*Nodens,*Nodons or*Nudens (reconstructed from thedativeNodenti orNodonti) is aCeltichealing god worshipped inAncient Britain. Although no physical depiction of him has survived, votive plaques found in a shrine atLydney Park (Gloucestershire) indicate his connection with dogs, a beast associated with healing symbolism in antiquity. The deity is known in only one other location, in Cockersand Moss (Lancashire). He was equated on most inscriptions with theRoman godMars (as a healer rather than as a warrior) and associated in a curse withSilvanus (a hunting-god).[2][3] His name iscognate with that of later Celtic mythological figures, such as theIrishNuada and theWelshNudd.[4][2][5]
Thephilologist and authorJ. R. R. Tolkien was invited to investigate the Latin inscription, and scholars have noted several likely influences on hisMiddle-earth fantasy writings, including the Elvish smith, maker ofRings of Power,Celebrimbor, whose name, like that of Nuada's epithetAirgetlám, means 'Silver-hand'. Nodens appears, too, in the works ofArthur Machen, as well asH. P. Lovecraft'sCthulhu Mythos.
The theonym *Nodens or *Nodons isreconstructed from the attested dative singularNodenti orNodonti, which is derived from aProto-Celtic stem*Nowdont-. It is acognate (linguistic sibling from the same origin) of theMiddle IrishNuadu and theMiddle WelshNudd (which turned intoLludd, apparently from an alliterative assimilation).[4][2][5] The Irish genitivesnodot andnúada(i)t (perhaps 'hand, wrist or arm')[6] also appear to be related.[4][7] It suggests thatNōdonti was the original form, by showing the back vocalism of the Celtic suffix-ont-. The development from-ō- to-ū- inBrittonic languages dates back to the end of the 3rd century AD.[4] AnOld Breton nameNodent (modernNuz) may also be added to the cognates, although the vocalism raises phonological difficulties.[8][9]
The origin of the name remains obscure, scholarJohn Carey noting that "it seems at any rate safe to say that no etymology so far proposed can be accepted with full confidence".[4] The Welsh nounnudd means 'mist, haze, fog', and bothLludd andNuadu are attached to the epithet '[of the] silver hand/arm', which could lead to a conjectural Proto-Celtic stem *snowdo- ('mist, haze'), fromProto-Indo-European *snewdh- ('mist, cloud'; cf. Latinnūbēs 'clouds'),[4][5] perhaps also attested in the Irishsnuad ('appearance, colour').[4] However, the sound shiftsn- >n- does not seem to be attested elsewhere inGaulish (although -sn- > -n- is known) and remains difficult to justify inProto-Brittonic (the sound change should have occurred later than the inscriptions).[4] Scholars have also linked the Celtic names with the stem *néud- (cf. Gothicniutan 'to catch, attain, acquire' andnuta 'catcher, fisherman', Lithuaniannaudà 'property'), associating*Nowdont- with the fishing (and possibly hunting) motifs of the Lydney remains and with the silver arms of Nuadu and Lludd.[4][7] However, this stem remains unattested elsewhere in Celtic, and possibly takes its origins from apre-Indo-European language.[4][10] A third alternative is the Proto-Indo-European stem *neh2u-t- (cf. Goth.nauþs 'need, compulsion, distress', Old Prussiannautin 'need'), which could be found in Proto-Celtic *nāwito- ('need'; cf. Old Irishneóit, Middle Welshneued), although linguistRanko Matasović finds the relation "formally quite difficult" to explain.[5]
Nudd's sonGwyn (ruler of the WelshOtherworld), his name meaning 'white', is an exact cognate of the Irish nameFinn, who is described as the great-grandson of Nuadu mac Achi (Finn mac Umaill) orNuadu Necht (Finn File).[11] Although the origin of the association remains difficult to explain, Carey writes that Nodons may be seen "a god of multi-faceted but consistent character: a shining royal warrior presiding over the chaotic in nature, society and the Otherworld (water, war, the devils ofAnnwn)."[12] In this view, the Middle Irishnúada,núadu ('hero, champion, king [poetic]?')[13] may be interpreted as theeuhemerized name of the Celtic deity,[5] with asemantic shift comparable to that conjectured forProto-Germanic*balþaz >*Balðraz ('white, shining' > 'strong, brave, bold' > 'hero, prince'; cf. Old NorseBaldr 'brave, defiant, lord, prince' and Old EnglishBældæg 'shining day').[14][15]
