{{WikiProject Iceland|class=stub|importance=low}}

==Pictures==
If these "magical staves" were rune-like symbols, the article should have some images. [[User:Wakuran|惑乱分からん]] 14:06, 24 January 2007 (UTC)

==Necropants==
A magical staff called "necropants"? Um, is this authentic? [[User:Katherine Tredwell|Katherine Tredwell]] 07:09, 21 July 2007 (UTC)

: I think this is referring to the rune used in casting the spell of the necropants. Which is, yes, apparently a real tradition, showing up in more than one historical grimoire, according the displays in the museum in the External links. —[[User:Quasirandom|Quasirandom]] ([[User talk:Quasirandom|talk]]) 23:06, 21 February 2008 (UTC)

:::Yes, but there's no ancient tradition of the word ''necropants'', is there?

:::Whereas ''deadbreeches'' is at least translating it from one Germanic language into another. [[User:Nuttyskin|Nuttyskin]] ([[User talk:Nuttyskin|talk]]) 23:52, 29 May 2018 (UTC)

== necropants ==

some things get lost in translation i dont know if this is one of them but look up Ragnar Lodbrok for a similar situation —Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[User:Av1497|Av1497]] ([[User talk:Av1497|talk]] • [[Special:Contributions/Av1497|contribs]]) 00:32, 19 October 2007 (UTC) 

:I think we can do better than ''necropants'', don't you? '''Deadbreeches''' might be a bit more suitable.

:Though I can't shake the sudden awareness that this might perhaps be the first cultural source for [[Die Toten Hosen|die Toten Hosen]]. [[User:Nuttyskin|Nuttyskin]] ([[User talk:Nuttyskin|talk]]) 23:50, 29 May 2018 (UTC)

::The word "Necropants" appears throughout the Internet, including on the original site where presumably the word was first translated, Iceland's Witchcraft Museum. According to Google Search, "Necropants" appears 25,400 times. It's too late to give it a new name.

== Vegvísir ==

Should [[Vegvísir]] be included in this category?[[User:Lily20|Lily20]] ([[User talk:Lily20|talk]]) 21:39, 17 March 2010 (UTC)
:I added it. [[User:Schwerdf|Schwerdf]] ([[User talk:Schwerdf|talk]]) 20:51, 19 March 2010 (UTC)

==Assessment: March 2011==
This article currently needs the following:
*Appropriate sources listed in the table
*Name translations from Iceland (preferably referenced)
*More discussion about manuscripts
Fantastic to see all of these in .svg format! [[User:Bloodofox|:bloodofox:]] ([[User talk:Bloodofox|talk]]) 23:31, 10 March 2011 (UTC)

== helm of awe ==
I've read in a book of runes; about 2 years ago so my memory is fuzzy that this symbol was made up of a number of elk runes (elhaz) (wich supposedly was a rune of protection) and another that escapes my memory. the sigil was worn between the eyes. and it was to disempower a foe by physical and psychic force.

on another note i notice some of these staffs have a resemblance to those used in voodoo. is it coincidental?
[[User:Bloodkith|Bloodkith]] ([[User talk:Bloodkith|talk]]) 07:43, 16 April 2011 (UTC)

== hoax ==

I do not think this whole article is a hoax but I think parts of it might be, like the first one meaning to get a girl. [[User:JDDJS|JDDJS]] ([[User talk:JDDJS|talk]]) 20:11, 9 February 2012 (UTC)

== Angurgapi ==

this [http://simnet.is/deda/sob1/galdra.htm site] seems to explain the meaning and/or the story behind ''Angurgapi'', but i can't read icelandic... and google translate is of no help. can anyone translate this? — Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[User:The unexampled|The unexampled]] ([[User talk:The unexampled|talk]] • [[Special:Contributions/The unexampled|contribs]]) 00:59, 30 May 2012 (UTC) 

== Angurgapi ==

perhaps it is a gladness rune. i've heard tell of those. (absolutely clueless person talking here)
"Beer I bring thee, tree of battle,
Mingled of strength and mighty fame;
Charms it holds and healing signs,
Spells full good, and gladness-runes."[6]
(exerpt from Sigrdrífumál from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Runic_magic) — Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[User:Geeksquadnatedawg|Geeksquadnatedawg]] ([[User talk:Geeksquadnatedawg|talk]] • [[Special:Contributions/Geeksquadnatedawg|contribs]]) 23:34, 8 November 2012 (UTC)

