Runes and Germanic Linguistics

by

Elmer H. Antonsen

Mouton de GruyterBerlin • New York 2002

Contents

Preface viiFigures xviiTables xxi

Chapter 1 What is runology? 1

1.1 The role of paleography 11.2 Proper focus 31.3 Runology and mythology 13

Chapter 2 The oldest recorded Germanic 17

2.1 Linguistic reconstruction 172.2 Linguistic inventories vs. linguistic structures 182.3 Proto-Germanic vowels 192.4 Late Proto-Germanic 232.5 Defining Proto-Germanic 262.6 The end of Proto-Germanic 292.7 What's in a name? 312.8 Northwest Germanic: Language and inscriptions 322.9 The end of Northwest Germanic 342.10 Conclusion 34

Chapter 3 The earliest Germanic writing system 37

3.1 The nature of runes 37

3.2 The older, or Germanic fupark 42

Chapter 4 The graphemic system of the older runes 51

4.1 Uncertain runes 514.2 Distinctive features 524.2.1 Runes with 2 staffs 52

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4.2.2 Runes with 1 staff and 1 branch 534.2.3 Runes with 1 staff and 2 branches 534.2.4 Runes with pockets or crooks 544.3 Variant runes -. 554.3.1 A d or not a d? 564.3.2 When is an r an r? 644.3.3 Questions about o 664.3.4 Double-faced runes 664.3.5 When is A not an A? 694.3.6 Obscured by corrosion 70

Chapter 5 The fifteenth rune 73

5.1 Earlier attempts at deciphering 735.2 The rise of comparative linguistics 745.3 The conflict over Schleswig-Holstein 765.4 Peter Andreas Munch 765.5 Ludvig Wimmer 795.6 Present-day scholars 815.7 Reinterpretation 835.8 Chronology 875.9 Northwest Germanic Ixl and ITJ 895.10 Conclusion 90

Chapter 6 Age and origin of the fubark 93

6.1 Earlier views on the age and origin 936.2 Erik Moltke and the Danish theory 936.3 A structural approach to the question of origins 996.4 The Latin theory 1066.5 "Primitive alphabets" 1086.6 Inscriptions on metal I l l6.7 Writing traditions 1146.8 Conclusion 116

Contents xi

Chapter 7 Reading runic inscriptions , 119

7.1 Directionality and arrangement 1197.2 . The Jarsberg stone 1207.3 Other runestones of more than one line 1237.4 The Tune stone 1267.5 A question of alignment: The Opedal stone 1347.5.1 Previous readings 1347.5.2 Previous interpretations 1367.5.3 Opedal's "evidence" for Id > l\l before 1-vJ 1377.5.4 Two lines or one? 1397.5.5 The age of the Opedal inscription 1417.6 Hidden boustrophedon 1427.7 Transposed runes 1447.8 Conclusion 148

Chapter 8 Dating runic inscriptions 149

8.1 Linguistic and runological evidence 1498.2 Pseudo-evidence for dating 1508.3 No help from archeologists:

The Str0m whetstone 1558.3.1 Grammatical analysis of the whetstone's

inscription 1568.3.2 The verb forms 1578.3.3 Two unattested nouns 1598.3.4 The shape of two runes 1608.4 Different materials, different shapes? 1628.5 Relative dating from linguistic evidence 1638.6 Chronological stalemate in the older period 166

Chapter 9 Sacral or secular? 169

9.1 Magical "solutions" and their consequences 1699.2 "Imaginative" and "skeptical" runologists 1709.3 Not intended for human eyes 1729.4 The assumed magical power of the runes 176

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9.4.1 The Noleby stone 1809.5 The runemaster, erilaz, as "runemagician" 1859.6 The runemaster and the cult of Odin 1889.6.1 Assumed Odin-designations 1929.6.2 The "magic word" alu 1969.7 "Runic tradition" through the millenia 200

