Lady Victoria Eclectic Pagan's blog: "The Roaming Roman"

1. They are the Roman goddesses of fate, similar to the Greek Moirae (Fates). Originally there was only one of them, a goddess of birth. The three are also called Tria Fata.

The Parcae

They include Decima, Nona and Morta. The oringinal one, Parca, derives her name from parere ('create, give birth') but later it is associated with pars (Greek: moira, 'part') and thus analogous with the three Greek Moirae.

2. She is the Roman goddess of the new year. In the class-struggle between the patricians and plebeians she chose the side of the plebeians.

Anna Perenna

Her festival was celebrated on March 15. The Romans give various explanations to the origin or her name, amnis perennis ('eternal stream'): 1, she is a river {nymph;} 2, her name is derived from annis {('year');} 3, she is a moon-goddess of the running year. She is also equated with Anna, the sister of Dido, who is received in Latium by Aeneas, but drowns herself in a river.

3. Magna Mater is equated with which Greek character?

Rhea

The Roman name for the Phrygian goddess Cybele, and also an appellation of Rhea. The full name is Magna Mater Deorum Idaea (Great Mother of the Gods), who was worshipped on Mount Ida. The cult spread through Greece from the 6th to 4th century, and was introduced in Rome in 205 BC.

4. How many members of the Consentes Dii are there?

12

The twelve major gods of the Roman pantheon, identified with the Greek Olympians. Six gods, six goddesses, they are: Jupiter and Juno, Neptune and Minerva, Apollo and Diana, Mars and Venus, Vulcan and Vesta, and Mercury and Ceres. Their statues could be found in the hall of the Consentes Dii at the Forum Romanum.

5. The Roman god of death and the underworld, either a terrible god or a gentle one. He is the god of oaths and punisher of perjurers. He is identical to the Greek Hades, both the god and his domains. OFTEN CONFUSED with Pluto.

Orcus

Pluto was in fact the Roman god of the underworld and the judge of the dead: most of the Greek stories about Hades are attributed to Pluto, but in fact Orcus is the character who is, by position, considered identical. Dis Pater is the Roman ruler of the underworld and fortune, similar to Hades. Egestes is the personification of poverty (Virgil mentions him as a demon of the underworld). Mors is the personified Roman god of death.

6. Cura is the goddess attributed with what?

The creation of man

Cura is a goddess who first fashioned humans from clay.

7. Sors is the Roman god of...?

Luck

Very little is know of him, as the goddess Fortuna (good fortune) is the more popular diety in this area.

8. Geminus is an epithet for whom?

Janus

It means 'Double', referring to his two faces. Janus is the god of gates and doors, beginnings and endings - hence represented with a double-faced head, each looking in opposite directions.

9. The Romans equate Diana with the Greek Artemis, and her brother Apollo with the Greek Apollo. What is the Roman name for the Greek Titan Leto, who is mother to Artemis and Apollo?

Latona

Luna is the personified goddess of the {moon;} Letum is a monster in the underworld (his name means {'death');} and Laverna is the goddess of unlawfully obtained profits - therefore a goddess of thieves, imposters and frauds.

10. Nox is the Roman god of...

Night

The Roman personification of the night, as mentioned in Virgil V, 721.

11. Who is the Roman goddess of truth?

Veritas

She is a daughter of Saturn. Her name is used in one of the most famous Latin quotations: 'In vino veritas' ('The truth is in wine'), therefore a drunk person tells the truth.

12. In Roman mythology, she is the personified deity of crossroads. She was represented with three faces, and sometimes identified with the Greek Hecate.

Trivia

Her name is derived from the Latin trivium ('meeting of three roads'). Once upon a time her name stood for the choice between equally important things, and only in recent times became identified with (considered) useless information!

13. She is the Roman goddess with whose help small children learn to eat.

Edusa

Paventia is the goddess who protects children against sudden {fright;} Potina is the goddess associated with the first drink of children (or children's {potions);} and Abeona protects children when they leave the parental house for the first time.

14. Her brother is the sun, and her sister the moon. Four of her sons are the four winds). According to one myth, her tears cause the dew as she flies across the sky weeping for one of her sons who was killed. She is also certainly not the most brilliant goddess as she asked Jupiter to grant one of her husbands immortality, but forgot to ask for everlasting youth (as a result, her husband soon became aged). Who is she?

Aurora

Aurora is the personification of the dawn, the Roman equivalent of the Greek goddess Eos. She is seen as a lovely woman who flies across the sky announcing the arrival of the sun. Aurora is not one of the better-known {goddesses;} however, Shakespeare refers to her in Romeo and Juliet.

15. The Romans were nothing if not very specific about their deities. Who ruled over door-handles?

Carna

A nymph who lived at the site where in later times the city of Rome would be built. The god Janus fell in love with her and gave her power over door-handles.

16. Sentia is the goddess of what?

Awareness

Specifically, she is the Roman goddess who brings about a young child's first awareness. We derive the word 'sentient' from her name, often used to describe animals or creatures who have awareness of themselves (sentient beings).

17. The name Alipes is used in reference to which major god?

Mercury

Alipes ('with the winged feet') refers to the shoes worn by the messenger of the gods, the Talaria (winged sandals).

18. Mens is the goddess of?

The mind

Goddess of mind and consciousness, her festival was observed on May 8. Her name gives title to the group Mensa, for people with extremely high IQ's.

19. The Larvae are...?

Spirits of deceased family members.

These malignant spirits dwell throughout the house and frighten the inhabitants. People tried to reconcile or avert the Larvae with strange ceremonies which took place on May 9, 11, and 13, called the 'Feast of the Lemures'. The master of the house usually performed these ceremonies either by offering black beans to the spirits or chasing them away by making a lot of noise. Their counterparts are the Lares, friendly and beneficent house spirits.

20. Africus, Aquilo, Auster, Corus, and Favonius are the Roman gods of?

The winds

Not content with 4 winds, the Romans had to have 5: Africus is the southwestern wind, Aquilo the North wind, Auster the south wind (which brought fogs and rain or sultry heat), Corus the north-northwest wind, and Favonius the western wind (the herald of spring).