Teiwaz
Pronunciation: tea-waze
Literal Meaning: Tyr the god of law, justice, and order
Other Names: Tir, Týr
Phonetic Value: T
Rune Poems
Anglo Saxon Tír biþ tacna sum, healdeð trywa wel wiþ æþelingas; a biþ on færylde ofer nihta genipu, næfre swiceþ.
Tír is a token that holds pledges well with nobilty, it is always on course over the mists of night and it never betrays.
 
Norwegian Týr er æinendr ása; opt værðr smiðr blása.
Týr is a one-handed god; often has the smith to blow on coals.
 
Icelandic Týr er einhendr áss ok ulfs leifar ok hofa hilmir. Mars tiggi.
Týr is the god with one hand and leavings of the wolf and prince of temples. Mars is begging.


Teiwaz is the rune of justice and order. It brought victory to the righteous, and the downfall of the dishonorable.

In the rune poems Teiwaz is named after the Norse god Týr who lost his hand chaining Fenris wolf, the spawn of Loki.

Strangely, the Anglo Saxon poem seems to be describing the moon or perhaps a constellation. Currently any such historical association with the Norse god Týr is unknown. However Tiwaz was the name of a Luwian Sun god. And prior to that an epithet of Dyēus an early Indo-European god of the sun and sky. Both cultures were located in neighboring Anatolia.

The ending of the Icelandic Rune verse is unexplainable and likely culturally specific. Týr was romanized as “Mars” but why he is “begging” is unknown.

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