History of runic alphabets (english)

Report History of runic alphabetsFulfilled by the second year student ofRostov State PedagogicalUniversityTranslation DepartmentNeustroev CyrilChecked byRostov-on-Don2001Indian inscriptions The fate of runes was much happy theirsense wasn t lost in the course of time, even when Latin alphabet becamedominating one in Europe.For instance, runes were used in calendars till theend of the 18-th c. Modern linguists think thatrunes posses another kind of meaning, which we cannot find in ideograms,hieroglyphs or in modern exotic alphabets this meaning exists insubconsciousness level.

Runes were the personification of the surroundingworld, essence of outlook. With the help of special links between runes a mancould express nearly everything, compiling them so called combined runes . Indifferent times runes could change their meaning, so we can say this adjustingsystem created dozens of meanings of one and the same symbol.Linguists find confirmation of this theory in the followingexample every rune in different languages had separate and original meaning,which didn t fully coincide with another one in the second language.Like all others components oflanguage, runes endured numerous changes in form, style of writing, system ofsounds and letters, which expressed them. We can say, that these alphabets tookwide spreading not only among Scandinavian and German tribes, but we can alsotrace its penetration in Celtic and Slavonic languages.

Now runes keep theirmain original meaning - in the beginning they were the symbols offortunetelling lore with sacred sense and mystic signs The general matter whythey didn t get wide diffusion before AD . Even the word rune corresponds as secret compare old Celtic run , middle welsh rown , modern German raunen . The last 1000 years in Iceland runes have been used for divination.In Anglo-Saxon England the hours of king council were called runes .The most important sourcesabout runic history are ancient texts of Scandinavian pagan religion Old Eddaby Brynolf Swesson and Lesser Edda by Snorri Sturlusson.

They were twomissionaries who discovered these manuscripts in the time of Christianexpansion.

Another documents containing the information about runes origin areNorthern king sagas Red leather and Icelandic kin chronicles.Tombstones,altars, pagan pillars called runic stones played quite catholic role inscientific researches - usually they are found dappled with miscellaneouswritings Gothland, Upland, Norway . The most famous is Cilwer stone, whichdates from the 5-th c. So we can find a lot of writings on jewels and weapon,for barbarians believed things had to posses their own names breakteats . German and Slavonic runicwriting was the letter system of peculiar look, accounted by the writingtechnique on bone, wood and metal. Nowadays we have the main runic alphabet,consisting of 24 signs, may be more, but another ones are regarded as variantsor combined runes.

Letters of any language can have several sources of origin,for a taste Greek language, which gave the birth to North Italian writing, hada good many of meaning for every sign. This tradition was inherited by Etruscanalphabet and later by runic one. However, Christian chronicles of 9-12c, knownas songs , revealed information about rune names and their meanings.

Everyrune in it conforms to one strophe, which begins with this rune and its name.In its turn, the name begins with its sound.The whole system is divided into 2parts futarks arises from the first symbols F, U, Th, A, R, K Old futark runes of Old German origin o.f. and Late futark modifications of o.f. inNorthumbrian, Frisian and Anglo-Saxon alphabets . 24 signs traditionallygradate into 3 groups of 8 symbols called atts part of land or kin compare Scot. airt , Ireland aird .Comparing scheme of differentfutarks and their developmentAnglo-Saxon futarkThe origin of futark remainsthe matter of severe debates between historians, linguists and philologists.There are two main theories 1 Runic writing appeared on the basis of Latinalphabet 2 cradles of these signs are in transalpine and North Italianscripts.

Scientists have a lot of historical facts, approving that Etruscanmerchants used this system.

Probably they brought it to the North 6-th c.B.C However some researchers think that runes cropped up in German tribesfrom ancient Rome Latin writing.Comparing 3 letter types we have 10 runicletters in Etruscan language, which absolutely coincide each other 5coinciding runic letters and 8 resembling ones in Latin. Latin, Etruscan andsome symbols from Greek originate from Akhiram alphabet 10c. B.C But theconstruction of runic alphabet RA different from others for example, orderof the first letters.

The main period ofdevelopment is one, when occult signs, used in Alpine region and in the North,became combine sole system.Many runic symbols were used as icons, showingvarious things and animals.