User talk:Bloodofox

2017-04-26T23:42:29Z

2015-11-15T22:52:11Z

Galdrastafir.sigil: /* References */

{{Infobox Writing system
|name=Younger Futhark
|type=alphabet
|languages=[[Old Norse]]
|time=8th to 12th centuries
|fam1=[[Phoenician alphabet]]
|fam2=[[Greek alphabet]]
|fam3=[[Old Italic alphabet]]
|fam4=[[Elder Futhark]]
|sisters=[[Anglo-Saxon runes]]
|children=[[Medieval runes]]
}}
{{RunicChars}}
{{Old Norse topics}}

The '''Younger Futhark''', also called '''Scandinavian runes''', is a [[runic alphabet]], a reduced form of the [[Elder Futhark]], consisting of only 16 characters, in use from about the 9th century, after a "transitional period" which lasted during the 7th and 8th centuries.
The reduction, somewhat paradoxically, happened at the same time as phonetic changes led to a greater number of different phonemes in the spoken language, when [[Proto-Norse]] evolved into [[Old Norse]].
Thus, the language included distinct sounds and [[minimal pair]]s which were not separate in writing.

The Younger Futhark is divided into long-branch (Danish) and short-twig (Swedish and Norwegian) runes, in the 10th century further expanded by the "Hälsinge Runes" or [[staveless runes]].
The lifetime of the Younger Futhark corresponds roughly to the [[Viking Age]]. Their use declined after the [[Christianization of Scandinavia]]; most writing in Scandinavia from the 12th century was in the [[Latin alphabet]], but the runic scripts survived in marginal use, in the form of the [[Medieval runes]] (in use ca. 1100–1500) and the Latinised [[Dalecarlian runes]] (ca. 1500–1910).

==History==
{{further|Old Norse orthography}}
Usage of the Younger Futhark is found in Scandinavia and [[Viking Age]] settlements abroad, probably in use from the 9th century onward. While the [[Migration Period]] [[Elder Futhark]] had been an actual "secret" known only to a literate elite, with only some 350 surviving inscriptions, literacy in the Younger Futhark became widespread in Scandinavia, as witnessed by the great number of [[Runestone]]s (some 6,000), sometimes inscribed with almost casual notes.

During a phase from about 650 to 800, some inscriptions mixed the use of Elder and Younger Futhark runes.
Examples of inscriptions considered to be from this period include [[Snoldelev stone|DR 248]] from Snoldelev, [[Stentoften Runestone|DR 357]] from Stentoften, [[Gummarp Runestone|DR 358]] from Gummarp, [[Istaby Runestone|DR 359]] from Istaby, and [[Björketorp Runestone|DR 360]] from Björketorp, and objects such as the [[Setre Comb]] (N KJ40).<ref name="Barnes">{{Cite book |last=Barnes |first=Michael P. |authorlink= |editor-last=Beck |editor-first=Heinrich |editor2-last=Düwel |editor2-first=Klaus |contribution=The Transitional Inscriptions |title=Runeninschriften als Quellen Interdisziplinärer Forschung |publisher=Walter de Gruyter |year=1998 |location=Berlin |pages=448–61 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=KYqsisEVQHEC&printsec=frontcover&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false |isbn=3-11-015455-2}} p. 451.</ref> [[Rök Runestone|Ög 136]] in Rök, which uses Elder Futhark runes to encrypt part of the text, and [[Östergötland Runic Inscription 43|Ög 43]] in Ingelstad, which uses a single Elder Futhark rune as an [[ideogram]], are also sometimes included as transitional inscriptions.<ref name="Barnes"/>

By the late 8th century, the reduction from 24 to 16 runes was complete.
The main change was that the difference between voiced and unvoiced consonants was no longer expressed in writing. Other changes are the consequence of sound changes that separate [[Old Norse]] from [[Proto-Norse]] and [[Common Germanic]] (mostly changes to the vowel system).
The first ''aett'' was reduced to its first six letters, ''fuþąrk'', losing the ''g'' and ''w'' runes (the old ''a'' rune is transliterated as ''ą'' for Old Norse as the phoneme it expressed had become more closed).
The second ''aett'' lost the ''æ'' and ''p'' runes. The ''j'' rune was rendered superfluous due to Old Norse sound changes, but was kept with the new sound value of ''a''. The old ''z'' rune was kept (transliterated in the context of Old Norse as ''ʀ'') but moved to the end of the rune row in the only change of letter ordering in Younger Futhark.
The third ''aett'' was reduced to four runes, losing the ''e'', ''ŋ'', ''o'' and ''d'' runes.
In tabular form:

