ANCR-301 Lessons

The Anglo-Saxon Futhork
Today we will begin our study of the third and final group of Germanic runes. In the years to come, we will study other writing systems that have come to be known collectively as “ancient runes”, but only the three Germanic Futharks are actually runes in the original sense of the word.

This script was born early, as the Elder Futhark was still in use in some areas. However, the Anglo-Saxon Futhork (also spelled Futhorc by some scholars) developed from the Elder Futhark, just as the Younger Futhark did. In contrast to the Scandinavian runes, the changes in the language and alphabet in the British Isles (as well as in some regions of Northern Germany, known as Frisia) led to changes in the runic alphabet. As you may have noted, Anglo-Saxon Futhork went in the opposite direction. While its Nordic counterpart condensed into fewer symbols, the British Anglo-Saxon Futhork expanded. Depending on which source you encounter, the Anglo-Saxon Futhork consists of a generally agreed-upon 33 symbols. These include the 24 runes of the Elder Futhark as well as several additional ones. The Anglo-Saxon Futhork handout shows all 33 known runes that are attributed to this script through various inscriptions and manuscript texts. 

Due to time constraints, I won’t go into detail on why a few of these last runes have so many possible meanings. I will just say that, similar to the runes discussed in previous lessons, this is because many words had several meanings in Old English and, depending on which connotation you choose for your translation, a different meaning is necessary for the sense of each rune


The Old English Rune Poem
We know many of the meanings of the Anglo-Saxon runes from a poem written in Old English (Anglo-Saxon), probably during the 8th or 9th century C.E. Unfortunately, the manuscript that recorded this poem is no longer extant, as it was lost in the fire that destroyed the library it belonged to. However, before the fire destroyed this volume and many others, a transcript had been made by a scholar of ancient texts and it was subsequently published, along with other lost materials. Our current understanding of the Anglo-Saxon runes and their meanings is all thanks to this diligent effort.

Stylistically, the Old English Rune Poem is similar to the Old Icelandic Rune Poem, telling us the meanings of the runes through descriptions that are almost riddle-like, with the runic symbol standing at the beginning of each verse. 

However, since the original manuscript was burned, we cannot say for sure if this is really the structure of the poem, or whether the shapes and names of the runes that open each stanza are a later addition, either by the editor of the printed copy, or perhaps had been added in the manuscript by a scribe sometime in the centuries after it was first recorded.

The Meanings of the Runes
We will be taking a closer look at all three rune poems later on, but I thought it would be good to discuss some of the verses of the Old English Rune Poem today to explain some of the meanings of the Anglo-Saxon runes.

If you take out your handout, you will find the meanings of the runes in the fourth column. Many of the meanings of the Anglo-Saxon runes are the same or very similar to the meanings of the runes in the Elder and Younger Futhark. Of those runes that are shared with one or both of these other alphabets, only five differ significantly in meaning. They are the following runes:

The translation of the verses given here is just one interpretation of the original text. As you can see, if you study the English text (or indeed the original Old English verses, if you are familiar with this script and language), the verses are not a straightforward definition of the runes, but rather they have a riddle-like quality, especially when we assume that the original text only had the runic symbol instead of the spelled out name of each rune at the beginning of each stanza. Some of these riddles are easier to interpret than others, which is where some of the confusion about the runes’ meanings comes from.

The rune Os derives its double meaning from the fact that its name is a word in both Old English (meaning God, similar to the Old Norse meaning of the corresponding rune, Ass or Oss) and Latin (where it means ‘mouth’). In the 8th century C.E., when the Old English Rune Poem was most likely written, only magical persons and monks were able to write. At that time, the skill of writing was rather  closely associated with the Latin alphabet and language, and so the unknown scribe who wrote down the Old English Rune Poem would have been well aware of this dual meaning of the rune Os. This duality is demonstrated in the poem, as both meanings are plausible interpretations of the verse associated with this rune.

For those of you who remember from last year that “torch” was mentioned as a possible interpretation for the rune Kenaz (common in divination), this poem is the reason for that particular meaning. While Kenaz retained its original meaning of “illness” or “disease” in the Nordic languages (where it would be pronounced Kaun), in the Western Germanic language of Anglo-Saxon or Old English, the word mutated to Cen. With this shift in the name of the rune also came a change in meaning, so that by the 8th century, this sixth rune meant “torch” when used in the Anglo-Saxon territory.

Finally, I would like to briefly draw your attention to the verse that describes or possibly disguises the meaning of Peorth. You can see on your handout that there are at least two possible meanings for this rune in the Anglo-Saxon Futhork. Neither of these meanings is directly related to any of the meanings suggested for the Elder Futhark, and unfortunately this particular rune didn’t survive the change into the Younger Futhark, so there is little there to help us. Both “fruit tree” (perhaps a pear tree, from which perry, an alcoholic drink similar to cider, could be made) and “chessman” (which, being a reference to a type of game, may have a connection to the suggested meaning of “dice cup” for the Elder Futhark rune Perthro) would fit the description of something to entertain the knights after a hard day’s work, but a type of song or other form of entertainment is equally possible.

In addition to the 24 runes derived from the Elder Futhark, we also have stanzas in the Old English Rune Poem that cover some of the new runes. The following runes are all also included in the poem:

• Ac – Oak tree
• Æsc – Ash tree
• Yr – Bow
• Gar – Spear
• Ear – Earth/grave/ear (of corn)/dust

Conclusion and Extra Practice
With that, we have reached the end of today’s lesson. Without a doubt, this is quite a lot of information to take in, and in fact, I have only given you the extended history of a handful of these runes. You can be sure that the rest of the runes have had similarly complex stories, which is why there will only be a short translation assignment today. Please use your hand-out and study the sounds of the different runes carefully. 

For those of you interested in studying these runes and their associated verses in more detail, you can find a transcript of the entire poem as well as one particular translation here. If you want to know even more, let me know and I will try and point you in the direction of other reputable sources and translations. There is a lot of interpretation required with these poems, which means, depending on the translator’s views and interpretation, the meanings and translations can differ wildly.

Your assignments for today consist of a short quiz covering the material we learned today, as well as some transcriptions. Before you come to class next week, make sure to have read the sections of your textbook, the Rune Dictionary on the Anglo-Saxon Futhork. 

Vocabulary
Anglo-Saxon Futhork: a script used in the British Isles and Frisia from the 5th to 11th centuries. It consisted of 33 symbols.
Frisia: a geographic region which contains the modern-day areas of both the Netherlands and small parts of Germany.
Old English Rune Poem: a text written in Old English that details the meanings of the 33 runes of the Anglo-Saxon Futhork.  It was likely written in the 8th or 9th century.
Old English: a language used alongside the Anglo-Saxon Futhork, in England and Scotland which gradually died out by the 13th century. Also referred to as“Anglo-Saxon”.

Original lesson written by Professor Mathilda Stevens
Image credits here and to Mathilda Stevens