Names in Ancient Greece
Lately, I've got a few questions related to this topic, so I thought we could look at this from a broader perspective!
Let's get started!
Even as a kid, when I scarcely knew anything about the topic, I caught myself thinking "Damn, that's a cool name!" with my nose buried in another book about Greek Mythology, purely because of the sound or the way the word rolled off my tongue. There are plenty of amazing ancient names with beautiful meanings and interesting history, not just in mythology!
We can learn about them from archaeological finds and ancient texts.
Personal names reflect the concerns and values of a society. The Greeks could get quite creative with their names and their rich language certainly served them as an excellent tool to contain such things even in something as seemingly inconspicuous as a name. Taking a closer look at them may thus shine some light on certain aspects of the life of the Ancient Greeks as well as help us understand it better.
In this post, we'll look at different customs, practices, accounts, meanings and purposes of Ancient Greek names and later discuss their significance in terms of Hellenic Polytheism today!
The practice of naming
In short, the name was supposed to serve as a way to identify the individual. I think this is no surprise. However, there were different ways to go about it:
Especially in earlier periods, having just one name was the norm but some might've acquired sort of a 'nickname', often based on a distinguishable feature of the person (e.g. Antigonos Monophthalmos, the ‘One Eyed’).
Patronymic names were also common and played an important role in better identifying and legitimising the person (e.g. Hektor Priamides, 'son of Priam').
Origins of the individual could also be significant, although only in certain contexts, since if you were home, there was no need to indicate your origin. This was only used when abroad (e.g. Alcibiades son of Kleinias, Athenian)
Meanings of names
Meanings of Ancient Greek names could vary a lot. Here are some examples of the categories of words used:
Animals
Plants
Body parts & physical characteristics
Political institutions
MIlitary prowess
Naming after a god
Some individuals were named after one of the deities of the Greek Pantheon. Usually, the name of the god was not literally used to name the person, however, there were instances of such practice (e.g. the name Artemis), though it was still quite uncommon.
Theophoric names were much more popular. They could be derived from a theonym, the proper name of the god or an epithet and could take different forms:
simple adjectival forms - Apollonius, Demetrios, Artemisia
the term 'genes' (birth) - Diogenes ('Dio' = Zeus)
the terms 'dotos' and 'doros' (giving/gift) - Diodotos, Apollodoros
the term 'kles' (renown) - Diokles
the term 'phanes' (epiphany) - Apollophanes
the term 'philos' (loving) - Diophilos
the ‘neutral’ type based on the word for god, ‘theos’ rather than any particular deity (e.g. Theokles, Theodoros, etc.)
The deities also varied and 'trends' for such names also changed over time but overall names could be derived from all types of gods:
The Olympian gods - common (some more, some less)
Lesser deities and personifications (especially river gods)
Heroes & deified mortals
The Underworld gods - avoided (with some exceptions for Hekate - see additional information)
Customs & Traditions
Naming the first-born son after the paternal grandfather, and the second after the maternal grandfather
Naming of children after a parent (especially in Hellenistic & Roman times)
Amphidromia - an Athenian family festival, a feast celebrated on the fifth or seventh day after the birth of a child during which the newly born child was introduced into the family, and children of poorer families received their names (wealthier families held a naming ceremony for their children on the tenth day)
Modern Hellenic Polytheism
These are the things I've seen most commonly debated within the Hellenic Polytheist community when it comes to names:
Could I name my child/myself after a god?
Could I name an animal after a god?
I'll try to answer these questions as best as I can, based on my knowledge about antiquity and include some of my own opinions (+ give a quick summary of the questions at the end).
1. Could I name my child/myself after a god?
The short answer is yes, it's possible. From what I've seen, most people asking this question wonder whether it would still be respectful and in good taste. As I explained above, the practice was already seen in antiquity.
A theophoric name would be fine. It was fairly common to be named after a certain deity (the name or an epithet) in antiquity.
It's only natural to wonder if such a name would have any religious significance or perhaps indicate a relationship the person bearing the name might hold with the deity they're named after. The answer is, it was possible but this was not always the case. There is no evidence that for example, the men named after Dionysus were more devoted to the god than any other men, so one must keep in mind that bearing a theophoric name could have no perceptible influence on the religious behaviour of the adult Greek who bore it.
So when did the name have some form of religious connotations for the individual?
