Magnus Källström is a Swedish expert on the runic alphabet, used over a thousand years ago to write certain Proto-Germanic languages. A few years ago, he went to a farm near Stockholm to decipher a Viking inscription engraved on a thousand-year-old stone. The farmer who found it intended to use it as a doorstop, before discovering that it read: “Gärder erected this stone in memory of Sigdjärv, his father, Ögärd’s husband.”
It is not uncommon for ancient runestones to appear by chance in Sweden and other Scandinavian countries, as reported by the BBC. They often resurface during work and are sometimes very old. Over time, some were used as building material, were broken up to serve as foundations, or accidentally found themselves covered with granite under the threshold of a church.
Runic writing is a writing system with many variations, which was first used in Northern Europe around 2,000 years ago. It is believed to have been invented when Northern European merchants and travelers discovered writing systems such as the Latin alphabet during their travels in Southern Europe. The latter would then have created their own form of writing, thus transcribing Northern European languages such as Old Norse.
During the Viking Age, runes were carved into various materials, including wood, bone, and stone, and even common tools. Thus, we can read (approximately) on a textile tool from the end of the 11th centurye century discovered near Gothenburg: “Are you thinking of me? I’m thinking of you. Do you love me? I love you.” Stone inscriptions, however, remain the most durable and visible form.
Social networks of the Viking era
According to Magnus Källström, runestones were erected as “commemorative stones, often placed in places of passage, such as roads, fords, meeting places, etc., clearly visible and public”. These stones became popular in Scandinavia around 300 AD, but their golden age is associated with the Viking era, between 800 and 1050 AD. They are even sometimes compared to the social networks of the Viking era.
However, ordering an engraved stone was not cheap, the specialist recalls. It was often necessary to call on a professional engraver: “We can therefore assume that it was not for just anyone”he says. According to Magnus Källström, these stones were popular at the time when missionaries brought Christianity to Sweden and the inscriptions often included references to the new faith.
However, runes were also used more informally, for jokes, riddles and puns. This is how animal bones could be engraved for training, with messages meaning “decipher this”then on the other side: “tasty beer”.
Most of the runestones were erected in what is now southern Sweden and southern Norway, but others can be found in Denmark, Iceland and the United Kingdom, where runes were used to write Old English. Some have even been discovered as far east as Turkey or Greenland. In total, there are no less than 7,000 known runic inscriptions in the world.
