Eris (pronounced EAR-iss) is the Greek Goddess of strife. According to most sources, she is the daughter of Nyx, Goddess of night, and Erebos, God of darkness, although Homer calls her the daughter of Zeus and Hera, twin sister to Ares, the God of war. Eris delights in causing trouble wherever she goes, and she is the last to leave the battlefield, soaking up all of the suffering that she has caused. It was an act of Eris that ended up causing the Trojan War—in revenge for not being invited to the marriage of Thetis, Goddess of the sea, and Peleus, a mortal, she cast a golden apple inscribed with the word kallisti (“for the fairest”) among the guests. The apple was claimed by the three Goddesses Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite, and they asked Zeus to decide which one of them it should belong to. Not wanting to get into the middle of that particular argument, Zeus gave the task to Paris, a mortal prince from Troy. Each of the Goddesses tried to bribe him—Hera with power over all other men, Athena with skill in war, and Aphrodite with the most beautiful woman in the world—and Paris chose Aphrodite. Unfortunately, the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen, was already married, and when Paris kidnapped her (with Aphrodite’s help), the Trojan War began.

Eris is the mother of a whole host of evil spirits or Kakodaimones, including Lethe (forgetfulness), Limos (hunger), Ponos (labor), Dysnomia (lawlessness), Ate (ruin and recklessness), Horkos (oaths), the Algea (pain), the Amphilogiai (disputes), the Androktasiai (slaughter on the battlefield), the Hysminai (fights), the Makhai (battles), the Neikea (quarrels), the Phonoi (murder), and the Pseudologoi (lies). It was these Kakodaimones who inhabited the jar that Pandora later opened, releasing them into the world. Eris’s name means “strife,” and epithets used to describe her include Hard-hearted, Abhorred, Frightful, Terrible, and Deadly.

Admete (pronounced ad-MEET-ee) is the Greek Goddess of unmarried women. She is one of the Okeanides, the 3000 daughters of Tethys and Okeanos, Goddess and God of the oceans. Admete was one of the Okeanides who were attending Persephone when she was abducted by Hades. Her name means “unwedded.”

Keto is the Greek Goddess of sea monsters and large sea creatures, such as whales and sharks. She is the daughter of Gaia, Goddess of the earth, and Pontos, God of the sea, and is the sister-wife of Phorkys, God of the dangers of the sea. As befits such fearsome parents, the children of Keto and Phorkys were truly horrors—the Gorgons (Medousa, Sthenno, and Euryale—winged sea demons with serpents for hair, whose gaze could turn a person or creature to stone); the Graiai (Pemphredo, Enyo, and Deino—three gray-skinned sea demons who shared a single eye and a single tooth between them); Ekhidna (a half-woman half-dragon sea monster); Skylla (a sea monster with six dog heads and twelve feet); and Ladon (the hundred-headed dragon that guarded the golden apples of the Hesperides). Keto’s name, which means “sea monster,” is also seen as Ceto, and other names for her include Lamia (shark), Trienos (three times), and Krataiis (of the rocks), also spelled Krataeis or Crataeis.

Akaste (pronounced a-CAST-ee) is the Greek Goddess of unpredictable behavior. She is one of the Okeanides, the 3000 daughters of Tethys and Okeanos, Goddess and God of the oceans. While many of the Okeanides were anonymous, some were mentioned by name and given dominion over something other than a spring or body of water. Akaste was one of the Okeanides who were attending Persephone when she was abducted by Hades. Her name, which means “unstable,” is also seen as Acaste.

Pheme (pronounced FEE-mee) is the Greek Goddess of rumor and gossip. Equivalent to the Roman Fama, she is a daughter of Gaia, and she carried both good news and bad. Since rumors were often said to originate with the Gods, Pheme was called the messenger of Zeus. Her name, which means “report,” was also seen as Phama, and the name Ossa (“rumor”) was used for her as well.

Eileithyia (pronounced ay-lay-THWEE-uh) is the Greek Goddess of childbirth. A daughter of Zeus and Hera, she is also ruler of the pain and length of labor. It appears that there were originally two Eileithyiai—one to hasten birth and one to delay it—but they were eventually conflated into one Goddess. Two of the more important births involving Eileithyia (and her jealous mother Hera) are those of the twins Artemis and Apollo and of the hero Herakles. When the Goddess Leto was about to give birth to Zeus’s children Artemis and Apollo, Hera kept Eileithyia from hearing her cries and attending the birth. The Goddesses who were helping Leto eventually sent Iris, Goddess of rainbows, to find her, and when Eileithyia landed on the island of Delos where Leto was, the birth finally began. In the birth of Herakles, Hera had Eileithyia sit with her legs and arms crossed while his mother, Alkmene, was in labor. When Alkmene’s maid Galanthis noticed what Eileithyia was doing, she deceived the Goddess by declaring that Alkmene had already given birth to a fine son. Eileithyia jumped up and, with her binding actions ended, Alkmene was able to deliver Herakles. For her trick, Eileithyia turned Galanthis into a weasel. Due to her importance in the lives of everyday women, there were many temples erected in Eileithyia’s honor across the Greek world. Eileithyia’s name, which means “reliever,” is also seen as Ilithyia, Eleithyia, Eilethyia, Eleuthya, Eleusia, Eleiuthya, Eileitheia, and Eileioneia, and the epithets Genetyllis (procreating), Lysizona (loosening), and Eukoline (content) were used for her.

