Kragehul I
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kragehul I (DR 196 U) is a migration period lance-shaft found in Fyn, Denmark. It is now in the collection of the National Museum of Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Contents |
[edit] Inscription
The Elder Futhark inscription reads:
- ek e=rila=z asugisalas m=uh=a h=aite g=ag=ag=a ginu g=ah=e ... lija ... hagala wiju big- ...[1]
The first part is read as
- ek erilaz asugisalas muha haite, gagaga
Interpreted as "I, the Erilaz of Asugisalaz am called Muha" followed by some sort of battle cry or chant. Asugisalaz contains ansu- "god" and gisala- "sprout, offspring". Muha may either be a personal name, or a word meaning "retainer" or similar. The runes of gagaga are displayed as a row of three bindrunes based on the X-shape of the g rune with sidetwigs attached to its extremities for the a. A similar sequence gægogæ is found on the Undley bracteate.
[edit] Interpretations
The gagaga and the remaining part of the inscriptions have prompted varying and partly fanciful interpretations.
[edit] Schneider
Schneider (1969) opts for bull sacrifice, reading g-a as "gift, god!" and the remaining as
- Ginugahelija Hagala wiju bi g[aia].
- "the mighty roarer [the sacrificial bull], the Hagal, I dedicate to the spear".
[edit] Düwel
Düwel (1983) reads the thrice repeated g-a as g[ibu] a[uja] "I give good fortune". For the second part of the inscription, he has
- ginu-ga he[lmat]lija ... hag?l(a) wi[g]ju bi g[aia].
- "magical-"ga", the helmet-destroying hail I dedicate to the spear"
[edit] Pieper
Pieper (1999) reads g-a as g[ebu] a[nsu] "gift to the god [Odin]", with following
- ginu-ga hellija hag?la wiju bi g[ebu].
- "magical-god-gift, hellish hail I dedicate upon this gift"
[edit] MacLeod and Mees
MacLeod and Mees (2006) read gagaga as an onomatopeia related to forms like the Undley bracteate's gægogæ, and read the expression as a metrical charm
- gagaga ginu gahellija, hagala wiju bi g[aize].
- "gagaga I yell resoundingly, hail I dedicate in the s[pear]"
[edit] Notes
- ^ According to Rundata 2.0.
[edit] References
- Düwel, Klaus, Runenkunde 2nd ed., Stuttgart 1983.
- MacLeod, Mindy, and Bernard Mees, Runic Amulets and Magic Objects, Woodbridge 2006.
- Pieper, Peter, "Fluchweihe" oder "Weihefluch": Imitative Kampfesmagie bei den Germanen nach dem Zeugnis von Runeninschriften in: Studien zur Sachsenforschung, 13, 1999, 303-324.
- Rundata 2.0 for Windows.
- Schneider, Karl, Runische Inschriftenzeugnisse zum Stieropferkult der Angelsachsen in: Festschrift für Edgar Mertner, (hg.) Fabian, Bernhard, Suerbaum, Ulrich. München 1969, 9-54.
