Etruscan mythology facts for kids

Etruscan god Typhon.

The Etruscans were people in Central Italy who became part of Rome. Many of the Gods below became part of the Roman pantheon.

Very little Etruscan writing has survived: Only two short, incomplete texts, and some grave inscriptions (writing on stone). No-one can read or write the Etruscan language very well now. Roman people wrote about the Etruscans but what they wrote is now lost.

The main three gods were Tinia, Uni and Menrva.

List of Etruscan mythological figures

Name	Information
Achle	in legend he is a hero of the Trojan War, from the Greek Achilles.
Aita	Also Eita. God of the underworld and ruler of the dead, like the Greek Hades and Greco-Roman Pluto.
Aivas	Also Eivas or Evas. Etruscan name for the Greek heroes Ajax, son of Telamon and Ajax, son of Oileus.
Alpan	Also Apanu. A goddess of love and one of the Lasas, and a ruler of the underworld. maybe the same as the Greek goddess Persephone.
Ani	God of the sky who lived in the highest level of the heavens. He name may be linked to the Roman god Janus. His female counterpart (similar person) was Ana.
Aplu	Also Apulu. Thunder and lightning god, often painted in art with a staff and laurel branches. He came from the Greek god Apollo.	'
Artume	Also Aritimi, Artumes or Artames. Goddess of the night, the moon, and death, as well as nature, forests, and fertility. She was similar to the Greek goddess Artemis.	'
Atunis	Also Atuns. The Etruscan name for the life-death-rebirth deity Adonis and Turan's partner.
Cautha	Also Cath or Catha. A sun goddess, and the daughter of the sun. She was also a goddess of beginnings and the dawn, and was also shown rising from the ocean.	'
Cel	Also Cilens or Celens. Earth god, same as the Greek Gaia. named either Ati Cel ("Father Earth") or Apa Cel ("Mother Earth").
Charontes	A type of demon, mabye his name is linked to Charon.
Charun	Also Karun. A demon who tortured dead souls in the underworld, as well as the guardian of the entrance to the underworld. He was often painted as a blue monster with a vulture's nose, pointed ears, red hair, and feathered wings, and killed people with a hammer, or sometimes an axe. He was also sometimes painted as a man with red hair and a beard. He was the same as the Greek God Charon.
Culsans	God of doors and doorways, same as the two-faced Roman god Janus.
Culsu	Also Cul. A female underworld demon who liked gateways. Her often had a torch and scissors. She was often painted next to Culsans.
Easun	same as the Greek legendary hero Jason.
Evan	God of personal immortality and one of the Lasas. Not the same as to the common Celtic and Hebrew names Evan.
Februus	God of the dead and purification. He was also worshipped by the Romans in the Februalia festival, which was held at the same time as the Lupercalia in honor of Faun. As a result, Faun and Februus were often thought of as the same god by the Romans. The month of February was also named after him by the Romans, and the Roman god of malaria, Febris, may have come from Februus.
Feronia	A little known rural goddess mainly known from Roman cults who worshipped her.
Fufluns	Also Puphluns. God of plant life, happiness, health, and growth in all things. He was the son of Semia and was worshipped in the Fufluna or Pupluna, which the Romans called the Populonia. He was worshipped by the Romans, but soon replaced by other Italian fertility gods. He may have been the same as Bacchus (Dionysus) under the name Pacha.
Hercle	Also Herc or Horacle. same as the legendary Greek hero Heracles and the Romans hero Hercules. Strength and water. The difference between the Greek and Roman names for this figure is because of the Etruscan power over the Romans.	'
Horta	Goddess of farming and agriculture.
Laran	God of war. In art, he was usually painted as a young man with a helmet and spear. Laran's partner was the love goddess Turan, same as the relationship of Ares, the deity from the Greek pantheon who Laran would later be the same as, and Aphrodite, the person who tarun was the same as. Laran also became the same as his companion, Veive
Lasa	Plural Lasas. The gods and goddesses who were with Turan, goddess of love, and were guardians of graves.
Lasa Vecu	Goddess of prophecy, liked the nymph Vegoia.
Leinth	Faceless goddess who waited at the gates of the underworld with Aita.
Lethans	Also Letham. Protector goddess of the underworld.
Losna	Also Lusna. Moon goddess, liked the ocean and tides. She is probably similar to the Greek goddess Leucothea.
Mania	Goddess of the dead in Etruscan and Roman mythology. not the same as the Greek goddess of insanity, Mania. She ruled with Mantus and was the mother of the Lares, Manes, ghosts, and other spirits of the night.
Mantus	God of the underworld and husband of Mania in both Etruscan and Roman mythology. They liked the city of Mantua, which may have got its name from Mantus.	'
