beliefs explain the origin of natural elements as the result of the original dismemberment of Yemo: his flesh usually becomes the earth, his hair grass, his bone yields stone, his blood water, his eyes the sun, his mind the moon, his brain the clouds, his breath the wind, and his head the heavens. The traditions of sacrificing an animal to disperse its parts according to socially established patterns, a custom found in Ancient Rome and India, has been interpreted as an attempt to restore the balance of the cosmos ruled by the original sacrifice.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The motif of Manu and Yemo has been influential throughout Eurasia following the Indo-European migrations. The Greek, Old Russian ("Poem on the Dove King") and Jewish versions depend on the Iranian, and a Chinese version of the myth has been introduced from Ancient India. The Armenian version of the myth of the First Warrior Trito depends on the Iranian, and the Roman reflexes were influenced by earlier Greek versions.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Linguistic evidence has led scholars to reconstruct the concept of "*h₂értus", denoting 'what is fitting, rightly ordered', and ultimately deriving from the verbal root "*h₂er-", 'to fit'. Descendant cognates include Hittite "āra" ('right, proper'); Sanskrit "ṛta" ('divine/cosmic law, force of truth, or order'); Avestan "arəta-" ('order'); Greek "artús" ('arrangement'), possibly "arete" ('excellence') via the root "*h₂erh₁" ('please, satisfy'); Latin "artus" ('joint'); Tocharian A "ārtt-" ('to praise, be pleased with'); Armenian "ard" ('ornament, shape'); Middle High German "art" ('innate feature, nature, fashion').


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Interwoven with the root "*h₂er-" ('to fit') is the verbal root *"dʰeh₁-", which means 'to put, lay down, establish', but also 'speak, say; bring back'. The Greek "thémis" and the Sanskrit "dhāman" both derive from the PIE noun for the 'Law', "*dʰeh₁-men-", literally 'that which is established'. This notion of 'Law' includes an "active" principle, denoting an "activity" "in obedience" to the cosmic order "*h₂értus", which in a social context is interpreted as a "lawful conduct": in the Greek daughter culture, the titaness Themis personifies the cosmic order and the rules of lawful conduct which derived from it, and the Vedic code of lawful conduct, the "Dharma", can also be traced back to the PIE root *"dʰeh₁-". According to Martin L. West, the root *"dʰeh₁-" also denotes a divine or cosmic creation, as attested by the Hittite expression "nēbis dēgan dāir" ("...established heaven (and) earth"), the Young Avestan formula "kə huvāpå raocåscā dāt təmåscā?" ("What skilful artificer made the regions of light and dark?"), the name of the Vedic creator god "Dhātr", and possibly by the Greek nymph "Thetis", presented as a demiurgical goddess in Alcman's poetry.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Another root "*yew(e)s-" appears to be connected with ritualistic laws, as suggested by the Latin "iūs" ('law, right, justice, duty'), Avestan "yaož-dā-" ('make ritually pure'), and Sanskrit "śáṃca yóśca" ('health and happiness'), with a derived adjective "*yusi(iy)os" seen in Old Irish "uisse" ('just right, fitting') and possibly Old Church Slavonic "istǔ" ('actual, true').


