Selene (given name)

Selene
Selene and Endymion by Victor Florence Pollett
Pronunciation	[selɛ̌ːnɛː]
Gender	female
Language(s)	Greek
Name day	April 2
Origin
Meaning	Moon
Other names
See also	Helen

Selene is a female given name taken from Selene (Greek Σελήνη [selɛ̌ːnɛː] 'moon';) in Greek mythology. Selene was an archaic lunar deity and the daughter of the Titans Hyperion and Theia.^[1] Her equivalent in ancient Roman religion and myth is Luna, Latin for "moon".

The etymology of Selene is uncertain, but if the word is of Greek origin, it is likely connected to the word selas (σέλας), meaning "brightness".^[2]

List of people

Notable people with the name include:

• Selene Luna (born 1971), American actress, comedian, burlesque performer, and model
• Selene Vigil-Wilk (born 1965), American singer and musician
• Cleopatra Selene (disambiguation), multiple people

References

1. Bibliotheke of Pseudo-Apollodorus, 1.2.2; Hesiod gives a list of the offspring of Hyperion and Theia in Theogony, lines 371ff. In the Homeric Hymn to Helios, Theia is given the name Euryphaessa, the "far-shining" one, an epithet that would apply to Selene herself.
2. Kerenyi, Karl (1951) The Gods of the Greeks (pp. 19, 197). 1951.