Writing gods?

[Beckahrah]

Doing a little side project, and I'm trying to find as many gods/patrons etc. of writing as possible, and I thought I'd share what I have in case anyone else needs it--or just finds it interesting.   I've found 29, but I'm wondering if anyone knows of any more.  Here's what I've found so far, alphabetically:


1.   Athena  (Greek)/Minerva (Roman)  – goddess of wisdom, the arts   
2.   Brahma (Hindu) - supreme god of the East Indian trinity; brought knowledge of letters to human race. 
3.   Brigit/Brigid (Celtic) – goddess of Inspiration, Poetry, Healing, Smithcraft and Martial Arts. 
4.   Cadmus (Greece) – brought alphabet to Greece
5.   Cangjie/Ts’ang Chieh (China) – Invented Chinese alphabet/characters   
6.   Fu-Xi (China) – Invented Chinese alphabet 
7.   Ganesha (Hindu) – god of wisdom, intellect, art; lord of beginnings & success; patron god of writers
8.   Hermes (Greek)/Mercury (Roman) – Inventor of the written alphabet, god of writing/literature, speech, travelers, treaties, dreams
9.   Inanna/Ishtar (Mesopotamian/Sumerian) - Goddess of Words, Language, Syntax and Meaning. 
10.   Itzamn/Itzamna (Maya) – invented writing & the calendar. 
11.   Manjushri (Buddhism) – bodhisattva of writing, poetry, and knowledge
12.   Muses (Greek) – Calliope – epic poetry/literature, Melpomene – tragedy, Euterpe – lyrical poetry/singing, Thalia – Comedy, Clio – History, Erato – erotic poetry.   
13.   Nabu (Babylonian) – god of wisdom & writing 
14.   Nisaba (Sumerian) –Invented writing
15.   Odin (Norse) - god of wisdom, poetry.  Inventor of Norse alphabet
16.   Ogma/Oghma (Celtic/Irish) – god of knowledge, eloquence & poetry
17.   Philyra (Greek)/Merope (Roman)/Klymene/Clymene/Hesione – goddess of paper, writing, healing and perfume.  Invented/taught humans to make paper
18.   Quetzalcoatl (Aztec) - serpent god; founder of Aztec culture; patron of priests, the inventor of the calendar and of books, and the protector of goldsmiths and other craftsmen
19.   Saga (Norse) – goddess of sagas
20.   Saraswati – (Hindu) – inventor of Sanskrit; goddess of creativity, wisdom, speech, learning, arts; patron deity of writers, poets, students, artists, musicians, etc.
21.   Sequoyah (Native American) - invented alphabet for the Cherokee and taught his people to read.  First with pictographs and symbols adapted from English, Greek and Hebrew letters, altered to represent spoken Cherokee language --???
22.   Seshat (Egyptian) – goddess of writing & history, inventor of written characters and mathematics, measurer of time, patron of architecture & libraries; record-keeper of the gods
23.   Sint-Holo (Native American - Cherokee, Chicasaw, Choctaw, Creek) - God of Language, Intelligence/Wisdom, Writing, and the Alphabet.  Horned serpent
24.   St. Frances de Sales (Catholic) – patron saint of authors
25.   St. Jerome (Catholic) – patron saint of librarians, archivists, and translators
26.   Tahmurath (Persian) – demons taught him the art of writing in 30 different languages in return for sparing their lives
27.   Tenjin/Tenjin-Sama/ Sugawara no Michizane (Japan) – god of writing, poetry, scholarship; taught humans how to write
28.   Thoth (Egypt) – god of wisdom, reading, writing, oratory, & scribes.  Inventor of hieroglyphics; “lord of the holy words”
29.   Wen Chang (China) –  God of wisdom, education, & literature

If anyone knows of any others, let me know!

[Magic_Seeker]

What a cool list!    I had no idea there were so many. 

I'll be watching for additions. 

[Locke]

Norse mythology nut here:

Hermodur - Messenger of the gods, somewhat of a Norse equivalent to Mercury (who didn't get a mention in your list, but I don't know if you're counting messengers).
Ratatoskr - A squirrel that runs up and down Yggdrasil spreading rumors and gossip between the worlds.

I wouldn't count Heimdall. He's the guardian of the Bifrost Bridge connecting Asgard (e.g. the heavens, where the hall Valhalla is located) and Midgard (the earth). If anything, I'd compare him to St. Peter.

[Beckahrah]

Mercury's there, next to Hermes.  I linked them in the same line, since they're pretty much the same guy, just like I did with Athena/Minerva.  And yeah, I saw the same thing about Heimdall.  I found one website that said he was a god of poetry, but every other one said nothing about it.  Same thing with the Sumerian god Enlil; one site hints at it, but that's not enough if all the others don't say anything else about it.

[Locke]

Ah, yeah, there he is. Tricksy little hiding god.

[Aiala]

Setting aside the amusing myths, here are my gods who actually write (wrote):

Jonathan Swift
Charles Dickens
Mark Twain
Booth Tarkington
Clarence Day
Tom Wolfe
Pat Conroy

Plus hundreds of (slightly) lesser deities... 

~A~

[detalani]

How about:
Apollo (greek)-God of civilisation and the arts.
Minerva(greek)-wisdom war and crafts
Freya-Norse god of wisdom and love (could count i suppose :S)
Enki-Sumerian lord of water and wisdom

I'll have a look for more. Pantheons are fun :D

[KalenO]

Bragi is a Norse god of poetry - he was the husband of Idunn, goddess of youth and keeper of the golden apples that kept all the gods young.

[Beckahrah]

Ooo!  Thanks, KalenO!!  :D