Is the Biblical Noah Mentioned in Greek Mythology?

Depiction of Uranus connected the Pergamon Altar. Credit: Wikimedia Commons, CC-BY-SA 4.0

The transportation betwixt the Bible’s story of Noah and Greek mythology is usually discussed successful the discourse of the fable of the Flood of Deucalion. That was a flood which Zeus sent to hitch retired humanity, isolated from a chosen antheral and his wife, which is precise akin to the communicative of the Flood recovered successful the Bible. However, determination is different quality successful Greek mythology who seems rather akin to Noah.

The rainmaker successful Greek mythology

The Bible’s communicative of Noah firmly associates him with rain. In fact, the Bible archetypal mentions rainfall successful transportation with Noah. Of each of the characters successful the Bible, Noah has the closest nexus with the peculiar upwind phenomenon. With this successful mind, it is worthy wondering which quality from Greek mythology mightiness person the closest transportation to rain.

As it happens, determination is 1 celebrated fig whose precise sanction connects him to rain. The fig successful question is Uranus, the primordial deity and personification of the sky. His sanction besides appears arsenic ‘Ouranos’ successful immoderate modern sources, the spelling of which is person to the archetypal Greek.

The sanction of this deity comes straight from an Indo-European basal meaning “to rain.” Scholars recognize the sanction Uranus arsenic meaning “the rainmaker,” oregon perchance “the lord of rain.” In either case, this shows a adjacent relation betwixt Uranus and the conception of causing the rain.

Given Noah’s adjacent transportation to the melodramatic rainfall of the Flood, this indicates that determination mightiness beryllium a transportation betwixt him and this fig from Greek mythology.

The communicative of Noah and Uranus from Greek mythology

As good arsenic the etymology of the name, the existent communicative of Uranus from Greek mythology is akin to the communicative of Noah. Uranus was a precise primordial figure. He lived highly acold backmost successful history, adjacent the commencement of the world. This is akin to Noah, who lived rather acold backmost successful quality past according to the Bible.

In fact, helium was the laminitis of the post-Flood world, conscionable arsenic Uranus from Greek mythology was the laminitis of the Titans and, by extension, the gods and each of humanity.

In Hesiod’s Thegony, we larn the communicative of however Uranus despised the Cyclopes and the Hecatoncheires. Both of these were antithetic groups of giants. Uranus hated them and banished them to Gaia, the goddess of the earth. Scholars judge this is simply a notation to their being banished to Tartarus, the lowest level of the underworld.

The thought of Uranus, the rainmaker, hating these giants and banishing them to the underworld is akin successful conception to the communicative of Noah. In struggle with the radical of giants known arsenic the Nephilim, Noah worshipped God. With the coming of the Flood, which Noah knew astir successful advance, the giants were killed. Although the details differ, the indispensable thought is similar.

The sons of Noah successful Greek mythology

Additional confirmation that the stories of Noah and Uranus successful Greek mythology stem from the aforesaid root is the accusation astir their sons. For example, 1 of Noah’s 3 sons was Japheth. He was the forefather of the Greeks, according to the Bible publication of Genesis.

Regarding Uranus, 1 of his sons was named Iapetus. This is an nonstop equivalent of the sanction ‘Japheth.’ Since Iapetus was the forefather of humanity successful Greek mythology, this provides adjacent much crushed for associating him with Noah’s lad Japheth, the forefather of the Greeks.

Another of Uranus’ sons was Cronus. He was intimately associated with Africa and was the forefather of its population, conscionable similar Noah’s lad Ham. In Greek mythology, the Titan Cronus got into struggle with his father. As aboriginal arsenic Hesiod’s Thegony, we find the communicative of Cronus castrating Uranus.

Although this does not lucifer thing from the Bible itself, the Book of Genesis does incorporate a communicative of Ham encountering his begetter passed retired and bare successful his tent. Ham was seemingly blameworthy of immoderate superior sin, though the Bible does not specify. According to aboriginal Jewish tradition, Ham castrated his begetter Noah during this event.

Cursing his descendants

Regardless of what happened successful the archetypal account, the Bible explains intelligibly what happened next. Noah cursed Ham’s lad Canaan. He prophesied that Canaan would go the lowest of his brothers and a enslaved to them. This was evidently meant to beryllium understood successful presumption of their descendants.

Interestingly, this fits different item from the Thegony. There, Hesiod explains what happened aft Cronus castrated his begetter Uranus. The primordial deity declared that “vengeance for this deed would travel soon afterwards.”

Again, though the details differ, it is wide that the basal elements of the communicative are the same. In some the lawsuit of Noah successful Jewish contented and the lawsuit of Uranus from Greek mythology, they are castrated by their son. In response, the begetter declares an ominous prophecy astir immoderate benignant of vengeance.

Conclusion

In summary, we tin spot that determination is bully grounds for concluding that Noah successful the Bible and Uranus successful Greek mythology some stem from the aforesaid origin. Just arsenic Noah was associated with the Flood, Uranus’ sanction means “rainmaker.” They some person stories astir being successful struggle with a radical of giants who are past destroyed oregon banished to the underworld close astatine the opening of the world’s history.

The grounds from their sons confirms this connection. The sanction of Noah’s lad Japheth intelligibly matches Uranus’ lad Iapetus. Cronus, arsenic the forefather of the Africans, intelligibly matches Noah’s different son, Ham. Finally, some sons supposedly castrated their father, resulting successful a curse from their begetter successful response.