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! style="text-align:left"| Elder Futhark
| {{script|Runr|ᚠ}} f
| {{script|Runr|ᚢ}} u
| {{script|Runr|ᚦ}} þ
| {{script|Runr|ᚨ}} a
| {{script|Runr|ᚱ}} r
| {{script|Runr|ᚲ}} k
| {{script|Runr|ᚷ}} g
| {{script|Runr|ᚹ}} w
| {{script|Runr|ᚺ}} h
| {{script|Runr|ᚾ}} n
| {{script|Runr|ᛁ}} i
| {{script|Runr|ᛃ}} j
| {{script|Runr|ᛇ}} æ
| {{script|Runr|ᛈ}} p
| {{script|Runr|ᛉ}} z
| {{script|Runr|ᛊ}} s
| {{script|Runr|ᛏ}} t
| {{script|Runr|ᛒ}} b
| {{script|Runr|ᛖ}} e
| {{script|Runr|ᛗ}} m
| {{script|Runr|ᛚ}} l
| {{script|Runr|ᛜ}} {{Unicode|ŋ}}
| {{script|Runr|ᛟ}} o
| {{script|Runr|ᛞ}} d
|-
! style="text-align:left"| Younger Futhark
| {{script|Runr|ᚠ}} f
| {{script|Runr|ᚢ}} u/v/w/, y, o, ø
| {{script|Runr|ᚦ}} þ, ð
| {{script|Runr|ᚬ}} ą, o, æ
| {{script|Runr|ᚱ}} r
| {{script|Runr|ᚴ}} k, g
| —
| —
| {{script|Runr|ᚼ}} h
| {{script|Runr|ᚾ}} n
| {{script|Runr|ᛁ}} i, e
| {{script|Runr|ᛅ}} a, æ
| —
| —
| {{script|Runr|ᛦ}} {{Unicode|ʀ}}
| {{script|Runr|ᛋ}} s
| {{script|Runr|ᛏ}} t, d
| {{script|Runr|ᛒ}} b, p
| —
| {{script|Runr|ᛘ}} m
| {{script|Runr|ᛚ}} l
| —
| —
| —
|}

The Younger Futhark became known in Europe as the "alphabet of the Norsemen", and was studied in the interest of trade and diplomatic contacts, referred to as [[Abecedarium Nordmannicum]] in [[Frankish Empire|Frankish]] [[Fulda]] (possibly by [[Walahfrid Strabo]]) and ''ogam lochlannach'' "[[Ogham]] of the Scandinavians" in the [[Book of Ballymote]].
[[Image:Ogham futhark ballymote.png|thumb|260px|The ''ogam lochlannach'', Book of Ballymote, fol. 170v]]

==Rune names==
The names of the 16 runes of the Younger futhark are recorded in the Icelandic and Norwegian [[rune poem]]s. The names are:

* {{runic|ᚠ}} fé ("wealth")
* {{runic|ᚢ}} úr ("iron"/"rain")
* {{runic|ᚦ}} Thurs ("giant")
* {{runic|ᚬ}} [[aesir|As]]/Oss
* {{runic|ᚱ}} reið ("ride")
* {{runic|ᚴ}} kaun ("ulcer")
* {{runic|ᚼ}} hagall ("hail")
* {{runic|ᚾ}} nauðr ("need")
* {{runic|ᛁ}} ísa/íss ("ice")
* {{runic|ᛅ}} ár ("plenty")
* {{runic|ᛋ}} sól ("sun")
* {{runic|ᛏ}} [[Týr]]
* {{runic|ᛒ}} björk/bjarkan/bjarken ("birch")
* {{runic|ᛘ}} maðr ("man")
* {{runic|ᛚ}} lögr ("sea")
* [[ᛦ]] yr ("yew")

From comparison with Anglo-Saxon and Gothic letter names, most of these names directly continue the names of the Elder Futhark runes. The exceptions to this are:
* [[ᛦ|yr]] which continues the name of the unrelated [[Eihwaz]] rune;
* ''[[Thurisaz|thurs]]'' and ''[[kaunan|kaun]]'', in which cases the Old Norse, Anglo-Saxon and Gothic traditions diverge.

