Woden

See also: woden

English

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Old English Wōden, from Proto-Germanic *Wōdanaz. Doublet of Odin.

Proper noun

Woden

1. The Germanic chief god, distributor of talents and god of wisdom and war; Odin, especially in his Anglo-Saxon form.
   • 1612, Michael Drayton, Poly-Olbion song 11 p. 175[1]:

     From Woden, by which name they stiled Mercurie.

Related terms

• Wednesday

Translations

the Germanic chief god

• Dutch: Woen m, Wodan (nl) m, Odin (nl) m
• French: Odin (fr), Wotan (fr)

• German: Wotan (de)

Anagrams

• Downe, downe, endow, nowed, owned, woned

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Old English

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *Wōdanaz. Cognate with Old Saxon Wōdan, Old High German Wuotan, Old Norse Óðinn. Doublet of Ōþen.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈwoː.den/

Proper noun

Wōden m

1. Woden
   • 10th century, Codex Exoniensis 341, 28:

     Wōden worhte wēos, wuldor alwalda rūme roderas

     Woden made idols, the Almighty made glory and the vast skies

   • c. 900, translation of Bede's Ecclesiastical History

     Henġest and Horsa wǣron Wihtġīlses suna, þæs fæder wæs Witta hāten, þæs fæder wæs Wihta hāten, þæs fæder wæs Wōden nemned, of þæs strīende maniġra mǣġða cyningcynn fruman lǣdde.

     Hengest and Horsa were the sons of Wihtgyls, whose father was named Witta, whose father was named Wihta, whose father was named Woden, from whose lineage the royal families of many nations originated.

Declension

Declension of Woden (strong a-stem)

Case	Singular	Plural
nominative	Wōden	—
accusative	Wōden	—
genitive	Wōdnes	—
dative	Wōdne	—

Derived terms

• Wōdening
• wōdnesdæġ (“Wednesday”)

Descendants

• Middle English: Woden
• → English: Woden

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Old Saxon

Alternative forms

• uuoden

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *Wōdanaz.

Proper noun

Woden

1. Odin
   • 9th century, Old Saxon Baptismal Vow, line 3:

     thunaer ende uuoden ende saxnote

     Thunaer and Woden and Saxnot

Descendants

• ⇒ Middle Low German: wodenesdach

References

1. "woden" in Köbler, Gerhard, Altsächsisches Wörterbuch (5th edition 2014)
2. "wodenesdach" in Köbler, Gerhard, Mittelniederdeutsches Wörterbuch (3rd edition 2014)