According toArthur Bernard Cook (1906) thetoponym "Lydney" derives from the Old English *Lydan-eġ, "Lludd's Island", which could connect it with Nodens.[16] However, alternative etymologies of Lydney are offered in other sources. A. D. Mills suggests "island or river-meadow of the sailor, or of a man named *Lida", citing the forms "Lideneg" from c. 853 and "Ledenei" from the 1086Domesday Book.[17]
The temple complex atLydney Park, situated on a steep bluff overlooking theSevern Estuary, is rectangular, measuring72 by 54 m (236 by 177 ft), with a centralcella measuring29 by 49.5 m (31.7 by 54.1 yd), and its north-western end is divided into three chambers 6.3 m deep. This imposing,Romano-Celtic temple building has been interpreted as anincubatio or dormitory for sickpilgrims to sleep and experience a vision of divine presence in their dreams. The site may have been chosen because it offered a clear view of theRiver Severn near the point at which theSevern Bore begins. Its position within an earlierIron Agehill fort may also be relevant.[18]
The temple complex was first excavated byCharles Bathurst in 1805, then reexcavated in 1928–1929 bySir Mortimer Wheeler andTessa Wheeler, who produced an extensive report of the findings at the site.[4] Although no anthropomorphic depiction of the deity has been discovered, a dozen figures of dogs were found at the site, presumably deposited at the shrine as offerings by pilgrims due to the healing symbolism associated with dogs. As one of these figurines has a human face, it is possible that the deity himself could have been perceived as taking the form of an animal. A bronze arm whose hand displays the spoon-shaped fingernails characteristic of someone suffering from iron deficiency gives further evidence of the healing attributes of Nodens. Findings at the site include bronzereliefs depicting a sea deity, fishermen and tritons, a bronze plaque of a woman, about 320 pins, nearly 300 bracelets,[a] and over 8,000 coins. Also present were oculists' stamps used to mark sticks of eye ointment, like those at Gallo-Roman healing sanctuaries in antiquity. The deity was further associated with aquatic and solar imagery, similar to other curative shrines of Roman Gaul.[3]
Several inscriptions to Nodens have been found, one on a leadcurse tablet reading:
Devo Nodenti Silvianus anilum perdedit demediam partem donavit Nodenti inter quibus nomen Seniciani nollis petmittas sanitatem donec perfera(t) usque templum [No]dentis Rediviva | To the god Nodens: Silvianus has lost his ring and given half (its value) to Nodens. Among those who are called Senicianus do not allow health until he brings it to the temple of Nodens. |
Other inscriptions identify Nodens, in various spellings, with the Roman godMars:
| D(eo) M(arti) Nodonti Flavius Blandinus armatura v(otum) s(olvit) l(ibens) m(erito) | To the god Mars Nodons, Flavius Blandinus, weapon-instructor, gladly and deservedly fulfilled his vow.[22][23] |
| Pectillus votum quod promissit deo Nudente M(arti) dedit | Pectillus gave to the god Nudens Mars the votive offering which he had promised.[24][25] |
| D(eo) M(arti) N(odenti) T(itus) Flavius Senilis pr(aepositus) rel(igionis?) ex stipibus pos{s}uit o(pitu)lante Victorino interp(re)tiante | To the god Mars Nodens, Titus Flavius Senilis, superintendent of the cult, had (this mosaic) laid from the offerings with assistance from Victorinus the interpreter[26] |
A silver statuette, discovered at Cockersand Moss (Lancashire) in 1718 and now lost, had an inscription on its base that reads:
| D(eo) M(arti) N(odonti) Lucianus colleg(ae) Aprili Viatoris v(otum) s(olvit) | To the god Mars Nodons, Lucianus fulfilled the vow of his colleague, Aprilius Viator.[27][28] |
Another reads:
| Deo Marti Nodonti Aurelius ...cinus sig(illum) | To the god Mars Nodons, Aurelius ...cinus (set up) this statuette.[29][30] |
Nuada Airgetlám was the first king of theTuatha Dé Danann, who was disqualified from kingship after losing his hand (or arm) in battle, but restored after he was given a working silver one by the physicianDian Cecht and the wrightCreidhne (gaining the epithetAirgetlám, 'silver hand'), and later a flesh and blood one by Dian Cecht's sonMiach.