==Variants==
The Younger Futhark is divided into long-branch (Danish) and short-twig (Swedish and Norwegian) runes. The difference between the two versions has been a matter of controversy. A general opinion is that the difference was functional, i.e. the long-branch runes were used for documentation on stone, whereas the short-branch runes were in everyday use for private or official messages on wood.

=== Long-branch runes ===
[[Image:Yngre futharken.svg|thumb|280px|The Younger Futhark: Danish long-branch runes and Swedish/Norwegian short-twig runes.]]
The long-branch runes are the following signs:

:{|border="0" style="font-size:150%;"
|-
|{{runic|[[ᚠ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᚢ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᚦ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᚬ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᚱ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᚴ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᚼ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᚾ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᛁ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᛅ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᛋ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᛏ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᛒ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᛘ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᛚ]]}}||{{runic|[[ᛦ]]}}
|-
!f||u||þ||ą||r||k||h||n||i||a||s||t||b||m||l||ʀ
|}

=== Short-twig runes ===
In the short-twig runes (or Rök runes), nine runes appear as simplified variants of the long-branch runes, while the remaining seven have identical shapes:
:{|border="0" style="font-size:150%;"
|-
|{{runic|ᚠ}}||{{runic|ᚢ}}||{{runic|ᚦ}}||{{runic|ᚭ}}||{{runic|ᚱ}}||{{runic|ᚴ}}||{{runic|ᚽ}}||{{runic|ᚿ}}||{{runic|ᛁ}}||{{runic|ᛆ}}||{{runic|ᛌ}}||{{runic|ᛐ}}||{{runic|ᛓ}}||{{runic|ᛙ}}||{{runic|ᛚ}}||{{runic|[[ᛧ]]}}
|-
!f||u||þ||ą||r||k||h||n||i||a||s||t||b||m||l||ʀ
|}

=== Hälsinge runes (staveless runes) ===
[[Image:Hälsingerunor.svg|280px|thumb|Staveless runes]]

[[Hälsinge runes]] are so named because in modern times they were first noticed in the [[Hälsingland]] region of [[Sweden]]. Later other runic inscriptions with the same runes were found in other parts of Sweden. They were used between the 10th and 12th centuries. The runes seem to be a simplification of the Swedish-Norwegian runes and lack certain strokes, hence the name "staveless". They cover the same set of [[Runes|stave]]s as the other Younger Futhark alphabets. This variant has no assigned Unicode range (as of Unicode 4.0).

==Descendant scripts==

===Medieval===
{{Main|Medieval runes}}
[[Image:Medeltida runor.svg|400px|thumb|Medieval Runes]]
In the Middle Ages, the Younger Futhark in Scandinavia was expanded, so that it once more contained one sign for each phoneme of the old Norse language. Dotted variants of voiceless signs were introduced to denote the corresponding voiced consonants, or vice versa, voiceless variants of voiced consonants, and several new runes also appeared for vowel sounds. Inscriptions in medieval Scandinavian runes show a large number of variant rune-forms, and some letters, such as ''s,'' ''c'' and ''z,'' were often used interchangeably (Jacobsen & Moltke, 1941–42, p. VII; Werner, 2004, p. 20).

Medieval runes were in use until the 15th century. Of the total number of Norwegian runic inscriptions preserved today, most are medieval runes. Notably, more than 600 inscriptions using these runes have been discovered in [[Bergen (Norway)|Bergen]] since the 1950s, mostly on wooden sticks (the so-called [[Bryggen inscriptions]]). This indicates that runes were in common use side by side with the Latin alphabet for several centuries. Indeed, some of the medieval runic inscriptions are actually in the Latin language.{{Citation needed|date=April 2015}}

===Early modern===
{{Main|Dalecarlian runes}}
According to Carl-Gustav Werner, "in the isolated province of [[Dalarna]] in Sweden a mix of runes and Latin letters developed" (Werner 2004, p. 7). The Dalecarlian runes came into use in the early 16th century and remained in some use up to the 20th century. Some discussion remains on whether their use was an unbroken tradition throughout this period or whether people in the 19th and 20th centuries learned runes from books written on the subject. The character inventory is suitable for transcribing modern [[Swedish language|Swedish]] and the local [[Dalecarlian]] dialect.