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The realm of death was generally depicted as the Lower Darkness and the land of no return. Many Indo-European myths relate a journey across a river, guided by an old man ("*ǵerh₂ont-"), in order to reach the Otherworld. The Greek tradition of the dead being ferried across the river Styx by Charon is probably a reflex of this belief, and the idea of crossing a river to reach the Underworld is also present throughout Celtic mythologies. Several Vedic texts contain references to crossing a river (river Vaitarna) in order to reach the land of the dead, and the Latin word "tarentum" ("tomb") originally meant "crossing point". In Norse mythology, Hermóðr must cross a bridge over the river Giöll in order to reach Hel and, in Latvian folk songs, the dead must cross a marsh rather than a river. Traditions of placing coins on the bodies of the deceased in order to pay the ferryman are attested in both ancient Greek and early modern Slavic funerary practices; although the earliest coins date to the Iron Age, this may provide evidence of an ancient tradition of giving offerings to the ferryman.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: In a recurrent motif, the Otherworld contains a gate, generally guarded by a multi-headed (sometimes multi-eyed) dog who could also serve as a guide and ensured that the ones who entered could not get out. The Greek Cerberus and the Hindu Śárvara most likely derive from the common noun "*Ḱérberos" ("spotted"). Bruce Lincoln has proposed a third cognate in the Norse Garmr, although this has been debated as linguistically untenable.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The motif of a canine guardian of the entrance to the Otherworld is also attested in Persian mythology, where two four-eyed dogs guard the Chinvat Bridge, a bridge that marks the threshold between the world of the living and the world of the dead. The "Videvdat" (Vendidad) 13,9 describes them as 'spâna pəšu.pâna' ("two bridge-guarding dogs"). A parallel imagery is found in Historical Vedic religion: Yama, ruler of the underworld realm, is said to own two four-eyed dogs who also act as his messengers and fulfill the role of protectors of the soul in the path to heaven. These hounds, named "Shyama" ("Śyāma") and "Sabala", are described as the brood of Sarama, a divine female dog: one is black and the other spotted.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Slovene deity and hero Kresnik is also associated with a four-eyed dog, and a similar figure in folk belief (a canine with white or brown spots above its eyes - thus, "four-eyed") is said to be able to sense the approach of death.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: In Nordic mythology, a dog stands on the road to Hel; it is often assumed to be identical with Garmr, the howling hound bound at the entrance to Gnipahellir. In Albanian folklore, a never-sleeping three-headed dog is also said to live in the world of the dead. Another parallel may be found in the Cŵn Annwn ("Hounds of Annwn"), creatures of Welsh mythology said to live in Annwn, a name for the Welsh Otherworld. They are described as hell hounds or spectral dogs that take part in the Wild Hunt, chasing after the dead and pursuing the souls of men.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Remains of dogs found in grave sites of the Iron Age Wielbark culture, and dog burials of Early Medieval North-Western Slavs (in Pomerania) would suggest the longevity of the belief. Another dog-burial in Góra Chełmska and a Pomeranian legend about a canine figure associated with the otherworld seem to indicate the existence of the motif in Slavic tradition.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: In a legend from Lokev, a male creature named Vilež ("fairy man"), who dwells in Vilenica Cave, is guarded by two wolves and is said to take men into the underworld. Belarusian scholar Siarhiej Sanko suggests that characters in a Belarusian ethnogenetic myth, Prince Bai and his two dogs, Staury and Gaury (Haury), are related to Vedic Yama and his two dogs. To him, "Gaury" is connected to Lithuanian "gaurai" 'mane, shaggy (of hair)'.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: An archeological find by Russian archeologist Alexei Rezepkin at Tsarskaya showed two dogs of different colors (one of bronze, the other of silver), each siding the porthole of a tomb. This imagery seemed to recall the Indo-Aryan myth of Yama and his dogs.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The mytheme possibly stems from an older Ancient North Eurasian belief, as evidenced by similar motifs in Native American and Siberian mythology, in which case it might be one of the oldest mythemes recoverable through comparative mythology. The King of the Otherworld may have been Yemo, the sacrificed twin of the creation myth, as suggested by the Indo-Iranian and, to a lesser extent, by the Germanic, Greek and Celtic traditions.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Several traditions reveal traces of a Proto-Indo-European eschatological myth that describes the end of the world following a cataclysmic battle. The story begins when an archdemon, usually coming from a different and inimical paternal line, assumes the position of authority among the community of the gods or heroes (Norse Loki, Roman Tarquin, Irish Bres). The subjects are treated unjustly by the new ruler, forced to erect fortifications while the archdemon favours instead outsiders, on whom his support relies. After a particularly heinous act, the archdemon is exiled by his subjects and takes refuge among his foreign relatives. A new leader (Norse Víðarr, Roman Lucius Brutus, Irish Lug), known as the "silent" one and usually the nephew or grandson ("*népōt") of the exiled archdemon, then springs up and the two forces come together to annihilate each other in a cataclysmic battle. The myth ends with the interruption of the cosmic order and the conclusion of a temporal cyclic era. In the Norse and Iranian traditions, a cataclysmic "cosmic winter" precedes the final battle.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: In the cosmological model proposed by Jean Haudry, the Proto-Indo-European sky is composed of three "heavens" (diurnal, nocturnal and liminal) rotating around an "axis mundi", each having its own deities, social associations and colors (white, dark and red, respectively). Deities of the diurnal sky could not transgress the domain of the nocturnal sky, inhabited by its own sets of gods and by the spirits of the dead. For instance, Zeus cannot extend his power to the nightly sky in the "Iliad". In this vision, the liminal or transitional sky embodies the gate or frontier (dawn and twilight) binding the two other heavens.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Proto-Indo-Europeans may have believed that the peripheral part of the earth was inhabited by a people exempt from the hardships and pains that affect us. The common motif is suggested by the legends of the Indic "Śvetadvīpam" ("White Island"), whose inhabitants shine white like the moon and need no food; the Greek "Hyperborea" ("Beyond the North Wind"), where the sun shines all the time and the men know "neither disease nor bitter old age"; the Irish "Tír na nÓg" ("Land of the Young"), a mythical region located in the western sea where "happiness lasts forever and there is no satiety"; or the Germanic "Ódáinsakr" ("Glittering Plains"), a land situated beyond the Ocean where "no one is permitted to die".


