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Attested
Found in inscriptions or medieval manuscripts.
Mannaz is the twentieth rune of the Elder Futhark and writes the sound /m/.
All three rune poems name this rune for a man or person: man in Old English and maðr in Norwegian and Icelandic. The Old English poem says a cheerful man is dear to his kin, yet all must fail one another when the Lord returns the body to the earth. The Norwegian poem calls man an increase of the dust, and the Icelandic poem calls him a delight to people and an adorner of ships.
Reconstructed
Scholarly reconstruction from linguistic evidence.
The Proto-Germanic name is reconstructed as *mannaz, "man" or "human."
In practice today
How people use this rune now, in divination, magic, and devotion. Valid in its own right, and labeled modern so it isn’t mistaken for history.
In Ralph Blum's modern divination system, this rune (spelled Mannaz) is read as the self.
Practice today: wyrd, galdr, and other old words people use when working with the runes now.