==See also==
*[[Codex Sangallensis 878]]
*[[Cipher runes]]

==References==
*[http://users.on.net/~starbase/galdrastafir/runes.htm Nordic Medieval Runes]
{{reflist}}

==Other sources==
* {{cite book |first=Lis |last=Jacobsen |last2=Moltke | first2=Erik | author2-link=Erik Moltke |title=Danmarks Runeindskrifter |publisher=Ejnar Munksgaards Forlag |location=Copenhagen |year=1941–42}}
* Werner, Carl-Gustav (2004). ''The allrunes Font and Package'' [ftp://tug.ctan.org/pub/tex-archive/fonts/allrunes/allrunes.pdf].

==External links==
{{commons|runes}}
*[http://www.arild-hauge.com/ru-e-rusland.htm Runes found in the Eastern Viking]
*[http://runicdictionary.nottingham.ac.uk/ An English Dictionary of Runic Inscriptions in the Younger Futhark] (Nottingham University)

{{runes}}

[[Category:Younger Futhark| ]]

[[sv:Futhark#Den yngre futharken]]

Medieval runes

2015-11-15T22:47:32Z

Vegvísir

2015-03-11T07:16:03Z

Galdrastafir.sigil: Added copy of Vegvisir in Huld Ms

[[File:VegvisirHuld.png|thumb|The vegvísir]]
[[File:Vegvisir-huld-p60.png|thumb|Portion of page 60 of Huld Manuscript showing two Vegvisir symbols with title and description of use in Icelandic]]
A '''Vegvísir''' ([[Icelandic language|Icelandic]] 'sign post') is an [[Icelandic magical staves|Icelandic magical stave]] intended to help the bearer find his/her way through rough weather.

==History==
The symbol is attested in the Huld Manuscript, collected in Iceland by Geir Vigfusson in 1860 (but consisting of material of earlier origin).<ref name="FLOWERS83">Flowers (1989:83).</ref>

A leaf of the manuscript<ref>Vigfusson (1860:p60)</ref> provides a drawing of the Vegvísir symbol, giving its name, and, in prose, declaring that "if this sign is carried, one will never lose one's way in storms or bad weather, even when the way is not known".<ref name="FLOWERS88">Flowers (1989:88).</ref>

==In culture==
A simplified version of the 'Vegvísir' has seen use as a tattoo, most notably by the [[Icelandic people|Icelandic]] singer-songwriter [[Björk]].

A stylized version of the 'Vegvísir' is used in pages of the Oghma Infinium in the video game [[Skyrim]].

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
*[[Stephen Flowers|Flowers, Stephen]] (1989). ''The Galdrabók: An Icelandic Grimoire''. [[Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari|Samuel Weiser, Inc.]] ISBN 0-87728-685-X
*[[Geir Vigfusson|Vigfusson, Geir]] (1860). ''Huld''. ([http://handrit.is/en/manuscript/imaging/is/IB04-0383#0026v Original Huld Manuscript on Handrit.Is])
*[http://users.on.net/~starbase/galdrastafir/galdrastafir.htm#vegvisir Galdrastafir: Magical Staves]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vegvisir}}
[[Category:Icelandic folklore]]
[[Category:Icelandic culture]]
[[Category:Witchcraft]]

Icelandic magical staves

2014-12-07T04:21:01Z

Galdrastafir.sigil: Added Lukkustafir which has been misrepresented in other sources. Added reference for Vegvisir and updated image. Added new External Link.

{{refimprove|date=November 2011}}
'''Icelandic magical staves (sigils)''' are symbols credited with magical effect preserved in various [[grimoire]]s dating from the 17th century and later.<ref name="MuseumPage">[http://www.galdrasyning.is/index.php?option=com_content&task=category&sectionid=5&id=18&Itemid=60 "Staves or magical signs"]</ref> According to the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft, the effects credited to most of the staves were very relevant to the average Icelanders of the time, who were mostly [[subsistence farmer]]s and had to deal with harsh [[Climate|climatic]] conditions.<ref name="MuseumPage"/>

