What Are Runes?

Runes are the letters of the ancient Germanic writing systems used by Norse, Anglo-Saxon, and other Germanic peoples from roughly the 2nd to the 15th centuries AD. But to describe runes merely as "letters" is to miss much of their significance. In Norse culture, runes were understood to be more than a communication tool — they were believed to contain inherent power. The word rún itself means "secret" or "mystery" in Old Norse.

According to the Hávamál — one of the poems of the Poetic Edda — Odin discovered the runes by hanging himself on Yggdrasil for nine days and nights, wounded by a spear, peering downward until the runes revealed themselves to him. This origin myth underscores how seriously the Norse took runic knowledge.

The Elder Futhark

The oldest and most widely used runic alphabet is called the Elder Futhark, named after its first six letters: F, U, Þ, A, R, K. It consists of 24 runes and was in use from approximately the 2nd to the 8th centuries AD. It was the writing system used during the Migration Period and the early Viking Age.

The 24 runes are divided into three groups of eight called Ætts (families):

Freyr's Ætt (First Eight)

  • Fehu (ᚠ) — Cattle, wealth, abundance; associated with prosperity and mobile assets.
  • Uruz (ᚢ) — Aurochs (wild ox); strength, vitality, primal force.
  • Thurisaz (ᚦ) — Giant or thorn; danger, defense, directed force.
  • Ansuz (ᚨ) — A god (Odin); communication, wisdom, divine breath.
  • Raidho (ᚱ) — Riding or journey; travel, rhythm, right action.
  • Kenaz (ᚲ) — Torch; knowledge, creativity, controlled fire.
  • Gebo (ᚷ) — Gift; generosity, partnership, exchange.
  • Wunjo (ᚹ) — Joy; happiness, harmony, well-being.

Heimdall's Ætt (Second Eight)

  • Hagalaz (ᚺ) — Hail; disruption, natural forces, crisis leading to transformation.
  • Naudhiz (ᚾ) — Need; necessity, constraint, willpower under pressure.
  • Isaz (ᛁ) — Ice; stillness, concentration, patience.
  • Jera (ᛃ) — Year/harvest; cycles, reward for effort, natural law.
  • Eihwaz (ᛇ) — Yew tree; endurance, death and rebirth, Yggdrasil.
  • Perthro (ᛈ) — Lot-cup or fate; chance, hidden knowledge, mystery.
  • Algiz (ᛉ) — Elk or protection; defense, connection to the divine.
  • Sowilo (ᛊ) — Sun; success, vitality, clarity of purpose.

Tyr's Ætt (Third Eight)

  • Tiwaz (ᛏ) — The god Tyr; justice, sacrifice, victory.
  • Berkano (ᛒ) — Birch tree; growth, fertility, new beginnings.
  • Ehwaz (ᛖ) — Horse; partnership, trust, swift movement.
  • Mannaz (ᛗ) — Mankind; the self, community, human intelligence.
  • Laguz (ᛚ) — Water or lake; flow, intuition, the unconscious.
  • Ingwaz (ᛜ) — The god Ing/Freyr; fertility, completion, inner work.
  • Dagaz (ᛞ) — Day; breakthrough, awakening, transformation.
  • Othala (ᛟ) — Ancestral estate; heritage, inherited values, home.

How Runes Were Used

Runes served multiple practical and ritual purposes in Norse society:

  • Inscriptions — carved onto runestones to commemorate the dead, record deeds, or mark territory.
  • Magic and protection — inscribed on weapons, amulets, and ships to invoke power or ward off harm.
  • Divination — cast or drawn to seek guidance from the gods.
  • Communication — used in messages, though runic literacy was likely limited to a specialist class.

After the Elder Futhark, a simplified 16-rune alphabet called the Younger Futhark emerged around 800 AD and became the dominant script of the Viking Age proper. Paradoxically, reducing the number of letters made it less efficient as a writing system — suggesting that during the Viking Age, runes were valued more for their symbolic power than as a general-purpose alphabet.