The
Pythia (, ), commonly known as the
Oracle of Delphi, was the name of any
priestess throughout the history of the
Temple of Apollo at
Delphi, which was located on the slopes of
Mount Parnassus, beneath the
Castalian Spring on the north shore of the
Corinthian Gulf in
Greece. Each new priestess was selected after the death of the current priestess, and after the legendary death of a man, was always a woman, who surrendered her name and position upon becoming the oracle. The Pythia, established in the 8th century BC, was widely credited for her
prophecies inspired by being filled by the spirit of God (or
enthusiasmos) by the God
Apollo. The Delphic
oracle may have been present in some form in Late Mycenaean times, from 1400 BC and was abandoned, and there is evidence that Apollo took over the shrine from an earlier dedication to Gaia. The last recorded response of the oracle was given about 395 A.D. to Emperor
Theodosius I, after he had ordered pagan temples to cease operation.