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The archaic Proto-Indo-European language (4500–4000) had a two-gender system which originally distinguished words between animate and inanimate, a system used to separate a common term from its deified synonym. For instance, "fire" as an active principle was "*h₁n̥gʷnis" (Latin "ignis"; Sanskrit "Agní"), while the inanimate, physical entity was "*péh₂ur" (Greek "pyr"; English "fire"). During this period, Proto-Indo-European beliefs were still animistic and their language did not yet make formal distinctions between masculine and feminine, although it is likely that each deity was already conceived as either male or female. Most of the goddesses attested in later Indo-European mythologies come from pre-Indo-European deities eventually assimilated into the various pantheons following the migrations, like the Greek Athena, the Roman Juno, the Irish Medb, or the Iranian Anahita. Diversely personified, they were frequently seen as fulfilling multiple functions, while Proto-Indo-European goddesses shared a lack of personification and narrow functionalities as a general characteristic. The most well-attested female Indo-European deities include *"H₂éwsōs", the Dawn, "*Dʰéǵʰōm", the Earth, and "*Seh₂ul", the Sun.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: It is not probable that the Proto-Indo-Europeans had a fixed canon of deities or assigned a specific number to them. The term for "a god" was "*deywós" ("celestial"), derived from the root *"dyew", which denoted the bright sky or the light of day. It has numerous reflexes in Latin "deus," Old Norse Týr (< Germ. "*tīwaz"), Sanskrit "devá," Avestan "daeva," Irish "día," or Lithuanian "Dievas". In contrast, human beings were synonymous of "mortals" and associated with the "earthly" (*"dʰéǵʰōm"), likewise the source of words for "man, human being" in various languages. Proto-Indo-Europeans believed the gods to be exempt from death and disease because they were nourished by special aliments, usually not available to mortals: in the "Chāndogya Upaniṣad""," "the gods, of course, neither eat nor drink. They become sated by just looking at this nectar", while the Edda tells us that "on wine alone the weapon-lord Odin ever lives ... he needs no food; wine is to him both drink and meat". Sometimes concepts could also be deified, such as the Avestan "mazdā" ("wisdom"), worshipped as Ahura Mazdā ("Lord Wisdom"); the Greek god of war Ares (connected with ἀρή, "ruin, destruction"); or the Vedic protector of treaties Mitráh (from "mitrám", "contract").


