Runes were developed approximately 2,000 years ago. One of the runic alphabets, Elder Futhark was created around 150 AD and is the oldest runic alphabet we know of. Mainly used by Germanic tribes, this pre-alphabet consisting of 24 runes was used to decorate jewelry, amulets, tools, and even weapons. This alphabet was used until about the 8th century 8 AD, when a more refined alphabet was developed and this one was forgotten. 
The Elder Futhark, or Germanic Futhark, was used by the Germanic tribes of Sweden. It consisted of 24 letters, starting with F and ending with O. The name of the alphabet itself comes from the first letters in the sequence:
 f |  u |  þ |  a |  r |  k |
In Sweden, the runes were used as decorations more often than other writing. Because it was so "rare", it was considered special, even magical. Jewelry was often inscribed with runes of magical significance, especially the "laukaz" rune--representing fertility. It seems the ancient Scandinavians believed the written word possessed power beyond any spoken word. The men and women who could read and write the runes were revered and respected by the rest of the people. Military and political leaders even sought their advice, believing them to be wise above all. Runes were believed to be a "gift from the gods".
Runes had an important role in both ritual and magic. Mythically, the Scandinavians believed runes came from the god Oðin, who ritually sacrificed himself to discover them. The Words of the High One (Hávamál) - translated from the original Icelandic by W. H. Auden and P. B. Taylor, says:
Wounded I hung on a wind-swept gallows
For nine long nights,
Pierced by a spear, pledged to Odin,
Offered, myself to myself
The wisest know not from whence spring
The roots of that ancient rood.
They gave me no bread,
They gave me no mead,
I looked down;
With a loud cry
I took up runes;
From that tree I fell.
For nine long nights,
Pierced by a spear, pledged to Odin,
Offered, myself to myself
The wisest know not from whence spring
The roots of that ancient rood.
They gave me no bread,
They gave me no mead,
I looked down;
With a loud cry
I took up runes;
From that tree I fell.
These are the words of Oðin himself. This is one reason why the runes were so respected among the Germanic people: A god sacrificed himself for them; they must be highly important. Because of this sacrifice, the runes were believed to be capable of increasing fertility, healing the sick, and other "magic".
The Scandinavians respected their writing system much more than we do today. They believed the runes to be a gift from the gods, and that the writing itself possessed powers beyond what they knew. Today, we never really think about it; we just write. We think of the words as working for us. Perhaps we should try to remember how long it has taken for our written language to develop and be more grateful for it. Writing, and the power to write, is, like the Germanic tribes believed, a gift from God which has enormous power, and should be treated as such.
I think it's interesting how the letters are shaped. They only have straight lines and that's probably because it would have been really hard to chisel circular symbols into rock and have it look good. The same goes for cuneiform. It is much faster and easier to use the straight edges of the writing instrument, tan it would be to try and carve out round shapes into clay.
ReplyDeleteEmily, that's a really good idea. I think it tied into the whole idea of how things are written effecting what is written.
ReplyDeleteKimberly, thank you for pointing out the importance and gift that language is to us. Like you said in your post, in ancient times, they seemed to appreciate language more that we do today. Maybe this had an effect on what was written down also.
Was it an appreciation of language or just that it was new and limited. Limited objects or skills have always been treasured. Writing and reading was mainly kept for those who had the money or the prestige to learn. It was also harder to get anything written (tablets and stone are definitely harder than paper) so they would have had to choose the most important things to write down.
ReplyDeleteI think it's both. The writing was treasured because it was limited, and the knowledge that was written was important because it was difficult.
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