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Dionysus extending a drinking cup (late sixth century BC). The dio-prefix in Ancient Greek Διόνυσος (Diónūsos; [di.ó.nyː.sos]) has been associated since antiquity with Zeus (genitive Dios), and the variants of the name seem to point to an original *Dios-nysos. [18]
The cult of Dionysus traces back to at least Mycenaean Greece, since his name is found on Mycenean Linear B tablets as 𐀇𐀺𐀝𐀰 (di-wo-nu-so). [3] [4] [5] Dionysus is often shown riding a leopard, wearing a leopard skin, or in a chariot drawn by panthers, and is also recognized by his iconic thyrsus.
The 1st century BC historian Diodorus Siculus says that according to "some writers of myths" there were two gods named Dionysus, an older one, who was the son of Zeus and Persephone, [41] but that the "younger one [born to Zeus and Semele] also inherited the deeds of the older, and so the men of later times, being unaware of the truth and being ...
The exact beliefs attendant on the original assignment of such names remain unknown. Regardless of the language of origin of Dionysos and Apollon, the -ios/-ius suffix is associated with a full range of endings of the first and second declension in the Greek and Latin languages. The names may thus appear in ancient writing in any of their cases.
The Derveni krater, height: 90.5 cm (35 ½ in.), 4th century BC. The Dionysian Mysteries of mainland Greece and the Roman Empire are thought to have evolved from a more primitive initiatory cult of unknown origin (perhaps Thracian or Phrygian) which had spread throughout the Mediterranean region by the start of the Classical Greek period.
The consort of Dionysus was Ariadne. It was once held that Dionysius was a later addition to the Greek pantheon, but the discovery of Linear B tablets confirm his status as a deity from an early period. Bacchus was another name for him in Greek, and came into common usage among the Romans. [45]
Dionysus was once a demigod who, like Hercules, was made into a god. His seat on the Olympian Council originally belonged to Hestia who decided to abdicate it after Dionysus was first made into a god to avoid conflict. Dionysus hates his job and has a low opinion of demigods, likening them to Theseus and his abandonment of Ariadne.
Pages and categories relating to Dionysus, the god of wine, festivity and theatre in Greek mythology. Subcategories This category has the following 9 subcategories, out of 9 total.