Wotan was a nature god as were most ancient gods. Wotan was present everywhere and always in disguise. On his travels throughout the world he wore a big blue coat, which either is or represents the sky. He was present in water and all natural places were held sacred.
The Catholic church turned all Germanic nature gods into anti-gods. Papal propaganda and the zeal of monks to eradicate "heathenism" turned the Germanic god Wotan into a wild warring beast, Freya or Frigg into a witch, the Prussian god Deiw into Deiwel-Teufel, or devil.
Other names were Wodan, Wuotan and Gwodan (Old High German). Despite persecutions by Catholic church, the memory of Wotan persisted in legends and customs. In 1900 the concept of Woden was still current in Mecklenburg. Almost all German Gaue (Latin, pagi) had mountains and other places named after him under such generic names as Wodenesberg, Wuodenesberg, Godesberg and Gudensberg, Wodensholt etc.
Wotan is also known as the Allvater, meaning father of all, father of the universe (German: Welt-All (all the world)
Some German sacred formulaes ,known as "Merseburger Zaubersprueche" were written down in c 800 AD and survived. One starts as follows:
The Heroic poem , song of Hildebrand, "Das Hildebrandslied" also written down in the ninth century , is based on Theodoric the Great or Dietrich von Bern. The poem starts as follows:
A Poem in Stabreim (English ?)in ca 800 was written down in St. Emmeram in Regensburg?. This is called the "Wessobrunn Prayer", which talks of the beginning of the world and is one of the earliest Christian German poems about the "almahtico cot" (allmighty god).
Wotan was the son of Bor(r) or Bur(r) and the father of another powerful German god , named Donar? for the thunder, or in German language "Donner". Donnerstag(Donars day)or Thors day (Thursday) is named for Donar.
Wotan, Wili and We are often mentioned together. "Wille" is the German word for "will"(english) "Weh" is the German word (gothic wai) for "woe" (english: great sorrow, grief, misery)
For more information on Wotan , or Odin as he is called in Nordic languages see wikipedia : Odin. Odin traveled with the Nordic Germanic people to Iceland. In the 12st century the Icelandic Sagas were written down incorporating the Germanic gods into the fierce elements of the harsh and extreme Icelandic landscape.
Author Walter Hansen and photographer Eberhard Grames traveled through Iceland and discovered all the actual places described in the Icelandic Sagas. Photos and descriptions are in their Book : "Asgard".
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