Homeric Hymns
Ancient hymns include the Egyptian "Great Hymn to the Aten", composed by Pharaoh Akhenaten; the Hurrian Hymn to Nikkal; the "Vedas", a collection of hymns in the tradition of Hinduism; and the Psalms, a collection of songs from Judaism. The Western tradition of hymnody begins with the Homeric Hymns, a collection of ancient Greek hymns, the oldest of which were written in the 7th century BC, praising deities of the ancient Greek religions. Surviving from the 3rd century BC is a collection of six literary hymns () by the Alexandrian poet Callimachus.