Art and craft-signatures: Goldsmiths, blacksmiths, wood carvers, church builders, etc., often put their name on what they made.

rude messages, similar to modern graffiti.

personal letters: love letters, greetings between friends, proposals, etc.

Political inscriptions are to do with matters of the law, historical figures state that they were somewhere hiding from the enemy, secret messages to do with the fighting of wars, etc. The trade inscriptions are often carved on wooden rune sticks.

inscriptions related to trade and politics: There are many examples of trade communication: stock orders and descriptions, excuses for not having payed on time, trade name tags for bags or cases of produce, etc.

religious/magic inscriptions: prayers and curses, formulas on.

(Later grave slabs or stone coffins were sometimes inscribed with

Who was buried, and also who made sure the stone was raised. grave stone inscriptions, often with who carved the runes and.'Hrolf was here' type inscriptions on cliff walls, large.Word divisions were not generally recognised in Runic writing, although one or more dots were occasionally used for this function.Later they settled down into a left to right pattern. The direction of writing in early Runic inscriptions is variable.(secret, runic letter), from the Proto-Norse ᚱᚢᚾᛟ runo (secret, mystery, rune), from the Proto-Germanic rūnō (secret, mystery, rune), from Proto-Indo-European *rewHn- (to roar grumble murmur mumble whisper). The word rune comes from the Old Norse word rún

Runic inscriptions have been found throughout Europe from the Balkans to Germany, Scandinavia and the British Isles. The earliest known Runic inscriptions date from the 1st century AD, but the vast majority of Runic inscriptions date from the 11th century. Alternatively it may have developed from one of the ancient alphabets used in Italy for Etruscan or other languages. A number of letters resemble those used in early Greek alphabet. The Runic alphabet may have been based on an early version of the Greek alphabet. Today the Elder Futhark runes are used as a way to connect with an individual's higher self, intuition, or a method of fortelling what the future will hold.Little is known about the origins of the Runic alphabet, which is traditionally known as futhark after the first six letters. The word rune comes from the Germanic word for mystery or secret, and it was believed the runes held divination powers and were taken very seriously in the Norse culture. The runes were believed to be used for practical and magical purposes, with many believing the runes were used in rituals and fortune telling. The third group was ruled by Tyr, the god of war and justice. The second group was ruled by Heimdall, the watchman of the gods, who lived at the entry to Asgard (home of the gods) and guarded the Bifrost (rainbow bridge). The first group of eight was ruled by Freyr and Freyja, the gods of fertility, love, and battle. The 24 runes are typically arranged in three groups of eight, known as an ætt (similar to clan or family), ruled over by a Norse god or goddess. There are 24 runes in the Elder Futhark, representing a phoneme (sound). The Elder Futhark rune writing system has been found on artifacts including weapons, jewelry, tools, plates, amulets, and runestones. The runic alphabets are called “futharks” after the first six runes (Fehu, Uruz, Thurisaz, Ansuz, Raidho, Kenaz), in the same way that the word “alphabet” comes from the names of the first two Semitic letters (Aleph, Beth). The Elder Futhark is the oldest form of the runic alphabets, and primarily used by the Germanic tribes, including those in Scandinavia, between the 2nd and 8th centuries. South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands (GBP £)

The elder futhark runes