The 24 runes and their meanings
Runes are twenty-four signs of advice: each names a simple force, such as wealth, the road, ice, or the sun.
- 24 runes
- futhark
- meaning
The 24 runes, by family
Fehu’s aett
The first family speaks of goods and starting forces: what you own, what grows, what sets you in motion.
Hagalaz’s aett
The second family speaks of trials and cycles: hail, need, ice, then the harvest that returns.
Tiwaz’s aett
The third family speaks of bonds and transmission: commitment, growth, other people, inheritance.
Draw runes
One rune for advice, three to read a situation, with or without reversals: the interpretation starts with the meaning.
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Reading a rune
A rune is read first through its name: Fehu, cattle, speaks of wealth; Isa, ice, speaks of stopping. The modern meaning starts from this simple image and carries it over to your situation.
Drawn upright, the rune shows the force at work. Drawn reversed, for the runes whose shape changes when turned upside down, it shows the same force thwarted or held back. Nine runes have a symmetrical shape: they are always read upright.
Ancient and modern
The alphabet is ancient: it was carved from the 2nd to the 8th century, and the Kylver stone, around 400, gives the first complete list. The names of the runes, however, are reconstructed by linguists from the Germanic languages.
The Anglo-Saxon, Norwegian, and Icelandic rune poems attach a few lines to each name. The divinatory use, the reading of reversals, and the “blank rune” are modern: the site presents them as such.
The divinatory meanings of the runes are a modern reading: take them as lines of reflection, not as answers.
Frequently asked questions about runes
How many runes are there?
The Elder Futhark, the one most used for readings, has 24 runes, arranged in three families of eight, the aettir. The later futharks, Anglo-Saxon or Scandinavian, have more or fewer.
What does a reversed rune mean?
For runes whose shape changes when turned upside down, the modern reading sees the same force held back or misused. This practice has no support in the ancient sources; the reading offers it as an option.
Do I need a set of runes to do a reading?
No. The online reading shuffles the 24 runes like a bag being shaken; you can also draw your own runes and read their page.