Hälsingland Rune Inscription 21

  
Runestone
Name Hälsingland Rune Inscription 21
Rundata ID Hs 21
Country Sweden
Region Hälsingland
City/Village Nordanstig
Produced 11th Century
Runemaster Gunnborga
Text - Native
Old Norse : Ásmundr ok Farthegn, their réttu stein thenna eptir Thorketil, fôdhur sinn, á Vatrungum. Gunnborga fádhi stein thenna, hin gódha.
Text - English
Ásmundr and Farthegn, they erected this stone in memory of Thorketill of Vattrång, their father. Gunnborga the good coloured this stone.
Other resources
Runestones - Runic alphabet
Runology - Runestone styles

Hälsingland Runic Inscription 21, a Viking Age memorial runestone cataloged as Hs 21 under Rundata, is located in Jättendal, Nordanstig Municipality, Hälsingland, Sweden, and is notable as being created by a female runemaster.

Contents

Description

This runestone consists of runic text carved within a band that curves along the stone. This granite runestone, which has a height of two meters, is classified as being carved in runestone style RAK. This is the classification for inscriptions where the runic text band has no dragon or serpent heads and the ends of the runic bands are straight. The inscription states that Gunnborga "painted" the runes. She is the only known female rune carver during this time period in Scandinavia. The runic text uses the word fahido, which means "painted," and on many inscriptions this word is translated as "carved" or "inscribed."[1] Although many runestones had their inscriptions painted, there is no direct evidence that this particular runestone was painted other than the use of this word in the runic text.

Of the personal names in the inscription, Ásmundr means "Devine Hand"[2] and Farthegn means either "Far-Travelling Thegn" or "Far-Traveling Warrior."[3] The name Thorketill or Þorketil, which includes as a theophoric name element the Norse pagan god Thor, signifies a "Vessel of Thor" or "Kettle of Thor," possibly a type of sacrificial cauldron.[4] The Poetic Edda poem Hymiskviða includes a story of Thor fetching a large cauldron to brew ale.

Inscription

A tranliteration of the runic inscription into roman letters is:

asmuntr * ok fa[r]þ[i]k[l] * þiR ritu stin * þina * aftiR þu[rkatil * faþur sin * a utrunkum * k]unburka faþ[i stin þina in kuþa][5]

External links

References

  1. ^ Antonsen, Elmer H. (2002). Runes and Germanic Linguistics. Mouton de Gruyter. pp. 280–289. ISBN 3-11-017462-6. http://books.google.com/books?id=gvSi3JVNRFQC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_navlinks_s#v=onepage&q=&f=false. 
  2. ^ Yonge, Charlotte Mary (2004). History of Christian Names. Kessinger Publishing. pp. xxxix. ISBN 978-0766183216. http://books.google.com/books?id=hDKQWtkfFTQC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_navlinks_s#v=onepage&q=&f=false. 
  3. ^ Harrison, Henry (1996). Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary. Genological Publishing Company. pp. 143. ISBN 0806301716. http://books.google.com/books?id=0kc60WqxYK4C&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_navlinks_s#v=onepage&q=&f=false. 
  4. ^ Grimm, Jacob; Stallybrass, James Steven (transl.) (1882). Teutonic Mythology. 1. George Bell & Sons. pp. 186–187. http://books.google.com/books?id=CllJAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_navlinks_s#v=onepage&q=&f=false. 
  5. ^ Project Samnordisk Runtextdatabas Svensk - Rundata entry for Hs 21.