Fama
Roman personification of rumour and renown, equivalent to the Greek Pheme
The Myth of Fama
Fama was the terrifying personification of rumour, and Virgil's description in the Aeneid is one of the most memorable passages in Latin literature. He portrays her as a monstrous figure covered in eyes, ears, and tongues, who grows larger as she travels and never sleeps. She begins as a small, timid thing, whispering gossip, but swells to monstrous size, her head touching the clouds while her feet still walk the earth. She spreads truth and falsehood alike with equal relish. Virgil says she was born as a sister of the Giants, created by Earth in anger against the gods. Ovid also describes her dwelling — a bronze palace at the centre of the world, open on all sides so that every sound can enter, where rumours multiply endlessly.
Parents
Terra
Symbols
Fun Fact
Virgil described Fama as covered in eyes, ears, and tongues — she could see, hear, and repeat everything simultaneously
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
Explore Further
Pheme
🏔 titanfame, rumor, report
The primordial goddess of fame, rumor, and report, who spread news both true and false across the world.
Tyche
⚡ godGoddess of fortune and chance
Tyche was the goddess of fortune and chance — embodying life's unpredictability.
Fortuna
⚡ godLuck, fate, chance, fortune
Roman goddess of fortune and chance, equivalent to the Greek Tyche
Cassandra
🗡 heroprophecy
Trojan prophetess cursed by Apollo to always speak true prophecies that no one would ever believe.
Pluto
⚡ godUnderworld, death, riches
Roman god of the underworld and mineral wealth, derived from the Greek Plouton, a euphemistic title of Hades
Melpomene
⚡ godTragedy
Muse of tragedy who inspires dramatic works exploring suffering and fate
Melinoe
⚡ godUnderworld
A chthonic goddess of ghosts and nightmares who drove mortals to madness with spectral visions
Aphrodite
⚡ godGoddess of love, desire, and beauty
The goddess born from sea-foam whose power over desire could override the will of gods and mortals alike.
Amphitryon
🗡 heroThe mortal husband impersonated by Zeus
The Theban general whose identity Zeus stole to sleep with Alcmene — producing the hero Heracles from divine deception.
Hades
⚡ godKing of the dead
The ruler of the Underworld who received the dead, guarded by Cerberus and feared so deeply that Greeks avoided speaking his name.
Apollo Loxias
⚡ godprophecy, ambiguity
An epithet of Apollo meaning "the Oblique One," referring to the deliberately ambiguous nature of his oracles at Delphi.
Zelus
🐉 creaturedivine personification,rivalry
The divine personification of zeal, rivalry, and jealous dedication — one of the four children of Pallas and Styx who joined Zeus at the start of the Titanomachy and remained as his permanent attendants.