==Table of magical staves==
{| class="wikitable" style="padding: 0.5ex; text-align: center"
! Icelandic name and English translation !! Manuscript description !! Image
|-
| ''Að fá stúlku'' || Love from a woman to a man. {{fact|date=November 2011}} || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave adfastulku.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Ægishjálmur'' || Helm of awe (or helm of terror); to induce fear and to protect against abuse of power.{{fact|date=November 2011}} || [[File:Aegishjalmr.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Angurgapi'' || Carved on the ends of barrels to prevent leaking.{{fact|date=November 2011}} || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave angurgapi.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Brýnslustafir'' || For use on [[Sharpening stone|whetstones]].{{fact|date=November 2011}} || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave brynslustafir.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Draumstafir'' || To dream of unfulfilled desires. {{fact|date=November 2011}} || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave draumstafir.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Dreprún'' || To kill an enemy's cattle.<ref>From a 17th-century [[grimoire]], in the Antikvarisk-Topografiska Arkivet in Stockholm.</ref> || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave dreprun.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Feingur'' || A [[Fertility rite|fertility rune]].{{fact|date=November 2011}} || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave feingur.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Gapaldur'' ||rowspan="2"| Two staves, kept in the shoes, gapaldur under the heel of the right foot and ginfaxi under the toes of the left foot, to magically ensure victory in bouts of Icelandic [[wrestling]] ([[glíma]]).{{fact|date=November 2011}} || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave gapaldur.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Ginfaxi'' || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave ginfaxi.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Hólastafur'' || To open hills.{{fact|date=November 2011}} || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave holastafur.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Kaupaloki'' || To prosper in trade and business.{{fact|date=November 2011}}|| [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave kaupaloki.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Lásabrjótur'' || To open a lock without a key. || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave lasabrjotur.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Lukkustafir'' || Whoever carries this symbol with him encounters no evil, neither on the sea nor on the land.<ref>Huld Manuscript ÍB 383 4to [[http://handrit.is/en/manuscript/imaging/is/IB04-0383#0023v]] in the National Library in Reykjavík</ref> || [[File:Lukkustafir_Huld_Ms.png|100px]]
|-
| ''Máladeilan'' || To win in [[Thing (assembly)|court]].<ref>From a 19th-century manuscript, lbs 4375 8vo, in the [[National and University Library of Iceland|National Library]] in Reykjavík.</ref> || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave maladeilan.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Nábrókarstafur'' || A stave used when making Necropants, a pair of pants made from the skin of a dead man that are capable of producing an endless supply of money.<ref>http://www.galdrasyning.is/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=212&Itemid=60</ref> || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave nabrokarstafur.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Óttastafur'' || To induce fear.<ref>http://www.sunnyway.com/runes/warrior.html</ref> || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave ottastafur.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Rosahringur minni'' || A lesser circle of protection.{{fact|date=November 2011}} || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave rosahringurminni.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Smjörhnútur'' || Butterknot, to ensure butter was procured through non-magical means.{{fact|date=November 2011}} || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave smjorhnutur.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Stafur gegn galdri'' || Staves against witchcraft.<ref>From a 17th-century manuscript, lbs 143 8vo, in the National Library in Reykjavík.</ref> || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave stafurgegngaldri.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Stafur til að vekja upp draug'' || To invoke ghosts and evil spirits.{{fact|date=November 2011}} || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave stafurtiladvekjauppdraug.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Þjófastafur'' || For use against thieves.<ref>From a 17th-century medical text, am 434a 12mo, in the Arnemagnean Collection in Reykjavík.</ref> || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave thjofastafur.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Tóustefna'' || To ward off [[fox]]es.<ref>From a 19th-century manuscript, lbs 4375 8vo, in the National Library in Reykjavík.</ref> || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave toustefna.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Varnarstafur Valdemars'' || Valdemar's Protection Stave; increases favor and happiness. || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave valdemar.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''Vatnahlífir'' || Protection against drowning. || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave vatnahlifir.svg|100px]]
|-
| ''[[Vegvísir]]'' || To guide people through rough weather.<ref>Huld Manuscript ÍB 383 4to [[http://handrit.is/en/manuscript/imaging/is/IB04-0383#0026v]] in the National Library in Reykjavík</ref> || [[File:VegvisirHuld.png|100px]]
|-
| ''Veiðistafur'' || For luck in fishing. || [[File:Icelandic Magical Stave veidistafur.svg|100px]]
|}

==Font==
Following a visit to the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft in the summer of 2006, Apostolos Syropoulos designed a [[font]] containing several of the magical staves.<ref>[http://www.galdrasyning.is/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=418&Itemid=46&lang=en "Magical fonts for the museum"]</ref> This font is now included in the repositories of [[Fedora (operating system)|Fedora]].<ref>[http://www.rpmfind.net/linux/rpm2html/search.php?query=icelandic-fonts Package "icelandic-fonts" at rpmfind.net]</ref>

