Names of Gothic deities

[ingemarn2000]

In Jordanes only Mercury/Wodan and Mars/Týr are mentioned at least according to the normal transcriptions of the Roman names. In any case these are the names bobbing up later i Northern Germania. Looking to the Gods mentioned in other sources we have only descriptions. Athanaric  ordered a wagon with a goddess driven around the villages  and ordered all to worship it and  when the Vesi crossed the limes a goðe and a gydja brought the holy relics of each kunja. Given the time the goddess probably was Ingun/Njärð/Nerthus and hence the chief fertility god was Ingr. Freyr and Freya are later names of those deities connected with the continental Wodan/Óðdinn. Most probably the Goths were Ingaevones concerning the popular cult but the chiefs worshiped Gaut who was later merged with the continental Woden/Óðinn (Mercury). Mars/Týr was probably a  replacement for ÚllR since Týr seems never to have reached further North  than Denmark. Þórr probably was already from the beginning since we also know the Baltic Perkuna. The kunja practized also ancestor cult.

This is of course qualified guesswork since we really not know.

To all of you a Merry Turn of the Solar Wheel/Solhjulet this Yule/Jul and a very good new year cycle in the names of the gods!

Jul, jul, jul as the Varangians cried dancing in a circle at the imperial court!

Ingemar

--- In gothic-l at yahoogroups.com, halsteis at ... wrote:
>
> Hi.
> I have been searching the archives, and the Internet, for the names of
> Gothic deities. I have the impression that there are no original sources
> for these, only reconstructions. Am I right in this?
> 
> By original sources I mean inscriptions in a Gothic context (on artifacts
> etc.) or in Late Antique text. That excludes Jordanes' "Mars" etc., as I
> am interested in the names more than the functions.
> 
> Halstein.
>


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