Vihansa

Vihansa is the name of a Germanic goddess written on a bronze tablet found in Sint-Huibrechts-Hern, near Tongeren in modern Belgium.

Name
There is general agreement among scholars that the theonym is Germanic; it probably belongs to the Tungrian dialect or language. Vihansa is most likely a Latinized form of the compound *wiha-ansu-, meaning 'holy deity'. Another reasonable translation will be "female deity of the sanctuary", because in the Proto-Germanic language the noun *wīhą means sacred area or sanctuary. Given scarce presence of any worship in temples among ancient Germans who preferred grooves and forests for conducting religious rites in the open, one may speculate that sanctuaries were dedicated to fire due to the fact that shrines' roofs effectively protect flames from bad weather the whole year around.

Dedication
The inscription was engraved by Q. Catius Libo Nepos, centurion with Legio III Cyrenaica, who dedicated his shield and spear to the goddess Vihansa, probably after returning to his homeland from a military service:

"Vihansae / Q(uintus) Catius Libo Nepos / centurio leg(ionis) III / Cyrenaicae scu/tum et lanceam d(onum) d(edit)"

Marie-Thérèse Raepsaet-Charlier supposes she must have been a warrior deity due to the martial offering mentioned in the inscription.