Semele ( /ˈsɛməliː/; Greek: Σεμέλη, Semelē), in Greek mythology, daughter of the Boeotian hero Cadmus and Harmonia, was the mortal mother of Dionysus by Zeus in one of his many origin myths. In another version of his mythic origin, he is the son of Persephone. The name "Semele", like other elements of Dionysiac cult (e.g., thyrsus and dithyramb), is not Greek but Thraco-Phrygian;, derived from a PIE root meaning "earth". Her son was a god who died in order to be reborn.
It seems that certain elements of the cult of Dionysos and Semele were adopted by the Thracians from the local populations when they moved to Asia Minor, where they were named Phrygians. These were transmitted later to the Greek colonists. Herodotus, who gives the account of Cadmus, estimates that Semele lived sixteen hundred years before his time, or around 2000 B.C. In Rome, the goddess Stimula was identified as Semele.
Read more about Semele: Seduction By Zeus and Birth of Dionysus, Impregnation By Zeus, Locations, Semele in Etruscan Culture, Semele in Roman Culture, Semele in The Classical Tradition