Olympus
/əˈlɪm.pəs/noun
Mount Olympus, especially as the mythical home of the ancient Greek gods.
Did you know?The name’s original meaning is unknown: ancient Greeks inherited Olympus as a sacred mountain-name and transformed it into the legendary residence of Zeus and the gods.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-Greek period
Unknown
*Olymp-
“A probable pre-Greek place-name element; its original meaning is unknown.”
8th–7th Century BCE
Ancient Greek
Ὄλυμπος (Ólympos)
“The name of Mount Olympus in northern Greece.”
8th–7th Century BCE
Homeric Greek
Οὔλυμπος (Oúlympos)
“The mountain or heavenly abode associated with the gods in epic poetry.”
Classical Greek
Greek
Ὄλυμπος (Ólympos)
“Mount Olympus and, by extension, the divine realm of the Olympian gods.”
Latin Antiquity
Latin
Olympus
“Olympus, the sacred mountain and dwelling-place of the gods.”
Modern English
English
Olympus
“The mythological home of the Greek gods; also the name of the real mountain in Greece.”