Runes

**Runes** are the characters of a canonical script used in the wizarding world (although the term may also refer to the script as a whole); however, little is said about it and thus many fanfic authors use the term with a different meaning, referring to symbols that can be charged with energy to perform magic.

## Real-world information

Main article: **Runes** at *Wikipedia*
In the real world, the term *runes* properly refers to the characters used in a family of related scripts: the Elder Futhark, the Younger Futhark, the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc, medieval runes and Dalecarlian runes. These were developed during the first few centuries AD, based on Mediterranean alphabets, to write Germanic languages and used forms suitable for inscription in stone or wood, with only vertical and diagonal lines. Runes were mostly used alphabetically, with each character representing a sound, but each rune also had a name (a word beginning with the sound in question) and they were occasionally also used as a shorthand for that word. They were used on objects, such as jewelry and weapons, to show who made it or owned it, and in monumental inscriptions (runestones) set up to commemorate the dead or brag about one's accomplishments, but also to write quick notes and messages on wooden sticks.

Modern authors of historical fiction and New Age literature often ascribe magical or divinatory powers to the runes, sometimes developing quite advanced systems, but there is little evidence that they were used in such ways historically; based on this, many Fantasy novels, films and games have come to use the term to indicate magical symbols in general. Others, such as J. R. R. Tolkien, invent their own runic scripts similar in style to the real-world runes but not directly related to them, or simply use the term to refer to any characters they want to sound non-ordinary.

## Canonical information

Main article: **Rune** at *The Harry Potter Wiki*
During the Middle Ages, the runes from the Elder Futhark were used by both magicals and muggles to write Old English, as can be seen on the Hogwarts pensieve and other ancient magical items, and they are still used today by the Ministry of Magic administration. At least some wizards and witches are also known to have "personal runes" used similar to a signature, although the form of these is not known, and there are examples of text written in runes being embroidered onto clothes; at least in the latter case, the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc seems to have replaced the Elder Futhark (although the difference is mostly a matter of adding a few new signs). Further, a set of numerical signs 0-9 (looking markedly different from the ordinary runes) has been shown to exist, but has not been seen in practical use.

Runes and/or Old English are presumably a large part of the Study of Ancient Runes curriculum; Hermione complained after her O.W.L. exam of confusing the meaning of the words *ehwaz* and *eihwaz*, which are the reconstructed Proto-Germanic names of two Elder Futhark runes (ᛖ and ᛇ, respectively) although the meanings she ascribed to them ('partnership' and 'defence') are nowhere near the meanings of the rune names ('horse' and 'yew-tree').

The cover of the Rune Dictionary shows several runes from the Elder Futhark and/or Anglo-Saxon Futhorc, along with (in a different color) more complicated signs which perhaps could be the aforementioned "personal runes".

## Non-canonical information, writing

### *The Code*

In this story, runes are said to be "the ancient written language of magic – dating as far back as Muggle written language" and used alongside muggle scripts such as cuneiform, hieroglyphs and hanzi; they are still used "as a secret language to communicate and to ward and guard areas of import". They have changed over time – "the more turbulent the historical period, the more elaborate the runic system became" – and often included codes and ciphers (many still remaining unsolved) as an additional precaution against spies; the relationship to the Germanic runes described above seems loose or non-existent. The Ancient Runes curriculum covers many languages, including Ancient Greek and "the Cretan dialect" (possibly Mycenaean Greek?), which would normally be written in different scripts but here seem to be covered by the umbrella term of "runes".

A mention of "the six major ancient runes and their alphabetical code along with the basic grammar rules" and "the eleven Persian runes" suggests that the term "rune" may be used to refer to a whole script or language rather than a single character, but a nearby passage talks of "a really obscure set of Slavic runes", which rather points to the latter meaning.

## Non-canonical information, magical symbols

### *A Godfather's Promise*

A *Push* rune (taught early in the fourth year) can be used at several different degrees of severity, with the result going from a light shove to a violent throw. Inscribing two opposing *Push* runes in the same rune cluster will cause a conflict between them, resulting in an explosion. Tracking runes make it easy to find lost or stolen objects. Air runes conjure fresh air.

## See also

* Study of Ancient Runes
* Category:Rune (magical symbol)

## References

1. ↑ *The Code*, Chapter 1
2. ↑ *The Code*, Chapter 4
3. ↑ *The Code*, Chapter 3
4. ↑ *The Code*, Chapter 11
5. ↑ *A Godfather's Promise*, Chapter 3
6. ↑ *A Godfather's Promise*, Chapter 11
7. ↑ *A Godfather's Promise*, Chapter 14