Ancient Greek

Greek mythology is the foundation of Western literary tradition. From Homer's epics to Hesiod's Theogony, from the tragedies of Sophocles to the histories of Herodotus, the Greeks anchored their stories to specific landscapes — Mount Olympus, Delphi, Crete, the islands of the Aegean. Their gods were not distant abstractions but personalities with jealousies, loves, and grudges, dwelling in identifiable places. The Oracle at Delphi shaped geopolitics for centuries. The Labyrinth of Knossos may preserve memory of Minoan civilization. The cave where Zeus was born is a real cave you can visit. Greek mythology is remarkable for the density of its geographic specificity — nearly every river, mountain, grove, and spring had its associated deity or story.