Runes
Runes were the letters used by the Saxons and the Vikings. They were supposed to have been invented by Odin. Most of the runes were like single modern letters, but a few represented more complicated sounds like 'st', 'th' and 'ng'. These are in modern English as well, although we now use two letters for them. Here is a translation table:
The Saxon language is sometimes called Old English. The runes had Saxon names. Some of these look similar in modern English:
 th thorn (thorn) |
 r rad (ride) |
 g giefu (gift) |
 h haegl (hail) |
 n nyd (need) |
 i is (ice) |
 j jear (year) |
 b beorc (birch) |
 m man (man) |
 l lagu (lake) |
 d daeth (day) |
 a aesc (ash) |
 st stan (stone) |
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© Jo Edkins 2009 - Return to Nordic gods index