Sacred Symbols: Runes

Jumping on the @witch.with.me train for Week two of their Divination Month, and we’re talking runes!

Runes are letters that were used to write Germanic languages before the adoption of the Latin alphabet.

The three best known runic alphabets are the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc, the Elder Futhark and the Younger Futhark, a reduced form of the Elder Futhark.

The word “rune” comes from the Germanic root run- meaning “secret” or “whisper” and can also be found in Baltic languages, meaning “speech”.

In Norse mythology the runes are seen as having a divine origin; the poem Hávamál explains that they came from Odin, as a result of self-sacrifice:

“I know that I hung on a windy tree nine long nights, wounded with a spear, dedicated to Odin, myself to myself, on that tree of which no man knows from where its roots run.”

I absolutely adore the runes, but my relationship with them is in its infancy. Our resident expert is @marget.inglis_witchcraft - check out her page for lots of information on them.

Do you use runes in your craft?

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