Diana (mythology) influence of Greek and Etruscan religion. By the 3rd century BCE, Diana is found listed among the twelve major gods of the Roman pantheon by the poet Ennius. Though the Capitoline Triad were the primary state gods of Rome, early Roman myth did not assign a strict hierarchy to the gods the way Greek mythology did, though the Greek hierarchy would eventually be adopted by Roman religion as well. Once Greek influence had caused Diana to be considered identical to the Greek goddess Artemis, Diana acquired Artemis' physical description, attributes, and variants of her myths as well. Like Artemis, Diana
Artemis of Persian origin from *"arta", *"art", *"arte", all meaning "great, excellent, holy," thus Artemis "becomes identical with the great mother of Nature, even as she was worshipped at Ephesus". Anton Goebel "suggests the root στρατ or ῥατ, "to shake," and makes Artemis mean the thrower of the dart or the shooter". The name may be possibly related to Greek "árktos" "bear" (from PIE *"h₂ŕ̥tḱos"), supported by the bear cult the goddess had in Attica (Brauronia) and the Neolithic remains at the Arkoudiotissa Cave, as well as the story of Callisto, which was originally about Artemis (Arcadian epithet "kallisto"); this cult