Nodens is a Celtic god worshipped in Britain; he is almost certainly related to his fellow Celtic deities, the Irish Nuada and the Welsh Nudd and Ludd. Nodens was a healing god honored at a typical Romano-Celtic healing sanctuary including accommodations for “incubation” (the practice of sleeping within the temple in hopes of receiving healing dreams), where he received offerings from those who prayed for his help. There are a number of images of dogs there, indicating an undetermined connection between the god and that animal.

Nodens was sometimes identified by the Romans with their god Mars by way of the interpretatio romana.

Myth
Unknown. Nodens may have shared some stories or lore with the Irish Ogma or the Welsh Nudd and Ludd but there is no way to know.

Cult
Nodens received votive and dedicatory offerings from his worshippers; otherwise little is known of the specifics of his cult.

Etymology
The origin of Nodens name is uncertain although it has been suggested that it derives from the Proto-Celtic *noudont- or “trap, catch,” which could relate to an image of a fisherman found at the Lydney Park temple. However, there is no generally agreed-upon meaning for the god’s name.

Region
Nodens is known from two sites in Britain, the most important of which was at what is now Lydney Park in England, the Temple of Mars Nodens

Literary evidence
Unknown.

Archaeological evidence
Cockersand Marsh, England; Lydney, England; Vindolanda, England