|
|
|
|
Runes/Runa. “secret or hidden meaning” rune2 (rn) A Finnish poem or section of a poem. [Finnish runo, of Germanic origin.] [Source: The
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition rune1 (rn) 1. a. Any of the characters in several alphabets used by ancient
Germanic peoples from the 3rd to the 13th century. b. A similar character in another alphabet, sometimes
believed to have magic powers. 2. A poem or incantation of mysterious significance,
especially a magic charm. [Old Norse, or Old English rn.] Word History: Among early peoples writing was a serious thing, full of
magical power. In its only reference to writing, the Iliad calls it “baneful signs.” The Germanic peoples used a
runic alphabet as their form of writing, using it to identify combs or
helmets, make calendars, encode secret messages, and mark funeral monuments.
Runes were also employed in casting spells, as to gain a kiss from a sweetheart
or to make an enemy's gut burst. In casting a spell the writing of the runes
was accompanied by a mumbled or chanted prayer or curse, also called a rune, to make the magic work. These two meanings also appear in
Old English rn, the ancestor of our word. The direct descendants of Old
English rn are the archaic verb round, “whisper, talk in secret,” and the obsolete noun roun, “whispering, secret talk.” The use of the word to refer to
inscribed runic characters apparently disappeared in the late 14th or early
15th century but was revived by Danish writers on Germanic antiquities, who
adopted it from Old Norse toward the end of the 17th century. Appropriately
enough, this sense of rune, which had faded away like a whisper, reappeared from the
mists of the past. |
|
|
|
|