Polytheism (Gk. poly, many + theos, god) = Paganism (Lat. pagi, rural areas, fields): religion of the classical world.

Greek religion:
 - IE gods/ myths (Zeus-pater < Dyaus pitar; > Lat. Juppiter)
 - Anatolian & Semitic gods:
   Athena < Chanaanite Anat
   Aphrodite < Babylonian Istar = Astarte
 - Local hero-cults:  Theseus (Athens): hero-king
     Adrastus (Argos): prophet
     Iphigenia (Brauron, Attica): sacrificed maiden/ priestess
Roman religion:
 - IE gods (Juppiter < Dyaus pitar; Diana)
 - Gk. gods: identified with Lat.:
  Zeus = Jupiter: king of gods. Ares = Mars: war.
  Hera = Juno: queen of gods. Artemis = Diana: hunt; moon.
  Athena = Minerva: wisdom, war, crafts. Hermes = Mercury: trade.
 - Local (< Etruscan?) deities of particular moment:
  Aius Locutius - Spoken Voice (warned against Gaul's invasion)    Mamurius Veturius - Old Mars? - New year's old man.
  Anna Perenna - Perennial Year, New year's old hag, etc.

 MAJOR THEMES OF MYTHOLOGY:
- Cosmogony/Theogony.
- Mystery-myths & cults (Nativity; passions; death/rebirth)
- Heroic saga/ ancestral hero-cult: Perseus; Heracles; Theseus; Argo.
- Family feuds: Argos saga; Theban saga; + Theseus' house.
- Great Wars: Trojan War; 7 against Thebes; Epigoni.

 HISTORICAL PERIODS CORRELATION:
- Proto-dynastic: Perseus (~IE: Persia/ Arya; ~arcetypal hero-myth)
- Minoan: Theseus & Minotaur; Argonauts ~Caucasus!
- Mycenaean Greece: Dynastic curses; Theban wars; Trojan War.

 COSMOGONY:
Chaos > Eros > cosmos:
Ge/Uranus > Titans > Cronos vs. Zeus; > Olympians.
Prometheus vs. Zeus: stole fire from the gods for mortals.
Pandora: box of evils // Eve.
Flood.

PASSION-MYTHS:
Adonis; Phaeton; Icarus; Hyacinth; Narcissus.

 OLDER HEROES:
- Perseus: thrown in the sea with mother; killed Medusa; saved Andromeda.
- Heracles: 12 Labors.
- Theseus (Athens): killed the Minotaur.

 FAMILY CURSES (SKELETONS IN THE CLOSET):
- Oedipus: killed  his father, married the mother.
- Orestes: killed his mother in revenge for the father.
- Medea: killed children to avenge the divorce.
- Hippolytus: was destroyed by stepmother Phaedra's passion.

 ROMAN LEGENDS: Origins and early days of Rome.
- Aeneas: escaped from Troy to settle in Italy.
- Romulus & Remus: nursed by the wolf.
- Sabine girls: abducted to make first Roman wives.
- Tarpeia: thrown off the rock.
- Geese saved Rome from the Gauls 395 BC.