Humanities › History & Culture Learn Fast Facts About the Olympian Gods List of the Top Greek Gods and Goddesses Share Flipboard Email Print History & Culture Ancient History & Culture Mythology & Religion Basics Major Figures & Events Ancient Languages Greece & Sparta Egypt Asia Rome Literature American History African American History African History Asian History European History Family History & Genealogy Inventions Latin American History Medieval & Renaissance History Military History The 20th Century Women's History View More by N.S. Gill Updated June 17, 2017 The Olympians were the inter-related top gods and goddesses of Greek mythology -- the powerful, philandering king and his justly jealous sister-wife-queen, their kids and siblings.Many of the gods and goddesses are active in human lives, but not all are. Some deities appear on one gods' list, but not on others. This list shows the main gods and goddesses. Use the hyperlinks to find useful details presented on their individual pages in an almost at-a-glance format. This page provides the links to these individual pages, but also tells you enough about each god or goddess to distinguish among them, so you can pick which ones you want to learn more about. Aphrodite Aphrodite, Bathing, and Eros. Roman, based on Greek original 3rd century B.C. Marble. CC Flickr User thisisbossi Aphrodite was the Greek goddess of love and beauty. The greatest beauty among the immortals was married to the lame blacksmith god, Hephaestus. Aphrodite was said to have been born from the sea foam, but in other accounts, Zeus is her father.Read more about Aphrodite More » Apollo Apollo Belvedere. PD Flickr User "T" altered art Apollo was the brother of Artemis (both children of Zeus), the god of music, poetry, prophecy, and plague. In late classical antiquity, he became the sun god. Ares Ares - St Petersburg Hermitage Roman work from the early 2nd century AD; after the Greek original of the 420s B.C. by Alkamenes. Marble. CC Flickr User thisisbossi Ares was the god of war.Read more about Ares More » Artemis Artemis / Diana. Clipart.com Artemis is the sister of Apollo. She was a virgin hunter goddess who became associated with the moon Athena Athena, Goddess of wisdom, war, and patroness of crafts. Roman work, 2nd century AD; after the Greek original of the late 5th century B.C. Marble. CC Flickr User thisisbossi Athena was the goddess of wisdom. She was also a goddess of warfare, especially strategy, for which reason she is helmeted. She was born from the head of her father Zeus.Read more about Athena More » Demeter Ceres: Goddesses From Thomas Keightley's 1852 The Mythology of Ancient Greece and Italy: for the Use of Schools. Thomas Keightley's 1852 The Mythology of Ancient Greece and Italy: for the Use of Schools. Demeter was the goddess of the grain and the mother of Persephone, the maiden whom the king of the Underworld abducted. She is associated with the seasons and mystery cults Dionysus Dionysus and Panther in the Domus dell'Ortaglia 2nd C. A.D. Stefano Bolognini Dionysus was twice born, once from Zeus' thigh. He was the god of wine and mad revelry. Hades An image of the god Pluto or Hades from Keightley's Mythology, 1852. Keightley's Mythology, 1852. Hades was one of the big three brother gods, along with Zeus and Poseidon. His dominion was the Underworld. He abducted the maiden Persephone, daughter of his sister Demeter, to be his bride. Hephaestus An image of the god Vulcan or Hephaestus from Keightley's Mythology, 1852. Keightley's Mythology, 1852. Hephaestus, son of the goddess Hera, was the lame blacksmith god, who worked in a forge, but was married to Aphrodite. Don't Stop Here! More Greek Deities on the Next Page => Olympian Gods and Goddesses Page Two Lists of the Olympian gods and goddesses are not uniform. Some of the gods and goddesses appear on one list and not on others, but these are the main gods and goddesses, with information presented on their individual pages in an almost at-a-glance format. This page provides the links to these individual pages, but also tells you enough about each to distinguish among them. Hera ID: 1622946. Hera. NYPL Digital Library Hera was the queen of the gods, the sister and wife of Zeus the king. She was a jealous goddess and the goddess of marriage.Read more about Hera More » Hermes Hermes, god of trade, guardian of roads, and messenger of the gods. Roman work, 2nd century; after the Greek original from the first half of the 4th century B.C. Marble. CC Flickr User thisisbossi Hermes became the messenger god. He is shown with a staff with snake and winged heels.Read more about Hermes More » Hestia Hestia - Rome 187 Giustiani Hestia at Colosseum. CC Flickr User Ed Uthman Hestia, a sister of the older generation including Zeus, Poesidon, and Hera, was the goddess of the hearth. She was a homebody who did not take an active part in the lives of heroes described in Greek mythology.Read more about Hestia More » Poseidon An image of the god Neptune or Poseidon from Keightley's Mythology, 1852. Keightley's Mythology, 1852. Poseidon was one of the big three males, along with Zeus and Hades. Poseidon's dominion was the sea. As sea god he carried a trident. He was also connected with horses. Zeus Head from a colossal marble cult statue of Zeus. Found at Aigeira, Achaia, along with the head. CC Flickr User Ian W Scott Zeus was the king of the gods. His dominion was the sky and he held a thunderbolt. He is listed as the father of many of the Greek heroes.Read more about Zeus More » Continue Reading