Something I've been wondering forever: why is the Greek demigod Heracles almost exclusively known by the name of his Roman equivalent, Hercules? Just about every other Greek mythological figure is known by their Greek name, but practically nobody says Heracles when referring to this figure.
I once asked a mythology professor I had in college about it and she literally just said "I dunno."
>>70726
What about Neptune?
>>70741
Poseidon is a very well known name.
>>70726
I personally think Hercules is catchier. Same way that Zeus is more memorable than Jupiter, or Hades and Pluto (because, let's face it, what comes first to mind of the everyman, the celestial dwarf/planet, the god, or the cartoon dog?).
>>70726
My completely unfounded theory is that "Hercules" sounds nicer to english-speaking ears; "Heracles" doesn't play as nice with English phonetics.
>>70726
Nips pronounce it Heracles.
Or at least, Gilgamesh does.
>>71998
this
heracles sounds too much like a girls name because it has "hera" in it
>>70726
Disney, maybe?
I'm german and in pre WWII lyric, epic or scientific texts I almost exclusively come across the greek name
It's I-rak-lis, it ain't so hard desu
>>72188
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_C-130_Hercules
I'd say this is more likely. Anyone know why it was called the Hercules?
>>72472
cause it was a heavy lifter and the assault variant has a fucking motar inside it, so it struck shit down like it was a god
>>70726
Romans fucking loved Heracles.
>>70726
I really think that is just your perception, or perhaps because of its usage in English?, I'd say over here in bumfuck nowhere, Europe, we use both. Heracles Almelo is a dutch football club for example.
Etruscan mediation in the Latin language since when the Etruscans adopted the worship of Hercules from the Greeks the second vowel in the name was deleted due to syncope, leading to his being called "Hercle"
so from this we can deduce that the Romans adopted the worship of Hercules not from the Greeks but from the Etruscans which led to his eventually being deemed "Herakles"
also the Oscan speaking people of Campania called him "Herekleis"
>>73025
sry a bit off there meant "Hercules" in the second line
it may depend on where you're located- both are pretty prevalent around me, though hercules might be favored in pop culture partially because of that silly disney movie.
>>70726
Probably because when it was introduced to the American public, it was done as Hercules because it sounds nicer, and since then has been solidified by Hollywood.
>>70726
My guess would be that he's better represented on the Roman side, as he fits the Roman ideal of strength way better than the Greek virtues.
Let's look at the gods of war as comparison: the Greeks sort of resented the aggressive mind of Ares and actually preferred the strategic mind of Athena as goddess of war, meanwhile the Romans make Mars the symbol of masculinity and succes, so we never hear of Ares, but Mars' a fucking planet.
>>72188
>>73227
I think it's been going on longer than the Disney movie, although that's certainly contributed. There was the 90's "Hercules" TV show here in the US, and I'm pretty sure some old Superman comics back in the day referred to him as a "modern-day Hercules" or something along those lines, although I can't find a source.
It's worth mentioning that America's had its Romaboo phases, although that wouldn't explain why it seems to apply to Hercules more often than other mythological figures.
>>70726
>Just about every other Greek mythological figure is known by their Greek name
Ask anyone who's the god of love/war/sea without specifying in which mythology and most will answer Venus/Mars/Neptune, they are more well known then their greek counterparts.
>>74003
Neptune maybe, I doubt the other two
