Mythology equivalents across cultures
Where the gods line up, and where they do not
Learn Wordly sets Greek gods, heroes and stories beside their counterparts in Rome, the Norse lands, Egypt, Mesopotamia and elsewhere. Each match carries a mark that says how well the sources support it, so you can see which pairings are documented and which are only repeated.
Three places to start
Greek and Roman godsFourteen standard pairs, from Zeus and Jupiter to Hades and Pluto.
Gods of warEleven war gods rated against Ares.
Flood myths comparedTen flood heroes, from Atrahasis and Noah to Deucalion and Manu.
The concordance matrix
Every page, with the number of rows it rates and how many fall under each mark. The totals count the 184 rated rows on eighteen pages. The afterlife page surveys seven systems and has no marks.
| Page | Compares | Rows | Attested | Scholarly | Popular claim |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pairs and names | |||||
| Greek and Roman gods | Roman | 14 | 4 | 10 | 0 |
| Greek and Norse gods | Norse | 11 | 3 | 3 | 5 |
| Greek and Egyptian gods | Egyptian | 14 | 7 | 6 | 1 |
| Gods in the calendar | Roman and Germanic names for days and months | 14 | 4 | 9 | 1 |
| Planets named after gods | Roman and Greek planet names | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Roles | |||||
| Gods of war | Greek against Roman, Norse, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, other traditions | 11 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| Underworld rulers | Greek against Roman, Norse, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, other traditions | 10 | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| Love and beauty goddesses | Greek against Roman, Norse, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, other traditions | 9 | 1 | 7 | 1 |
| Sky and thunder gods | Greek against Roman, Norse, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, other traditions | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Sun and moon deities | Greek against Roman, Norse, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, other traditions | 10 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| Sea and water gods | Greek against Roman, Norse, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, other traditions | 8 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| Trickster and messenger gods | Greek against Roman, Norse, Egyptian, other traditions | 9 | 3 | 2 | 4 |
| Craft and smith gods | Greek against Roman, Norse, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, other traditions | 7 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| Earth and harvest goddesses | Greek against Roman, Norse, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, other traditions | 10 | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| Stories | |||||
| Creation myths compared | Babylonian, Greek, Egyptian, Norse, Genesis and Chinese accounts | 10 | 1 | 7 | 2 |
| Flood myths compared | Mesopotamian, Genesis, Greek, Indian, Persian, Chinese and Native American accounts | 10 | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| Afterlife realms and judgment | Greek, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, Norse and other afterlife systems | 7 systems | Not rated: a survey of seven afterlife systems | ||
| Heroes across cultures | Greek against Roman, Norse, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, other traditions | 9 | 3 | 2 | 4 |
| Mythical creatures and their counterparts | Greek against Norse, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, other traditions | 10 | 2 | 5 | 3 |
| All rated rows | 184 | 47 | 79 | 58 | |
What the marks mean
Attested A named ancient writer, inscription or documented cult or legal act makes the match.
Scholarly A reference page records the comparison and gives no early source for it.
Popular claim No page read for the article records the match.
The full method is on How We Verify. Learn Wordly is an independent site run by Muneeb Khan; you can read more on the About page.