Halfdan Wrote This: a Brief history of the Elder Futhark Runes

In 1964, a runic inscription was discovered on a high parapet in the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. The inscription was very worn and hard to read, but for decades, many people thought it was something holy or magical inscribed on the wall. After much research and careful examination, the runes were translated as “Halfdan was here” or “Halfdan wrote this.” We may not know anything about Halfdan other than his name, he could inscribe runes, and he was there sometime around the 11th century, but they are an example of the ancient writing system known as the Runes.

In Norse mythology, Odin discovered the runes in his relentless search for knowledge when he sacrificed himself on Yggdrasil, the World Tree. According to the legends, he hung himself from the branches with the view of the Well of Urd. He knew that the Norns had knowledge that others didn’t, but they wouldn’t share the source of that knowledge. From his position in Yggdrasil, he suffered for nine days and refused any assistance to lessen his suffering. During this time, the Well of Urd revealed many things to Odin, such as the spirit of an ancient god who taught Odin the Nine Magical Songs, and the Nine Words of great power were revealed to him. Odin continued his ordeal because he believed that there was more knowledge to be revealed. When he was on the verge of death on the Nineth Day, the Well revealed the runes to the god. With that knowledge, Odin screamed and fell from the tree. Through his great sacrifice he learned the writing system that contained some of the greatest powers in the Universe.

But where did the runes really come from? The truth isn’t as epic in any sense of the word. Truthfully, we don’t know where the runes came from, there is a lot of conjecture, but not real evidence. . Some linguists believe that runes may have evolved from either the Latin alphabet or the Etruscan alphabet when soldiers and travelers came in contact with the Goths who lived in what is now Eastern Germany. The meaning of the word “rune” is “mysterious” or “hidden secret.”

In Germania , written by Roman traveler and scholar, Tacitus, there is a mention of seeing the people in an unknown region of modern Germany using a divination system by casting lots with strips of wood or stone that had symbols marked on them. His writing never describes the symbols or gives us any details about the nature of the divinations being done. Historians believe that this may be the earliest description of runes in use, but many scholars are not certain that Tacitus was talking about runes.

“They attach the highest importance to the taking of auspices and casting lots. Their usual procedure with the lot is simple. They cut off a branch from a nut-bearing tree and slice it into strips these they mark with different signs and throw them at random onto a white cloth. Then the state’s priest, if it is an official consultation, or the father of the family, in a private one, offers prayer to the gods and looking up towards heaven picks up three strips, one at a time, and, according to which sign they have previously been marked with, makes his interpretation. If the lots forbid an undertaking, there is no deliberation that day about the matter in question. If they allow it, further confirmation is required by taking auspices.” -Tacitus, Germania

The earliest known inscription using the runes is the Svingerud Runestone carved around 150 CE. The stone was found in a grave just west of modern Oslo, Norway. It features the Elder Futhark, and the language used was Proto-Norse. The inscription was a transliterated into the Latin alphabet was then translated to be discussing a woman named “Idiberung” or “Idibergu.” It is currently housed at the University of Oslo where it is being studied.

It was believed that the runes of the Elder Futhark were fully developed by the early 5th century. The Kylver Stone is the first known instance where the runes are arranged in their modern aett arrangement. This stone dates from around the year 400 CE and lists all the runes. It was discovered near a farm in Kylver, Gotland, in what was an ancient cemetery. The runes were written on the underside of the stone and were not visible from above. Because of the placement of the writing, it has been suggested that the inscription was a charm to pacify the spirit of a dead man.

By the time the Norse lands were largely Christianized in the 1100’s CE, the use of runes as an educated person’s writing system was replaced by the Latin Alphabet. However, the writing system survived on for centuries more as decorative features and as part of Rune Calendars. Examples of runes can be found on shield bosses and sword handles.

The modern rune revival in interest in using runes as divination tools began in the 18th century. In the Late 19th century and early 20th century, Austrian occultist, Guido von List took an interest in the runes. In 1908, he published a book called Geheimnis der Runen (The Secret of the Runes). Other German occultist took up the study of runes and its popularity grew. Unfortunately, the rise in popularity of the Runes caught the attention of Nazi occultist and they began to use it to justify their racist views. The Nazi’s were fond of using runes as the insignia of their organizations and going as far as to invent a few runes of their own.

Runes went out of style after WWII until the 1980s. The rise of the Neo-pagan movement led to a renewed interest in Norse mythology and history. Several authors created systems to use the runes in divination, most notably authors Ralph Blum, Nigel Pennick, Stephen Flowers, and Stephan Grundy. They studied the runic theory of the 1930s and, by using new evidence, expanded on the theories. They did invent some of the modern meanings for runes (the true meanings of the runes are unknown), but their work did bring runes into the new century.

So, what does all this have to do with Halfdan. One of the first times I read about runes was when I read an article about this mysterious inscription up high on a wall in the Hagia Sophia. Over the years, I’ve kept up with the research and developed an interest in Norse Mythology. Because of Halfdan’s moment of graffiti, I found a love in the runes.