The worship of gods and goddesses has been a common theme in human religious practice since the dawn of civilization. These deities, often unique to one particular culture though sometimes shared across different groups, have helped people explain the world and try to understand their place in it.
Studying ancient gods is a great way to understand ancient civilizations and the ancient world as a whole.
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Greek Gods
Ancient Greek culture was at its high point from around 800 to 200 BC, though its roots trace back much further. The Greeks spread all around the ancient world, settling lands through the Mediterranean in Europe and into East Asia.
The widespread nature of ancient Greek culture is a big reason why their gods and goddesses remain famous even to this day. They were celebrated and worshiped in lands very far from Ancient Greece. And when the Romans conquered the Greeks, they adopted many of their gods just under different names.
All of this has helped make ancient Greek gods and goddesses some of the more famous deities in human history. The primary group of ancient Greek gods were the Olympian gods, but there were also the Titans. And many gods, such as Zeus, Hades, Hera, and Aphrodite, are famous all on their own.
Their stories, collectively known as Greek mythology, remain relevant even in modern culture.
Roman Gods
Ancient Rome is one of the most influential ancient civilizations in human history. The rulers of most of Europe and much of Western Asia from the 3rd century BC to the 5th century AD, Roman culture completely reshaped ancient cultures and laid the groundwork for the modern Western world.
While there were unique Roman gods and goddesses, they actually adopted many of the stories and deities from ancient Greece. For example, the ancient Greek god Zeus and the Roman god Jupiter are the same god just with different names. Aphrodite became Venus, Hades became Mars, and so on.
The modern relevance of these names (think: the solar system) speaks to how influential both Greek and Roman mythology have been throughout the ages.
Norse Gods
The Norse were people who originated in what is now called Scandinavia, which includes the modern nations of Sweden, Denmark, Finland, and Norway. During the 8th and 9th centuries, the Norse began to migrate out of their native lands and settle elsewhere in Europe. They established civilizations in Iceland, the Isle of Mann, Scotland, England, and France, where their territory eventually became the Duchy of Normandy, one of the more powerful provinces of Medieval France.
Due to their common ancestry, Norse people shared a mythology and Norse myths often traveled with people as they moved to new lands. This has helped these stories endure and has helped make Norse gods and goddesses almost as famous and influential as the ancient gods of Greece and Rome.
Typically divided into two groups, Vanir gods and Aesir gods, man Norse gods and goddesses can be found all over modern pop culture.
Odin, Thor, and Loki are just three of the many gods that come from the Norse pantheon and feature prominently in the rich Norse mythology.
Celtic Gods
Most commonly associated with Ireland, Celtic gods and goddesses come from all over Europe. The Celts were an ancient ethnic group that originated in central Europe and then spread throughout the rest of the continent, settling in England, Scotland, Ireland, France, Spain, and more.
The roots of Celtic Mythology are not entirely known, but eventually, a number of gods and goddesses emerged in Ireland and the rest of the British Isles that today we know as the Celtic gods.
Eventually, Christianity spread into Ireland and many of these gods and goddesses intermingled with Christian theology, though few people today still actively worship Celtic gods and goddesses.
Germanic Gods
Germanic people lived in central Europe before, during, and after Roman times. During Roman times they were referred to as “barbarians” simply because they were different than the Romans. When Rome fell, many of these Germanic people moved into Western Europe and mixed and mingled with Roman culture to lay the groundwork for modern Western Europe.
Because of the widespread nature of Germanic culture, and the length of its existence, there are countless Germanic gods, which are sometimes grouped in with other pagan gods, a term used to describe gods that weren’t Christian.
Their ubiquitous nature has allowed these deities to have a profound impact on modern culture. For example, Eostre, a Germanic goddess associated with the Spring and the dawn, is said to be the origin of the modern Christian holiday Easter.
READ MORE: Germanic Gods and Goddesses: 19 Ancient Gods of Northern Europe
Ancient Egyptian Gods
When it comes to gods and goddesses, ancient Egypt has one of the richest and most diverse groups of any culture of the ancient world. Cat gods galore, snake gods, jackals, and so much more.
One of the reasons for such diversity amongst ancient Egyptian gods and goddesses was that they were conceived and worshiped in dramatically different areas of ancient Egypt. For example, Ptah was the patron god of Thebes, one of the major Egyptian cities and one of its imperial capitals. But he was nowhere near as important in other parts of Egypt. Most cities had their own god.
Over time, overlap did happen, and several deities got promoted and understood as “major gods” such as the god Horus, as well as Isis and Osiris.
This helped create a more coherent Egyptian mythology, but even still, stories often differ dramatically from one source to the next, leaving an even more exciting journey of exploration for the modern student of mythology.
Hindu Gods
Hinduism, one of the largest religions in the world, is most popular in India, where it’s practiced by an estimated 1 billion people. So, while the origin of these Hindu gods and goddesses dates back to antiquity, these gods are still very much relevant today and are the source of religious understanding for a massive group of people.
In total, there are several hundred gods and goddesses in the Hindu pantheon, though ten stand out as the most powerful and influential. From this group, you get names such as Shiva, Vishnu, and Ganesh.