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Gods had several titles, typically "the celebrated", "the highest", "king", or "shepherd", with the notion that deities had their own idiom and true names which might be kept secret from mortals in some circumstances. In Indo-European traditions, gods were seen as the "dispensers" or the "givers of good things" (*"déh₃tōr" "h₁uesuom"). Compare the Irish god "Dagda" / "Dagdae", “Good God" or “Shining God" from Proto-Celtic "*Dago-deiwos", from Proto-Indo-European "*dʰagʰo-" (“shining”) (< "*dʰegʷʰ-" (“to burn”)) +"*deywós" (“divinity”), also Old Irish "deg-", "dag-", from Proto-Celtic "*dagos" (compare Welsh "da" ‘good’, Scottish Gaelic "deagh" ‘good’). Although certain individual deities were charged with the supervision of justice or contracts, in general the Indo-European gods did not have an ethical character. Their immense power, which they could exercise at their pleasure, necessitated rituals, sacrifices and praise songs from worshipers to ensure they would in return bestow prosperity to the community. The idea that gods were in control of the nature was translated in the suffix *"-nos" (feminine "-nā"), which signified "lord of". According to West, it is attested in Greek Ouranos ("lord of rain") and Helena ("mistress of sunlight"), Germanic "*Wōðanaz" ("lord of frenzy"), Gaulish Epona ("goddess of horses"), Lithuanian Perkūnas ("lord of oaks"), and in Roman Neptunus ("lord of waters"), Volcanus ("lord of fire-glare") and Silvanus ("lord of woods").


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Linguists have been able to reconstruct the names of some deities in the Proto-Indo-European language (PIE) from many types of sources. Some of the proposed deity names are more readily accepted among scholars than others. According to philologist Martin L. West, "the clearest cases are the cosmic and elemental deities: the Sky-god, his partner Earth, and his twin sons; the Sun, the Sun Maiden, and the Dawn; gods of storm, wind, water, fire; and terrestrial presences such as the Rivers, spring and forest nymphs, and a god of the wild who guards roads and herds".


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The most securely reconstructed genealogy of the Proto-Indo-European gods ("Götterfamilie") is given as follows:


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The head deity of the Proto-Indo-European pantheon was the god *"Dyḗws Ph₂tḗr", whose name literally means "Sky Father".' Regarded as the Sky or Day conceived as a divine entity, and thus the dwelling of the gods, the Heaven,' Dyēus is, by far, the most well-attested of all the Proto-Indo-European deities. As the gateway to the gods and the father of both the Divine Twins and the goddess of the dawn (Hausos), Dyēws was a prominent deity in the pantheon. He was however likely not their ruler, or the holder of the supreme power like Zeus and Jupiter.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Due to his celestial nature, Dyēus is often described as "all-seeing", or "with wide vision" in Indo-European myths. It is unlikely however that he was in charge of the supervision of justice and righteousness, as it was the case for the Zeus or the Indo-Iranian Mithra–Varuna duo; but he was suited to serve at least as a witness to oaths and treaties.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The Greek god Zeus, the Roman god Jupiter, and the Illyrian god Dei-Pátrous all appear as the head gods of their respective pantheons. *"Dyḗws Ph₂tḗr" is also attested in the Rigveda as Dyáus Pitā, a minor ancestor figure mentioned in only a few hymns. The ritual expressions "Debess tēvs" in Latvian and "attas Isanus" in Hittite are not exact descendants of the formula *"Dyḗws Ph₂tḗr", but they do preserve its original structure.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Twenty-one hymns in the Rigveda are dedicated to the dawn goddess Uṣás and a single passage from the Avesta honors the dawn goddess Ušå. The dawn goddess Eos appears prominently in early Greek poetry and mythology. The Roman dawn goddess Aurora is a reflection of the Greek Eos, but the original Roman dawn goddess may have continued to be worshipped under the cultic title Mater Matuta. The Anglo-Saxons worshipped the goddess Ēostre, who was associated with a festival in spring which later gave its name to a month, which gave its name to the Christian holiday of Easter in English. The name "Ôstarmânôth" in Old High German has been taken as an indication that a similar goddess was also worshipped in southern Germany. The Lithuanian dawn goddess Aušra was still acknowledged in the sixteenth century.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: "*Seh₂ul" and "*Meh₁not" are reconstructed as the Proto-Indo-European goddess of the Sun and god of the Moon respectively. "*Seh₂ul" is reconstructed based on the Greek god Helios, the Greek mythological figure Helen of Troy, the Roman god Sol, the Celtic goddess Sulis / Sul/Suil, the North Germanic goddess Sól, the Continental Germanic goddess *Sowilō, the Hittite goddess "UTU-liya", the Zoroastrian Hvare-khshaeta and the Vedic god Surya. "*Meh₁not-" is reconstructed based on the Norse god Máni, the Slavic god Myesyats, and the Lithuanian god *Meno, or Mėnuo (Mėnulis). Remnants of the lunar deity may exist in Latvian moon god Mēness, Anatolian (Phrygian) deity Men; Mene, another name for Selene, and in Zoroastrian lunar deity Mah (Måŋha).


