Pantheons

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A collective of deities worshiped in a particular religion or culture, representing various aspects of existence and human experience
2. An assembly of gods associated with a specific belief system, reflecting diverse traits and functions within mythology
3. A group of revered divine figures within a religious framework, often symbolizing powers, virtues, or natural phenomena

Etymology: The plural "pantheons" is simply the plural of "pantheon," so its history is the history of that base word. "Pantheon" began as the name of a specific building: the Pantheon in Rome, a temple dedicated to the gods, which was later converted into a church. Its name comes from Greek roots meaning "all" and "god," so the building was, in effect, a temple to all the gods at once. The word reached English around 1300, when it still referred to that Roman temple. Its later sense, a collection of gods worshipped by a people, grew out of that building name. The plural "pantheons" therefore names several such collections, each one a set of deities gathered under a single religious system.

Synonyms: deities, gods, divinities, immortals, spirits