Today, these gods remain extremely popular, and which one becomes the centerpiece of a person’s religious practice often depends on the region where they come from and the specific branch of Hinduism to which they adhere. Hindu mythology is as rich and vibrant today as it ever has been.
Aztec Gods
The Aztec civilization rose to prominence in what is now central Mexico during the 13th century. They built off an extensive network of trade and tribute in the region to establish an empire that was one of the most powerful on the American continent before the arrival of Europeans.
The foundation of Aztec culture was religion, comprised of hundreds of Aztec gods and goddesses. Legend stated that the Aztecs, known in their time as the mejica, traveled south from their homeland in the north of Mexico, a place known as Atlan, looking for new lands to settle. Their priests claimed that their sun god Huītzilōpōchtli had told them to look for an eagle resting on a cactus and to find their city there. According to the story, they eventually found this eagle and built the city of Tenochtitlan, which is the site of modern-day Mexico City.
Stories with such richness are quite common in Aztec mythology and provide insight into the ways of life of the people of this ancient culture.
Incan Gods
Alongside the Aztecs, the Incas were one of the most powerful civilizations in the Americas at the time the Europeans arrived. Their cities dotted the Andes Mountains in what is now Peru and Chile. Like many of the other cultures on this list, the gods and goddesses worshiped by the Incan people were diverse and differed based on region.
However, some, such as Inti the sun god, were worshiped and celebrated more universally.
Japanese Gods
Known in Japan as the kami, the gods of ancient Japan are often referred to as the Shinto gods, as they are the foundation of the ancient religion Shintoism, a major component of Japanese mythology. If you travel through Japan today you will find countless temples and other ancient structures dedicated to these Japanese gods and goddesses. But Shintoism is not just for ancient Japan. It remains, alongside Buddhism, the most popular religion in modern Japan. Shinto celebrations and customs are still very much alive today.
African Gods
The second largest continent on the planet, Africa is home to countless ancient cultures and civilizations that have all had a profound impact on the modern world. While regional similarities do exist, to say there is one group of “African gods” would be a gross overgeneralization of what is a truly diverse group of deities.
Nevertheless, thanks to some of these regional commonalities, a number of ancient gods from across Africa emerged as particularly influential, helping give rise to overall African mythology, and deserve a deeper study and analysis.
Ancient Mesopotamian Gods
Often called the “cradle of civilization,” Mesopotamia, also known as the Fertile Crescent, refers to the region between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in what is now the country of Iraq. People started settling into agricultural communities starting around 5000 BC and they never really looked back.
Over time, different groups managed to assert power over others, leading to social structures that resembled empires. These groups would then disseminate their religious practices, and this led to the formation of a diverse religious tradition.
One of these groups was the Sumerians, which is why Sumerian gods and goddesses are some of the more well-known from the region. But there are also Babylonian gods, Assyrian gods, Akkadian gods, and much more.
READ MORE: Mesopotamian Gods and Goddesses: 34 Deities of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
Chinese Gods
As one of the oldest and most continuous civilizations in the world, China has one of the richest and most diverse mythologies of any culture. The Eight Immortals dominate as the pillars of the pantheon, but these are actually people who were deified (made into gods) after their deaths. These Chinese gods and goddesses are said to come back and offer guidance and advice to those who need it most.
Due to its vast size and cultural reach, China also has numerous gods and goddesses that combine to make a rich, diverse pantheon and a complex Chinese mythology.
Hawaiian Gods
Today a US state, Hawaii’s history and culture run much deeper. Once a powerful kingdom that dominated the southern Pacific Ocean, Hawaii has a rich history that is still very much alive today. From Kane to Lono to Kanaloa, the pantheon of Hawaiian gods and goddesses Hawaiian pantheon is diverse and has had a profound impact on Hawaiian culture throughout the ages.
Native American Gods
Although heavily marginalized due to a centuries-long assault on their cultures, Native American cultures remain prominent in modern society, and this has helped keep alive the traditions and customs of their past. At the time of European arrival in North America, hundreds of different native cultures existed.
Some of the more well-known include Iroquois, Cherokee, Sioux, Navajo, Choctaw, Apache, and Shoshone, though the list just goes on and on. This led to a massive pantheon of Native American gods and goddesses, some of which were worshipped across multiple cultures but others that were particular to one group of another.
Each group had its own set of religious beliefs and worshiped its deities, though sometimes there was overlap between neighboring cultures.
Ancient Gods Across Different Cultures
While nearly every ancient culture had its own set of gods and goddesses, there are themes found throughout these religions and mythologies. For example, many cultures had some form of a river god or a sea god, as well as a sun god, a god of war, a god of fertility, death, and so on. It was also common for cultures to have a primordial god or group of gods that came before there was life on Earth and helped explain it to ancient cultures.
But other commonalities are less obvious, such as cat gods or chaos gods.
Nevertheless, the many commonalities across such a wide range of cultures showcase the shared human experience, but the diversity amongst these gods also speaks to how many different ways that experience can be interpreted.
Check out more details about these many different types of ancient gods: