Etymology
The name stems from a Proto-Germanic form reconstructed as *rūnō, which may be translated as 'secret, mystery; secret conversation; rune'. It is the source of Gothic rūna … See more

Elder Futhark (2nd to 8th centuries)
The Elder Futhark, used for writing Proto-Norse, consists of 24 runes that often are arranged in three groups of eight; each group is referred to as an Ætt (Old Norse, meaning 'clan, group'). The earliest known sequential listing of … See more

The modern study of runes was initiated during the Renaissance, by Johannes Bureus (1568–1652). Bureus viewed runes as holy or magical in a See more

The largest group of surviving Runic inscription are Viking Age Younger Futhark runestones, commonly found in Denmark and Sweden. Another large group are medieval runes, most commonly found on small objects, often wooden sticks. The largest … See more

The runes were in use among the Germanic peoples from the 1st or 2nd century AD. This period corresponds to the late See more

While Roman script would ultimately replace runes in most contexts, it differed significantly from runic script. For example, on the differences … See more

In addition to their historic use as letters in the runic alphabets, runes were also used to represent their names (ideographs). Such instances are sometimes referred to by way of the modern German loan word Begriffsrunen, meaning 'concept-runes' (singular … See more