Artemis,a Greek moon goddess

Artemis later became identified with Selene,5 a Titaness who was a Greek moon goddess, sometimes depicted with a crescent moon above her head. She was also identified with the Roman goddess Diana,6 with the Etruscan goddess Artume, and with the Greek or Carian goddess Hecate.

A hypothesis connects Artemis to the Proto-Indo-European root htos meaning “bear” due to her cultic practices in Brauronia and the Neolithic remains at the Arkouditessa. Though connection with Anatolian names has been suggested8 and confirmed, as from a “common-gender term for bear in Hittite”,9 the earliest attested form of the name Artemis is the Mycenaean Greek a-ti-mi-te, written in Linear B syllabic script at Pylos.10 Artemis was venerated in Lydia as Artimus.

In more traditional etymology within Ancient Greek, the name has been related to “” (artemes), “safe”,12 or “” (artamos) “a butcher”.