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The daily course of *"Seh₂ul" across the sky on a horse-driven chariot is a common motif among Indo-European myths. While it is probably inherited, the motif certainly appeared after the introduction of the wheel in the Pontic–Caspian steppe about 3500 BC, and is therefore a late addition to Proto-Indo-European culture.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Although the sun was personified as an independent, female deity, the Proto-Indo-Europeans also visualized the sun as the "lamp of Dyēws" or the "eye of Dyēws", as seen in various reflexes: "the god's lamp" in "Medes" by Euripides, "heaven's candle" in "Beowulf", or "the land of Hatti's torch", as the Sun-goddess of Arinna is called in a Hittite prayer; and Helios as the eye of Zeus, Hvare-khshaeta as the eye of Ahura Mazda, and the sun as "God's eye" in Romanian folklore. The names of Celtic sun goddesses like Sulis and Grian may also allude to this association: the words for "eye" and "sun" are switched in these languages, hence the name of the goddesses.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: The Horse Twins are a set of twin brothers found throughout nearly every Indo-European pantheon who usually have a name that means 'horse', "*h₁éḱwos", although the names are not always cognate, and no Proto-Indo-European name for them can be reconstructed.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: In most traditions, the Horse Twins are brothers of the Sun Maiden or Dawn goddess, and the sons of the sky god, *"Dyḗws Ph₂tḗr". The Greek "Dioscuri" (Castor and Pollux) are the "sons of Zeus"; the Vedic "Divó nápātā" (Aśvins) are the "sons of Dyaús", the sky-god; the Lithuanian "Dievo sūneliai" (Ašvieniai) are the "sons of the God" (Dievas); and the Latvian "Dieva dēli" are likewise the "sons of the God" (Dievs).


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Represented as young men and the steeds who pull the sun across the sky, the Divine Twins rode horses (sometimes they were depicted as horses themselves) and rescued men from mortal peril in battle or at sea. The Divine Twins are often differentiated: one is represented as a young warrior while the other is seen as a healer or concerned with domestic duties. In most tales where they appear, the Divine Twins rescue the Dawn from a watery peril, a theme that emerged from their role as the solar steeds. At night, the horses of the sun returned to the east in a golden boat, where they traversed the sea to bring back the Sun each morning. During the day, they crossed the sky in pursuit of their consort, the morning star.


title: Proto-Indo-European mythology

text: Other reflexes may be found in the Anglo-Saxon Hengist and Horsa (whose names mean "stallion" and "horse"), the Celtic "Dioskouroi" said by Timaeus to be venerated by Atlantic Celts as a set of horse twins, the Germanic Alcis, a pair of young male brothers worshipped by the Naharvali, or the Welsh Brân and Manawydan. The horse twins could have been based on the morning and evening star (the planet Venus) and they often have stories about them in which they "accompany" the Sun goddess, because of the close orbit of the planet Venus to the sun.