==See also==
* [[Galdr]]
* [[Hex sign]]
* [[Runic magic]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.vestfirdir.is/galdrasyning/magical_staves.php Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft]
** [http://www.vestfirdir.is/galdrasyning/magical_staves2.php List of the staves] from the same page
*[http://www.galdrasyning.is/index.php?option=com_content&task=category&sectionid=5&id=18&Itemid=60 List of the staves at the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft]
*[http://users.on.net/~starbase/galdrastafir/galdrastafir.htm#vegvisir Galdrastafir: Magical Staves]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Icelandic Magical Staves}}
[[Category:Icelandic folklore]]
[[Category:Icelandic culture]]
[[Category:Witchcraft]]

Vegvísir

2014-11-25T04:04:54Z

Galdrastafir.sigil: Improved text, links and references

[[File:VegvisirHuld.png|thumb|The vegvísir]]
A '''Vegvísir''' ([[Icelandic language|Icelandic]] 'sign post') is an [[Icelandic magical staves|Icelandic magical stave]] intended to help the bearer find their way through rough weather.

==History==
The symbol is attested in the Huld Manuscript, collected in Iceland by Geir Vigfusson in 1860 (but consisting of material of earlier origin).<ref name="FLOWERS83">Flowers (1989:83).</ref>

A leaf of the manuscript<ref>Vigfusson (1860:p60)</ref> provides a drawing of the Vegvísir symbol, giving its name, and, in prose, declaring that "if this sign is carried, one will never lose one's way in storms or bad weather, even when the way is not known".<ref name="FLOWERS88">Flowers (1989:88).</ref>

==In culture==
A simplified version of the 'Vegvísir' has seen use as a tattoo, most notably by the [[Icelandic people|Icelandic]] singer-songwriter [[Björk]].

A stylized version of the 'Vegvísir' is used in pages of the Oghma Infinium in the video game [[Skyrim]].

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
*[[Stephen Flowers|Flowers, Stephen]] (1989). ''The Galdrabók: An Icelandic Grimoire''. [[Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari|Samuel Weiser, Inc.]] ISBN 0-87728-685-X
*[[Geir Vigfusson|Vigfusson, Geir]] (1860). ''Huld''. ([http://handrit.is/en/manuscript/imaging/is/IB04-0383#0026v Original Huld Manuscript on Handrit.Is])
*[http://users.on.net/~starbase/galdrastafir/galdrastafir.htm#vegvisir Galdrastafir: Magical Staves]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vegvisir}}
[[Category:Icelandic folklore]]
[[Category:Icelandic culture]]
[[Category:Witchcraft]]

Vegvísir

2014-11-11T05:28:40Z

Galdrastafir.sigil: Corrected vegvisir image, added reference

[[File:VegvisirHuld.png|thumb|The vegvísir]]
A '''Vegvísir''' ([[Icelandic language|Icelandic]] 'sign post') is an [[Icelandic magical staves|Icelandic magical stave]] intended to help the bearer find their way through rough weather.

==History==
The symbol is attested in the [[Huld Manuscript]], collected in Iceland by Geir Vigfusson in 1860 (but consisting of material of earlier origin).<ref name="FLOWERS83">Flowers (1989:83).</ref>

A leaf of the manuscript<ref>Vigfusson (1860:p60)</ref> provides an image of the vegvísir, gives its name, and, in prose, declares that "if this sign is carried, one will never lose one's way in storms or bad weather, even when the way is not known".<ref name="FLOWERS88">Flowers (1989:88).</ref>

==In culture==
A simplified version of the 'Vegvísir' has seen use as a tattoo, most notably by the [[Icelandic people|Icelandic]] singer-songwriter [[Björk]].

A stylized version of the 'Vegvísir' is used in pages of the Oghma Infinium in the video game [[Skyrim]].

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
*[[Stephen Flowers|Flowers, Stephen]] (1989). ''The Galdrabók: An Icelandic Grimoire''. [[Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari|Samuel Weiser, Inc.]] ISBN 0-87728-685-X
*[[Geir Vigfusson|Vigfusson, Geir]] (1860). ''Huld''. ([http://handrit.is/en/manuscript/view/is/IB04-0383 Full text])
*[http://users.on.net/~starbase/galdrastafir/galdrastafir.htm#vegvisir Galdrastafir: Magical Staves]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vegvisir}}
[[Category:Icelandic folklore]]
[[Category:Icelandic culture]]
[[Category:Witchcraft]]