Chapter 10 Runic typology 207

10.1 The role of typology 20710.2 The nature of the corpus 20710.3 Inscriptions with isolated words 20910.3.1 alu 20910.3.2 ehwu 21010.3.3 laukaz 21110.3.4 labu 21210.3.5 hagalu 21210.3.6 salu 21310.4 Names in isolation r. 21410.5 Single runes 21510.6 Isolated names on loose objects 21710.7 Isolated names on stones 21810.8 Commemorative inscriptions 22210.8.1 The By stone 22310.8.2 Stones with only two names in the nominative 22310.9 Inscriptions without verbs 22410.9.1 The Nordhuglo stone 22510.9.2 The Veblungsnes cliff 22610.9.3 The Rosseland stone 22610.9.4 The Valsfjord cliff. 22710.9.5 The Opedal stone 22810.9.6 The Vetteland stone 22910.10 Symbols of office 23010.10.1 The Kragehul lanceshaft 23010.10.2 The Lindholmen bonepiece 23210.10.3 The Nydam wooden axhandle 233

Contents xiii

Chapter 11 Phonological rules and paradigms 237

11.1 Laws of final syllables 23711.2 The phonological rules 24011.3 Root-consonant and i-stems 24211.3.1 The root-consonant paradigms 24311.3.2 The i-stem paradigms 24511.4 Repatterning of the paradigms 24711.5 Confirming evidence 25111.6 The genitive plural and trimoric vowels 25411.7 Proto-Indo-European vowel sequences 256

Chapter 12 Some controversial grammatical forms 261

12.1 Proper names in -o 26112.2 Proper names without endings 27312.3 Nouns with nominative -s 27912.4 The verb */faihijanan/ 28012.5 The ghost-form *irilaz 282

Chapter 13 Runic syntax 285

13.1 Linguists' use of runic inscriptions 28513.2 Descriptive adjectives 28713.3 Attributive genitive 29113.4 Pronominal modifiers 29213.5 Position of the verb 29313.6 Conclusion 296

Chapter 14 "Archaidzing" inscriptions 297

14.1 Vernacular vs. elevated style 29714.2 The Setre comb 29914.3 The Ellestad stone 30114.4 The Str0m whetstone 30214.5 The Bjorketorp and Stentoften stones 30314.5.1 Bjorketorp hAidR-, Stentoften hid**- 305

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14.5.2 BjSrketorp, Stentoften -runo 30614.5.3 Bjorketorp ronu, Stentoften ...no 30714.5.4 Bjorketorp fAlAhAk, Stentoften felAhekA 30714.5.5 BjQrketorp hAiderA, Stentoften hederA 30814.5.6 BjSrketorp ginA-, Stentoften gin°- 30814.5.7 Bjorketorp -runAR, Stentoften -ronoR 30814.5.8 BjSrketorp, Stentoften ArAgeu 30914.5.9 Bjorketorp hAn^m4-, Stentoften herAmA- 30914.5.10 Bjorketorp -IAUSR, Stentoften -IAS 31014.5.11 Bjorketorp uti 31014.5.12 Bjorketorp, Stentoften AR 31014.5.13 Bjorketorp, Stentoften weIA- 31014.5.14 Bjorketorp -dAude, Stentoften -dud 31114.5.15 Bjorketorp SAR, Stentoften SA 31114.5.16 Bjorketorp, Stentoften pAt 31114.5.17 BjSrketorp bArutR, Stentoften Mriutib 31214.5.18 The evidence from Bjorketorp and Stentoften 31214.6 The Jelling stones 1 and 2 313

Chapter 15 The Weser runebones 315

15.1 Pieper's rehabilitation of the Weser inscriptions 31515.2 Pieper's "imaginative" runological interpretation.... 31715.3 Critique of Pieper's interpretation 32015.4 A "skeptical runological" interpretation 32515.4.1 Bone 4990 32515.4.2 Bone 4988 32515.4.3 Bone 4991 32615.4.4 Complete text 327

Chapter 16 Old English digraphic spellings 329

16.1 Diphthongs or monophthongs? 32916.2 The rise of syllabic variants 33016.3 Pre-Anglian developments 33316.4 West Saxon developments 33816.5 The role of the runes 339

Contents xv

References 343Index of inscriptions 367Index of runic words 371Index of names 375Index of subjects 379