Maris	God of farming and fertility, and a savior God.
Menrva	Also Menarva. Goddess of wisdom, war, art, schools, and commerce (trade and money). Same as the Greek Athena and Roman Minerva. Like Athena, Menrva was born from the head of her father, Tinia. Menrva, Tinia and Uni were the three ruling gods. Menrva did not like men; she thought that a man was a woman inside and should not be allowed to be a "man".
Nethuns	God of wells, was later the god of all water, including the sea. He was the same as the Greek Poseidon and Roman Neptune. The name Nethuns is likely be similar to Celtic god Nechtan and the Persian and Vedic gods sharing the name Apam Napat.
Nortia	Goddess of fate and chance. she liked a nail to be put into a wall in her temple during the Etruscan new year festival as a fertility rite.
Persipnei	Also Ferspnai. Queen of the underworld, esame as the Greek Persephone and Roman Proserpina.
Satres	God of time and necessity. painted as an old man carrying a sickle and an hourglass. same as the Roman god Saturn.
Selvans	Also Selva. Woodlands god same as the Roman god Silvanus and similar to the Greek Silenus.
Semla	Earth goddess and mother of Fufluns. maybe similar to the Greek goddess Semele.
Sethlans	Also Velchans. God of fire and the forge, often carrying an axe. Same as the Greek Hephaestus and Roman Vulcan.
Tages	Also Tarchies. God of wisdom. He was often at ploughing-time and taught the Etruscans divination. He is either the son or grandson of Jove, or he was born from freshly-plowed earth. He was painted as having two snakes for legs, and some people said that he was a daemon.
Taitle	Etruscan equivalent of the Greek Daedalus.
Tarchon	An Etruscan hero who, with his brother, Tyrrhenus, founded the Etruscan Federation of twelve cities.
Tecum	God of the lucomenes, or rulers.
Thalna	Goddess of childbirth and wife of Tinia. She was painted in art as a young woman.
Thesan	Goddess of the dawn. She was similar to the Roman Aurora and Greek Eos.
Thethlumth	God of fate and the underworld.
Thufltha	Or Thuflthas. A fury, She punished people for Tinia.
Tinia	Shortened to Tins. Main Etruscan god, the ruler of the skies, husband of Uni, and father of Hercle. similar to the Greek Zeus and Roman Jupiter.
Tiv	Or Tivr. Moon God, Mabye similar to German Tyr.
Tluscva	The two earth deities Tellus and Tellumo.
Tuchulcha	Female demon of the underworld. She was part human and part donkey and had hair made of snakes and a vulture's beak.
Turan	Goddess of love and healthy life and protector of the Etruscan city of Vulci. She was usually painted as a young winged girl in art. Pigeons and black swans were her sacred animals, and the Lasas looked after her. She was also the wife of Maris. She was similar to the Greek Aphrodite and Roman Venus.
Turms	God of trade and merchandise, and messenger of the gods. One form of him, Turns Aitas, was the leader of the dead. often painted with winged shoes and a herald's hat, very similar to Hermes and Mercury.
Tvath	Goddess of resurrection and love for the dead, similar to the Greek Demeter.
Tyrrhenus	An Etruscan hero and twin brother of Tarchon.
Uni	Main goddess of the Etruscan pantheon, wife of Tinia, mother of Hercle, and protector of Perugia. With Tinia and Menrva, she was one of the three main Gods. Uni was the same as the Roman Juno, whose name Uni may be derived from, and the Greek Hera.
Usil	Sun god, equivalent of the Greek Helios.
Vanth	Underworld demoness with eyed wings. She was the all-knowing messenger of death. She helped ill people who were dying, and breathed in good demons. In later times, she ws like justice. In art, she was painted with snakes, torches and keys.	'
Veive	God of revenge and a friend of Maris. In art, he was painted as a young man holding a laurel wreath and some arrows, standing next to a goat.
Veltha	Also Voltumna. The earth god, who later became the main Etruscan god. He was the protector of the Etruscans. His cult was mainly in Volsini. He was the same as the Roman seasonal god Vertumnus.
Vetis	Underworld god of death and destruction.
Vicare	Son of Taitle, came from the Greek Icarus.

Images for kids

Reconstruction of an Etruscan temple, Museo di Villa Giulia, Rome, which is heavily influenced by studies of the Temple of Apollo at Portonaccio (Veio)
Etruscan votive heads IV-II century BC found in various sanctuaries of Etruria
Rare Etruscan fanu located at Orvieto.
The Mars of Todi, a life-sized Etruscan bronze sculpture of a soldier making a votive offering, most likely to Laran, the Etruscan god of war, late 5th to early 4th century BC
Funerary home at Banditaccia with couches
Funerary home at Populonia
Sarcophagus from Siena
Sarcophagus from Chiusi
Sarcophagus
Burial urn
Urn from Chiusi

Etruscan mythology facts for kids

List of Etruscan mythological figures

Images for kids

See also