This runestone dates to around 400 AD but there are no written records that can tell us exactly when it was created. The first recorded use was found at a Viking settlement near Tängelgårda, Sweden. These ancient Norse runes have been found as far away as Iran, Turkey, England, and India. The first runes were carved into wood, bone, or stone and then painted with various colours to make them more visible.

This writing system is believed to have originated from the Old Italic scripts: a variation of the North Italic (Etruscan or Raetic alphabets), or the Latin Alphabet itself. The Elder Futhark has 24 runes, which are divided into four groups: eight Fehus Aett (F) six Ansuzs Aett (A) six Thurisazs Aett () and four Raidos Aett. The Elder Futhark (or sometimes just “Futhorc”) is the oldest form of runic alphabet. The word “Futhark” is derived from the first six letters, which are called “Fehu,” “Uruz,” “Thurisaz,” “Ansuz,” “Raidho” and “Kennaz.”

The Elder Futhark runes are a set of 24 symbols that were used for writing in Scandinavia and other parts of Northern Europe from about 200-800 AD. While there are many different types of runes, here I’ll be focusing on Elder Futhark. Reading runes can communicate messages of spiritual. Elder Futhark runes are also used for magic and divination through the use of symbols, numbers, and phonetic meanings. Each symbol is placed belongs to one of three sets or aettir ruled by Freya, Hagal, or Tyr. Writing itself was often seen as magic by other peoples who had no writing systems of their own. Elder Futhark runes are letters of an ancient Norse alphabet made up of 24 symbols. The word rune comes from an Old Norse term meaning a secret letter that was used for casting spells.

Runes elder futhark