The legendary Welsh heroNudd appears in theTriads as one of the three most generous men in Wales, along with his two cousins,Rhydderch Hael andMordaf Hael. His two sons are known asEdern ap Nudd andGwyn ap Nudd. Nudd may also be calledLludd, and seems to be linked to other figures of the same name, such as the son ofBeli Mawr inCyfranc Lludd a Llefelys.[2]
J. R. R. Tolkien, invited to investigate the Latin inscription at Lydney Park, traced Nodens to the Irish heroNuada Airgetlám, "Nuada of the Silver-Hand".[31] The Tolkien scholarTom Shippey thought this a "pivotal"influence on Tolkien's invention of Middle-earth, combining as it did a god-hero, a ring, dwarves, and a silver hand.[1] Mathew Lyons notes the "Hobbit-like appearance of [Dwarf's Hill]'s mine-shaft holes", and that Tolkien was, according to the Lydney curator Sylvia Jones, extremely interested in the hill's folklore on his stay there.[1][32] Helen Armstrong commented that the place may have inspired Tolkien's "Celebrimbor and the fallen realms ofMoria andEregion".[1][33] The name of the Elven-smithCelebrimbor ofEregion, who forged the Rings of Power inThe Silmarillion, means "Silver Hand" in Tolkien'sinvented Elvish language ofSindarin. Dwarf's Hill with its many mineshafts has been suggested as an influence on theLonely Mountain inThe Hobbit and theMines of Moria inThe Lord of the Rings.[34]
Nodens appears as a deity inH. P. Lovecraft'sCthulhu Mythos.[35] His appearance and action were based on a mixture ofCeltic mythology,Roman mythology, and the deity's appearance inArthur Machen'sThe Great God Pan.[36] Nodens first appeared in Lovecraft's 1926 novellaThe Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath, where he is an "archaic" god served by thenight-gaunts. He is depicted as somewhat benevolent and as opposing the frighteningNyarlathotep.[37] Nodens appears again in Lovecraft's short story "The Strange High House in the Mist", also written in 1926. When the protagonist, Thomas Olney, enters the eponymous house, he sees "primal Nodens, Lord of the Great Abyss" riding in a large shell that is carried by dolphins.[38]
InChristopher Paolini'sEragon, 'Argetlam' (lit: silver hand) is another name for thegedwëy ignasia (lit: "shining palm" in the fictional 'Ancient Language' made by Paolini for the series. It is adapted from the Irish wordAirgetlam.[39]
Though many of Paolini's names of persons and places are Tolkienian, he does make reference to other traditions relating to elves. Eragon is sometimes addressed by the name Argetlam, said to be 'an elven word that was used to refer to the Riders. It means "silver hand".' The word is an adaptation of the Irish Airgetlam with the same meaning, used as an attribute of Nuadha, king of the Tuatha De Danann.citingMacKillop, James (1998). "Nuada Airgetlam".Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. Oxford University Press.
Media related toNodens at Wikimedia Commons
