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My nearly-four-year-old niece, Eris, is interested in the origin of her name and I would love to find a book with her name and story in it. Any other recommendations for a children's introduction to Greek gods and goddesses? Our little goddess of discord must be appeased! Finding yourself in a book, whether by sharing a name, how you look or by feeling twinned by characters with shared behaviour, is always popular.
Books with names in the title, like John Yeoman and Quentin Blake's Beatrice and Vanessa, a touching story about a friendship between a nanny-goat and a ewe, appeal to all while also having a curious extra appeal for anyone with those names. With an unusual name, even one that has so much meaning attached to it as your niece's does, it is unlikely to crop up in many contemporary stories so going back to versions of the original stories will be the best thing to do.
However, you may want to approach any story about your niece's namesake with caution! Not much good is said about the Greek goddess Eris. She is placed among the group categorised as Gods of Chaos and has a pretty black reputation.
For those not familiar with this deity, Eris is sometimes called the goddess of discord and sometimes the goddess of mischief or strife. It is for this reason that mythology is closely associated with religion. Since each group of people developed their own explanations, mythology differs from culture to culture. But all myths try to answer basic questions such as: How was the world created?
The illustrations are gorgeous and are in full color. But a myth is not just a made-up story. Quisque mollis dolor non tellus placerat vitae sodales lectus porta. You may choose any god or goddess except Aphrodite, because she's the example below. Our little goddess of discord must be appeased!
How did life on Earth begin? Why is there evil in the world? Myths explain the origins of Earth in many different ways. Many cultures believe that an all-powerful god created the world. For example, a myth of the Polynesian people tells that the god Io formed the world out of water and darkness. People living in the cold lands of what is now northern Europe believed that the mist was created first. According to the ancient Scandinavian tradition, the mist flowed through 12 rivers and froze, filling the emptiness of the world with many layers of ice, which was later melted by a warm wind.
Other cultures, including the Arapaho of North America as well as civilizations in Egypt and Japan , thought of humans as descendants of a sun god. To explain the origin of human beings, an ancient story from India described a being called the Self. When the Self became lonely, it divided into two parts, creating man and woman. Their children became the human race. Many myths from western Africa tell that the first beings were a pair of twins.
The Sumerians, an ancient Middle Eastern people, believed that the first people came from clay. According to their myths, the water god told his mother to mold bits of clay into the shapes of people. Many cultures also have myths explaining why there is evil in the world. For example, an ancient Greek myth tells the story of Pandora , the first woman on Earth. She opened a jar and released all kinds of evil on the world. A great variety of other myths explain the origins of animals, plants, and events in nature.
Many other myths tell of the gods.
Stories discuss their births, special powers, and victories over monsters or enemies. Many cultures also have myths about heroes with amazing strength or cleverness. For instance, ancient Greek myths tell that the brave warrior Heracles completed 12 nearly impossible tasks.
Some Great Greek Myths for Kids. The ancient Greeks told stories about their gods. These stories are called myths (short for mythology, or stories about gods.) . Buy products related to kids' greek mythology products and see what customers say about kids' greek mythology products on www.farmersmarketmusic.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY.
Many groups of people developed complex collections of myths, especially in ancient times. Their stories describe a group of gods and the world that the gods live in. Some figures of Egyptian mythology. The ancient Egyptians had many gods. Some looked like people and some looked like animals. The doglike god Anubis was the god of the dead. Re was the sun god. For a time a ruler named Amenhotep made the Sun the only god. He called the god Aton, and he changed his own name to Akhenaton, or Ikhnaton.
But after he died the other gods were worshipped again. Some figures in ancient Greek and Roman mythology. The ancient Greeks also worshipped many gods.
They believed that a group of major gods lived on Mount Olympus. The members of this group are often called the 12 Olympian gods.
Some of the members changed over time. But Zeus was always the king of the gods. Although most myths were not recorded, the Greeks wrote about them in poems and dramas. The oldest of these writings are The Iliad and The Odyssey , epic poems from the s or s bc. The poet Homer is said to have written these sources, which focus on events surrounding the Trojan War. They also tell of the activities of the gods.
Myths about the Greek gods describe their births, their victories over monsters or rivals, and their special powers.