Home › Glossary › Letter T

Tyr

Mythology
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Norse god associated with law, oaths, justice, and heroic honor, famed for sacrificing his hand to bind the wolf Fenrir.

Detailed Definition
Tyr is the one-handed god who sacrificed his hand to bind the wolf Fenrir, symbolizing honor and lawful order. He represents courage in upholding justice. In poetry, Tyr stands for integrity, sacrifice for the greater good, and the rule of law amid chaos.
Example
Example in poetry:
In Norse myth as rendered in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s “The Children of Odin,” Tyr sacrifices his hand to bind Fenrir, symbolizing justice and courage; In W.H. Auden’s “The Age of Anxiety,” Tyr represents lawful sacrifice; In Seamus Heaney’s “North,” Tyr’s hand echoes in political compromise; In modern poetry, Tyr often signifies the cost of order; In Louise Glück’s “The Wild Iris,” Tyr’s wound mirrors necessary loss; In Tracy K. Smith’s “Life on Mars,” Tyr’s scales inform cosmic balance.
Additional Notes
Tyr, the Norse god of law, justice, and heroic glory, is renowned for his sacrifice—placing his hand in the wolf Fenrir’s mouth to bind the beast, thereby losing it—symbolizing courage, integrity, and the cost of upholding order; poets invoke Tyr to explore themes of oath-keeping, moral sacrifice, and the tension between justice and violence; unlike Odin’s cunning or Thor’s brute strength, Tyr represents principled action, making him a compelling figure in ethical or legal allegories within mythic poetry.
Also Known As
One-Handed God God of War and Justice Binder of Fenrir
Skip to main content