Metis (pronounced MEE-tiss) is the Greek Goddess of good counsel. She is the daughter of the Titans Tethys and Okeanos, Goddess and God of the oceans. She is said to have been Zeus’s first wife, and was one of his greatest counsellors. It was Metis who gave Zeus’s father Kronos a potion that caused him to vomit up the other Gods he had eaten, leading to the war between the Titans and the Olympians. Unfortunately, Metis was too wise for her own good—she told Zeus that she would bear children to him who would surpass him in wisdom, and when she was pregnant, Zeus tricked her into turning herself into a fly and swallowed her. Inside Zeus, Metis continued to prepare for the coming of the child inside her, a daughter. She made a robe and a helmet for the girl, and the hammering of the helmet gave Zeus such a headache that he begged his son Hephaistos to use his ax to split his head open and relieve the pain. When Hephaistos did this, the Goddess Athena sprang out, fully grown and dressed in the robe and helmet that her mother had made. Metis remained inside Zeus, and continued to give him advice. Metis’s name means “counsel,” and the epithets Fair-faced and Lovely-haired were used to describe her.

Leto (pronounced LEE-toe) is the Greek Goddess of motherhood and the oracles of the day. She is the daughter of the Titans Phoebe and Koios, sister of Asteria, Goddess of the oracles of the night. Leto’s role as Goddess of oracles, symbolized by her modest dress and veil, was overshadowed when she became a mother, and most mentions of her in myth are in relation to her children. Where her sister Asteria had fled from Zeus’s lustful attentions, Leto went to him willingly, and may even have been married to him before Hera. When she was pregnant with Zeus’s children, the twins Artemis and Apollo, Hera chased her relentlessly and threatened anyone who thought to help Leto. Finally, her sister Asteria, who had turned into an island rather than submit to Zeus, offered her a place to give birth.

There are several versions of the myths surrounding the births of the twins. In one, Artemis was born first and then assisted her mother with the birth of Apollo. Some sources add to this that Artemis was born nine days before Apollo. In another version, Leto was attended by the Titan Goddesses Dione, Rhea, Theia, Themis, and Amphitrite. The Goddess of childbirth, Eileithyia, who usually came to oversee births, had not heard Leto’s calls because she was with her mother Hera on Mount Olympus, and Hera did not want her to help Leto. The assembled Goddesses sent Iris, Goddess of rainbows and the messenger of the Gods, to bring Eilithyia, and when she finally arrived the twins were born.

From this point forward, Leto was almost always mentioned in conjunction with one or both of her children. Leto’s name, which means “unseen,” is also seen as Latona (Roman version), and epithets used for her include Koieis, Koiogeneia, Koiogenes (all meaning “daughter of Koios”), Khryselakatos (with golden spindle), Phystie (grafter), Dark-gowned, Dark-veiled, August, Glorious, Queenly, Bright-haired, Lovely-haired, Rich-haired, Gold-tressed, Neat-ankled, Slim-waisted, Far-famed, and Twin-bearing.

Asteria (pronounced as-TARE-ee-uh) is the Greek Goddess of the oracles of the night, such as astrology and dream interpretation. She is the daughter of the Titans Phoebe and Koios, sister of Leto, Goddess of the oracles of the day. With Perses, God of destruction, she is the mother of Hekate, Goddess of crossroads and doorways, as well as the shadows of the night. Asteria was pursued by Zeus, but instead of falling victim to his embrace, she turned herself into a quail and flung herself into the sea. She was transformed into an island, at first called Asteria and then Ortygia (from the Greek ortux, meaning “quail”). Even as an island, Asteria was not safe—Zeus’s brother Poseidon pursued her, and the island moved around in the sea to escape him. When her sister Leto, pregnant with Zeus’s children Apollo and Artemis, was pursued by a jealous Hera, Asteria called to her and offered her a safe place to give birth. When Leto landed on the island, the seabed rose up and anchored the island in place. Apollo later named the island Delos (meaning “brought to light”). Asteria’s name means “starry.”

Selene (pronounced suh-LEE-nee) is the Greek Goddess of the moon, equivalent to the Roman Luna. She is the daughter of the Titans Theia and Hyperion, and sister to Eos, Goddess of the dawn, and Helios, God of the sun. Selene is depicted either riding a bull or horse across the sky or riding in a silver chariot pulled by bulls or horses, and she wears a crescent moon on her crown. With Zeus, she was the mother of Pandeia, Goddess of the full moon, and Ersa, Goddess of the dew. She was also the mother of the Menai, fifty Goddesses who represented the fifty lunar months of an Olympiad, the four-year span between Olympic Games.

The Menai’s father was Endymion, a shepherd who Selene fell madly in love with. In order to keep him with her for eternity, Selene asked Zeus to grant the mortal man a wish, and Endymion chose to remain forever young in an enchanted sleep. His sleeping body was put in a cave on Mount Latmos, and Selene visited him there every night. In later works, Selene became identified with Artemis, and formed a trinity with her and Hekate. Selene’s name, which means “moon,” is also seen as Selanaia and she was also known as Mene (month); epithets for her include Aigle (gleaming), Pasiphae (all-shining), Eileithyia (lady of labour), Hilaeira (softly shining), Phoibe (moon-bright), Kyanopis (dark-eyed), Boopis (ox-eyed), Rich-tressed, Fair-tressed, Radiant-faced, Far-winged, Long-winged, White-armed, Bright, Bull-horned, Bull-shaped, Rosy-fingered, Night-wandering, and Desire-struck.