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Roman mythology

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Roman mythology is the structure, body and also the study of ancient Rome's legendary and mythological origins, practices, beliefs and religions until Christianity replaced the native religions of Rome.

Roman gods

The Roman gods

Their records and stories centre on the teaching of moral values, the importance of determined actions of a citizen towards the Roman state and heroism. Roman and Greek mythology are much alike, however in the Roman mythology's case, ancient Romans focused on the human, political and social aspects of their stories rather than the cosmogony or theology of the latter.[1]

Roman mythology and religion was highly influenced by the never-ending conflicts in their history and by the vast assimilation of Greek culture and mythology. Ancient Romans were commonly not aware of the origin of their myths and legends, but writers and poets like Ovid utilized elements from Greek mythology to fill the gaps in Roman stories and tradition. Romulus and Remus are the central characters of Roman myth, which after a series of unfortunate events that included Remus' death, led to the foundation of Rome.

As the Republic, and later Empire, expanded, it came into contact with other civilisations, assimilating deities from the British Isles to Iran, such as Tanit from Carthage, Isis from Egypt and Mithras from Persia.

Roman pantheonEdit

Most of the Roman deities are the same as in Greek myth, differentiating themselves just by name.


The Roman pantheon organization ranges from primordial deities like Terra to guardian gods like the Lares. Jupiter was the king of the Roman gods.

The Twelve Olympians of Roman mythology:

Adopted deitiesEdit

Roman mythology is known for adopting deities from other mythologies, mainly Greek mythology.

Deity Origin Description
Asclepius Greek God of healing.
Attis Phrygian God of growth, fertility and vegetation.
Bacchus Greek (Dionysos) God of wine.
Bellona Greek (Enyo), or Etruscan Goddess of war and battles.
Bubona Celt (Epona) Goddess of horses and cattle.
Ceres Greek (Demeter) Goddess of corn, agriculture and grain.
Cupid Greek God of love.
Cybele Phrygian (Magna Mater in Latin) The Great Mother.
Dis Greek (Hades) God of the underworld and treasure in the form of gems and metals of the earth.
Endovelicus Iberian Celt Hispania The god of health and welfare.
Faunus Greek (Pan) God of the wilds and fertility.
Furies Greek (Erinyes) Goddesses of Vengeance.
Hercules Greek (Herakles) God of victory and commercial enterprise.
Isis Egyptian Goddess of marriage and womanhood.
Janus Italii, Latin or Etruscan (Ani) God of gates, doors, beginnings and endings. He was worshipped at the beginning of the harvest, the beginning of planting, at marriages, at births, etc. The month of January is named after him.
Mithras Persian God of the sun.
Ops Greek Goddess of the fertile earth, abundance, sowing, harvest and wealth.
Salus Greek (Hygieia) Goddess of health and prosperity. Festival was celebrated on March 30.
Serapis Egyptian God of the sky.
Saturn Greek (Chronos) God of agriculture and the sowing of seeds.
Silvanus Greek (Pan) God of woods and fields.
Sol Greek (Helios) God of the sun.
Sol Invictus Syrian God of the sun.
Somnus Greek (Hypnos) God of sleep.
Tellus Greek (Gaia) Goddess of the earth. Fordicidia, held on April 15 was her festival.
Veiovis Etruscan (Veive) God of healing.
Victoria Greek (Nike) Goddess of victory.

Roman religionEdit

By the end of the Roman empire, Christianity was the official religion for the Romans.


In ancient Roman myth and religion, priests like the Arval Brethren use to make sacrifices on an annual basis to the Lares and the rest of Roman deities to guarantee good harvests and the health of the Emperor.


External LinksEdit


  1. John North, Roman Religion (Cambridge University Press, 2000) pp. 4ff.

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