When visiting oracles, a decent amount of people asked about the birth of children. If the oracle answered something like "yes, you will have a child" the promised child would most likely be named after the oracular deity. We can see a very interesting example of this in one of the inscriptions at Delphi.
According to one of the verses of the inscription Apollo ‘heard the prayer’ of an anonymous couple and ‘granted them offspring in his response’ requiring a hair offering in return. In the eleventh month, after a trouble-free pregnancy, the wife gave birth with ease, helped by Lochia [Artemis], the Fates and Phoibos [Apollon], to a thriving daughter (with hair already reaching her eyes, and destined to reach her chest in the first year). The parents named the girl Delphis, ‘because of the prophecy and in commemoration of Delphi’.
R. Parker, Theophoric Names and History of Greek Religion
The girl was named after the site of the oracle of Apollo, rather than his epithet Delphinius [Delphic], but nonetheless, it was arguably the most important cult place of the god and his most famous oracle.
Another interesting observation: when a certain deity (most often Asklepios) was believed to have aided with the child being born, the child would presumably receive a theophoric name as well (e.g. some Asklepi- variant).
Overall, if you consider using a theophoric name it could totally have religious significance to you, (e.g. naming yourself after your patron etc.) but it wasn't a must in antiquity.
Using a theonym - the literal name of a god
Naming someone with the literal name of a deity was not common in Ancient Greece, however, it was not nonexistent. The name 'Artemis' was especially popular in this case.
There's a surprising amount of people who name their children after the deity (using the theonym), whether or not they realise these gods are still worshipped nowadays. The same goes for names of heroes, etc.
To be frank, it does not bother me too much, personally. However, there's an ancient belief that by uttering the name of the god one could be invoking them. Basically, the god could be aware of when someone said their name. So, for example, since the Gods of The Underworld or as Isocrates calls them, gods of "less pleasant names", were often feared, people would even refrain from saying their names out loud and rather addressed them by some forms of epithets. So naming a person "Hades" or "Persephone" would most likely not pass in antiquity (hell, in Euripides' Helen Persephone was even referred to as "árrētos kórē" [the maid whom none may name]).
Could you use a theonym? I suppose so, although I think the theophoric variant might be a safer option. Still, keep in mind that's a name of a god who's still important to people who worship them and that saying their name could possibly attract their attention, I guess?
If you're considering choosing a name like that, it'd be even better if you ask the deity for their permission in some way, especially if you actively worship the deity. I've met a few Hellenic polytheists who chose to name themselves after the deity they worship as another way to show their devotion to them and further honour the deity in their life, as well as other people who chose to name themselves after a hero because they admire the figure in some way or the myth about them has had some particularly important meaning to them.
My stance overall: You do you, just keep in mind the things I mentioned above, be respectful of the deities and the religion they come from etc.
2. Could I name an animal after a god?
This did not really exist much in Ancient Greece, although I was able to find a couple of instances when an animal was named after a hero or possibly after a personification.
The Ancient Greeks often formed close bonds with their animals, especially dogs. They did not usually give 'human' names to their dogs.
Here are some dog names which might serve as an example:
Chara (joy)
Lailaps (whirlwind)
Psyche (soul)
Bremon (roarer)
Augo (daybeam)
Lampouros (firetail)
Other animals were also given names, cows, e.g. Lepargos (of white coat), horses, e.g. Podargos (swiftfoot) or Bucephalus (ox-head). A notable mention goes to the elephants of King Antiochus III called Ajax and Patroclus.
More often than not, the names of animals were rather simple and did not have much to do with the gods.
However, IMO naming an animal after a god is fine in some cases. I came across people who decided to name their animals after a deity they worship, namely an animal that's also associated with/a symbol of the deity.
For example, if I had a dog I'd think of naming it "Ares" or some variation/epithet of this deity since the animal has been particularly associated with him, so perhaps it could be another way to show my devotion to him by caring for the dog, etc. although I'd still consider the things I mentioned above in the section about naming humans after gods and likely ask for his consent.
To sum those two questions up:
IMO as long as you're not using the name of the deity to somehow mock them, ridicule them or insult them and you acknowledge and respect who they are, it's fine.
Further reading:
Lexicon of Greek Personal Names (LGPN)
R. Parker, Theophoric Names and the History of Greek Religion
Xenophon, Cynegeticus
S. H. Lonsdale, Attitudes towards animals in Ancient Greece
