Ullr

In early Germanic paganism, *Wulþuz ("glory"; Old Norse Ullr) appears to have been a major god, or an epithet of an important god, in prehistoric times.

The term wolþu- "glory", possibly in reference to the god, is attested on the 3rd century Thorsberg chape (as owlþu-), and there are many placenames in Ullr and a related name, Ullinn, but medieval Icelandic sources have only sparse material on the god Ullr. The medieval Norse word was Latinized as Ollerus. The Modern Icelandic form is Ullur. In the mainland Scandinavian languages the modern form is Ull.

The Old English cognate wuldor means "glory" but is not used as a proper name, although it figures frequently in kennings for the Christian God such as wuldres cyning "king of glory", wuldorfæder "glory-father" or wuldor alwealda "glorious all-ruler".

Archaeological record

Thorsberg chape

The Thorsberg chape (a metal piece belonging to a scabbard found in the Thorsberg moor) bears an Elder Futhark inscription, one of the earliest known altogether, dating to roughly AD 200.