Rista
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ūruz (u)

Rune 2 of 24 · Name reconstructed as *ūruz

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Attested

Found in inscriptions or medieval manuscripts.

  • Ūruz is the second rune of the Elder Futhark and writes the sound /u/.

    Michael P. Barnes, 2012R. I. Page, 1987

  • The rune poems disagree about this rune. The Old English poem names it ūr and describes the aurochs, a huge, fierce wild ox. The Norwegian poem uses úr for dross from poor iron, and the Icelandic poem uses it for a rain shower that spoils the hay.

    Bruce Dickins, 1915

Reconstructed

Scholarly reconstruction from linguistic evidence.

  • The Proto-Germanic name is usually reconstructed as *ūruz, "aurochs," following the Old English poem. Scholars mark this reconstruction as uncertain, since the Norse poems point to other meanings.

    R. I. Page, 1987Michael P. Barnes, 2012

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 Uruz) is read as strength.

    Ralph Blum, 1983