List of war deities
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(Redirected from God of war)
"God of war' and 'War Gods" redirects here. For the PlayStation 2 game, see God of War (video game). For the video game series, see God of War (series). For the 1996 game, see War Gods (video game). For other uses, see Gods of War (disambiguation).
A war deity is a god or goddess in mythology associated with war, combat or bloodshed. They occur commonly in both monotheistic and polytheistic religions.
Unlike most gods and goddesses in polytheistic religions, monotheistic deities have traditionally been portrayed in their mythologies as commanding war in order to spread their religion. (The intimate connection between "holy war" and the "one true god" belief of monotheism has been noted by many scholars; including Jonathan Kirsch in his book God Against The Gods: The History of the War Between Monotheism and Polytheism and Joseph Campbell in The Masks of God, Vol. 3: Occidental Mythology.) [1][2]
The following is a partial list of war deities.
African mythology [edit]
- Agurzil, Berber god of war
- Apedemak, Nubian lion-headed warrior god
- Kokou, powerful Yoruba warrior god
- Maher, Ethiopian god of war
- Ogoun, Yoruba deity who presides over fire, iron, hunting, politics and war
- Oya, Yoruba warrior-goddess of the Niger River
Armenian mythology [edit]
- Anahit, goddess of fertility, birth, beauty and water; in early periods associated with war
Aztec mythology [edit]
- Patrons of war
- Mixcoatl, god of war and hunting.
- Xipe-Totec, god of force, patron of war, agriculture, vegetation, diseases, seaons, rebirth, hunting, trades and spring, the lord of the East.
- Tlaloc, god of thunder, rain, and earthquakes.
- Xiuhtecuhtli, god of fire.
- Huitzilopochtli, god of will, patron of war, fire and sun, the lord of the South.
Berber mythology [edit]
Celtic mythology [edit]
- Agrona, reconstructed Proto-Celtic name for the river Aeron in Wales, and possibly the name of an associated war goddess
- Andarta, Brittonic goddess theorised to be associated with victory,Over coming enemies,war
- Alaisiagae, a pair of goddesses worshiped in Roman Britain, with parallel Celtic and Germanic titles
- Andraste, Gaulish warrior goddess
- Anann, Irish goddess of war, death, predicting death in battle, cattle, prosperity and fertility
- Bandua, Gallaecian God of War
- Badb, Irish goddess of war who took the form of a crow; member of the Morrígan
- Belatucadros, war god worshipped by soldiers and equated with the Roman war god Mars
- Camulus, god of war of the Belgic Remi and British Trinovantes
- Catubodua, Gaulish goddess assumed to be associated with victory
- Cicolluis, Gaulish and Irish god associated with war
- Cocidius, Romano-British god associated with war, hunting and forests
- Macha, Irish goddess associated with war, horses and sovereignty; member of the Morrígan
- The Morrígan, Irish triple goddess associated with sovereignty, prophecy, war, and death on the battlefield
- Neit, Irish god of war, husband of Nemain of Badb
- Nemain, Irish goddess of the frenzied havoc of war; member of the Morrígan
- Rudianos, Gaulish god of war
- Segomo, Gaulish god of war
- Teutates, British and Gaulish god of war and the tribe
Chinese mythology [edit]
Continental Germanic mythology [edit]
- Wōden, god associated with wisdom, war, battle, and death, and also magic, poetry, prophecy, victory, and the hunt
Egyptian mythology [edit]
- Anhur, god of war
- Bast, goddess associated with war, protection of Lower Egypt and the pharaoh, the sun, perfumes, ointments and embalming
- Horus, god of the king, the sky, war and protection
- Maahes, lion-headed god of war
- Menhit, goddess of war, "she who massacres"
- Montu, falcon-headed god of war, valor and the sun
- Neith, goddess of creation, hunting and the dead; associated with war
- Satis, deification of the floods of the Nile River and an early war, hunting, and fertility goddess
- Sekhmet, goddess of warfare, pestilence and the desert
- Set, god of chaos, associated with war
- Sopdu, god of the scorching heat of the summer sun, associated with war
- Wepwawet, wolf-god of war and death who later became associated with Anubis and the afterlife
Etruscan mythology [edit]
Greek mythology [edit]
- Alala, spirit of the war cry
- Androktasiai, spirits of battlefield slaughter
- Ares, supreme god of war, uncivilized and untamed side of war, bloodlust, savage animalistic rage of combat, weapons of war, the defence and sacking of cities, rebellion and civil order, banditry, manliness and courage; the son of Zeus and Hera, commander in chief of the Olympian Gods in the Titanomachy, also known as the war of the Titans or Theomachy
- Athena, goddess of war, strategic side of war, wisdom, heroic endeavor, handicrafts and reason, second in command to Ares during the Titanomachy
- Bia, spirit of force and compulsion
- Enyalius, an epithet for Ares (referred to by the Mycenaean tribe of Greeks during the bronze age), but also sometimes identified as a separate, minor god of war