Some runologists suppose that even in the mostdeveloped variant they are close to pictures rune Fehu f symbolizes cattle,Thurisaz q l, thorn, Wunjo w weathercock, Algiz z elk, Zin xxs lightning, Yr u bow, Edhwaz m horse.The top of development andcomplete formation of RA system was in 1-2 c. AD. The number of runes inalphabet varied in the course of time. 28 sings appeared in the middle of the6-th c. In Britain where German runes penetrated in the 5-th c. withAnglo-Saxon invasion, Frisian futark was improved by the some additions andchanges mostly combined runes and numbered 29 units.

In Northumberland 33rune system existed already, with the mixture of Celtic runes. Whilst on theContinent o.f. went through the number of another changes. In the middle of the7-th c. the tendency to simplification appeared some runes changed ininscription, some were lost. To the middle of the 10-th c. the number of runesdecreased to 16 units and late futark formed.It was purely writing system,which wasn t used for fortune telling. It got wide spreading not only on the territoryof German Empire, but in the North too, for example in Denmark and Swiss. Thedifference between them was in writing technology Swiss ones were simpler,with short branches.

Apparently it can be explained that it gained everydayusing.This system, if not take notice of its disadvantages, was in circulationtill 12-th c. The next step in developmentof RA took place in the middle of the 12-th c. by adding dots to 16 sign system dotted alphabet . It was used along with Latin one till the 16-th c. We canfind its variants in Slavonic manuscripts.

Hipped and branchy RA weren t aliketo dotted one. Combined constrained runes. They attract attentionby their unusual form it is too difficult to regard it as ordinary symbol. Their use is quite miscellaneous in amulets, braketeats, and everywhere whendifficult magic formulas were necessary.Runes are bind on the strength ofcommon line . We cannot leave unnoticedsuch important stage of RA development as Ulfila s Gothic alphabet.

It has gotnothing in common with gothic variants of Romanticism period. The real Gothicwriting system was used by the Goths on Gothland Island and later on theterritory of Poland, Lithuania and even North Black Sea coast. In the 6-th c.gothic bishop Ulfila invented parallel variant of gothic alphabet.Creating it,Ulfila took the range of common Greek letters and perfected some runic sings,which existed already, with the aim to paint them with brush.

During 5following centuries it was used by west Goths in Spain and in the South ofFrance.But in 1018 Toledian counsel decreed to prohibit all runic alphabets asvane and pagan ones. It is clear from letter names and their order that UA isyounger than other RA. So we can trace Greek and Latin influence in the system.For example, futark structure was changed by adding 2 symbols to the first att.So UA contains 12 signs, which do not have analogs in Old Gothic Q, D, A, B,G, E, X, K, L, N, P, T. Comparing scheme of Gothic alphabet upperrows and Gothic runes lower rows .But, knowing all thesepeculiarities, we still can t answer to the question, from where runes came.So, a few scientists suppose that German and Slavonic RA had the same roots andoriginated from a same proto-language, for Etruscan theory is rather imperfect Scandinavians couldn t borrow it, because Etruscan writings were used too faraway from the North and in quite small territory.

The following theory isclosely connected with national migrations and mythology.

One of the legendaryScandinavian tribes vanes or veneds came to the North from the East, wherethey set up Slavonic tribe Vyatichi.We haven t got any historicalconfirmations, that Slavonic people didn t have writing systems before Cyriland Mefodius coming, so hypothetically we can believe that such system existed.Moreover, archeological researches showed that there were some traces of RA onthe territory of ancient Russia.

It differs from Scandinavian ones and looks likeas Latin and Greek letters but in common it coincides with o.f. So we can say that when Slavonic tribesdivided into non-relative kins, RA went through changes of different kind. Inthe end of the 1-st millennium BC veneds were vanished by Germanic barbarianhordes and proto runic system spread rapidly on the territory from the Blacksea to Gaul. As it is follow from archeological discoveries RA can be found onthe Slavonic jewels dated from 10-th c. AD, but it is difficult to say if theywere originally Russian or Scandinavian ones perhaps, runes on the jewelrieswere regarded as the part of design and in was copied blindly.

Different Slavonic variantsof Scandinavian runes.