Who was the Greek god of panic and the wild?

Who was the Greek god of panic and the wild? Pan was the Greek god associated with panic, wilderness, shepherds, and flocks.

Pan belonged especially to the rugged landscape of Arcadia. He watched over fields, wooded valleys, mountain pastures, and herds, while also playing rustic music on the pan flute. Ancient images commonly gave him a human torso with goat legs, horns, and ears, emphasizing his connection with untamed nature and animal vitality.

His sudden cries were believed to frighten travelers, shepherds, and soldiers in lonely places. This supernatural terror was called panikon deima, literally “Pan’s fear,” and it provides the origin of the modern word panic. During the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC, Athenian tradition credited Pan with terrifying the Persian army.

Pan is often confused with satyrs or Silenus because all are linked with goats, forests, music, and revelry. They are not the same figure: Pan is a god, while satyrs are a class of woodland beings. His Roman counterparts included Faunus and Inuus.