- Enyo, goddess of destructive war and blood, sister of Ares, Hera and Zeus' daughter
- Eris, goddess of strife and discord, twin sister of Ares, Hera and Zeus' daughter, who initiated the Trojan War
- Homados, spirit of the din of battle
- Hysminai, female spirits of fighting and combat
- Keres, female spirits of violent or cruel death, including death in battle, by accident, murder or ravaging disease
- Kratos, the personification of strength and power
- Kydoimos, spirit of the din of battle
- Makhai, male spirits of fighting and combat
- Nike, spirit of victory
- Otrera, wife of Ares, goddess of violence and chaos, mother of the Amazons, daughter of Eurus the east wind
- Palioxis, spirit of backrush, flight and retreat from battle
- Pallas, Titan god of war/warcraft
- Phobos, spirit of panic, fear, flight and battlefield route
- Polemos, spirit of war
- Proioxis, spirit of onrush and battlefield pursuit
Hawaiian mythology [edit]
Hinduism [edit]
- Chamunda, goddess of war and disease
- Durga, the fiercer, demon-fighting form of Shiva's wife, the goddess Parvati
- Hanuman, god associated with war, wisdom and courage
- Indra, god of war, storms and rainfall
- Kali, goddess associated with time, change and war
- Kartikeya, god of war and battle
- Kathyayini, goddess of vengeance and victory
- Mangala, god of war
- Matrikas, goddesses of war, children and emancipation
Hittite mythology [edit]
- Shaushka, goddess of fertility, war and healing
- Wurrukatte, god of war
Hungarian mythology [edit]
- Hadúr, god of war and the metalsmith of the gods
Japanese mythology [edit]
- Bishamonten, armour-clad god of war
- Futsunushi, god of swords and lightning
- Hachiman, Shinto god of war, and divine protector of Japan and the Japanese people
Lusitanian mythology [edit]
- Cariocecus, god of war
- Neto, god believed to be associated with war
Māori mythology [edit]
- Tūmatauenga, god of war
Maya mythology [edit]
- Tohil, god associated with fire, the sun, rain, mountains and war
Mesopotamian mythology [edit]
- Belus, Babylonian god of war
- Inanna, Sumerian goddess of sexual love, fertility, and warfare
- Ishtar, Assyrian and Babylonian counterpart to Inanna
- Nergal, Babylonian god of war, fire, the underworld, and pestilence
- Pap-nigin-gara, Akkadian and Babylonian god of war
- Sebitti, group of minor Akkadian and Babylonian war gods
- Shala, Akkadian and Babylonian goddess of war and grain
- Shara, minor Sumerian god of war
- Shulmanu, god of the underworld, fertility, and war
Mongolian shamanism [edit]
Native American mythology [edit]
- Qamaits, Nuxálk warrior goddess
- Winalagalis, Kwakwaka'wakw god of war
Norse mythology [edit]
- Freyja, goddess associated with love, beauty, fertility, gold,music, seiðr, war, and death
- Odin, god associated with wisdom, war, battle, and death, and also magic, poetry, prophecy, victory, the hunt, and music
- Thor, god associated with thunder, strength, defense, oaks, goats, lightning, storms, weather, crops, trading voyages, courage, trust, revenge, protection, warfare and battles
- Týr, god associated with honor, law (the "Allthing"), justice in battle, victory, and heroic glory
- Ullr, god associated with archery, male beauty, skiing, winter sports, single combat, and war
- Valkyries, goddesses who decide who will die in battle and bring the dead to Valhalla, the afterlife hall of the slain
Nuristani mythology [edit]
- Great Gish, god of war
Paleo-Balkan mythology [edit]
Polynesian mythology [edit]
- 'Oro, god of war
Roman mythology [edit]
- Bellona, goddess of war
- Honos, god of chivalry, honor, and military justice
- Lua, goddess to whom soldiers sacrificed captured weapons
- Mars, god of war and agriculture, equivalent to the Greek god Ares
- Minerva, goddess of wisdom and war, equivalent to the Greek goddess Athena
- Nerio, warrior goddess and personification of valor
- Vica Pota, goddess of victory
- Victoria, personification of victory, equivalent to the Greek goddess Nike
- Virtus, god of bravery and military strength
Semitic mythology [edit]
- Agasaya, "the Shrieker", goddess of war
- Anat, goddess of war
- Astarte, goddess of fertility, sexuality and war, associated with the Mesopotamian Ishtar or Inanna
- Resheph, god of plague and war
- Tanit, Phoenician lunar goddess associated with war
Slavic mythology [edit]
- Jarovit, god of vegetation, fertility, and spring, also associated with war and harvest
- Perun, god of thunder and lightning, associated with war
- Radegast, West Slavic god of hospitality, fertility and crops, associated with war and the sun; may or may not have been worshipped by ancient Slavs
- Svetovid, god of war, fertility and abundance
- Zorya Utrennyaya, goddess of the morning star, sometimes depicted as a warrior goddess who protected men in battle
Vodou [edit]
- Bugid Y Aiba, loa associated with war
- Ogoun, loa who presides over fire, iron, hunting, politics and war
- Pie, soldier-loa who lives at the bottoms of lakes and rivers and causes floods
References [edit]
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