NameProto-GermanicOld EnglishOld Norse
*MannazMannMaðr
"man, human"
ShapeElder FutharkFuthorcYounger Futhark
Unicodeᛗ
U+16D7
ᛘ
U+16D8
ᛙ
U+16D9
Transliterationm
Transcriptionm
IPA[m]
Position in
rune-row		2014
Two early forms of the m-rune of the Younger Futhark.

*Mannaz is the conventional name of the m-rune ᛗ of the Elder Futhark. It is derived from the reconstructed Common Germanic word for "man", *mannaz.

Younger Futhark ᛘ is maðr ("man"). It took up the shape of the algiz rune ᛉ, replacing Elder Futhark ᛗ.

As its sound value and form in the Elder Futhark indicate, it is derived from the letter M (𐌌) in the Old Italic alphabets, ultimately from the Greek letter Mu (Μ).

Rune poems

The rune is recorded in all three rune poems, in the Norwegian and Icelandic poems as maðr, and in the Anglo-Saxon poem as man.

Rune poem[1] English translation

Norwegian

ᛉ Maðr er moldar auki;
mikil er græip á hauki.
Man is an augmentation of the soil;
great is the claw of the hawk.

Icelandic

ᛉ Maðr er manns gaman
ok moldar auki
ok skipa skreytir.
Man is the joy of man
and augmentation of the soil
and adorner of ships.

Anglo-Saxon

ᛗ Man bẏþ on mẏrgþe his magan leof:
sceal þeah anra gehƿẏlc oðrum sƿican,
forðum drẏhten ƿẏle dome sine
þæt earme flæsc eorþan betæcan.
The joyous man is dear to his kinsmen;
yet every man is doomed to fail his fellow,
since the Lord by his decree
will commit the vile carrion to the earth.

Modern usage

For the "man" rune of the Armanen Futharkh as "life rune" in Germanic mysticism, see Lebensrune.

References

  1. ↑ Original poems and translation from the Rune Poem Page Archived 1999-05-01 at the Wayback Machine ("Ragnar's Ragweed Forge").

See also

Look up Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/mann- in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Look up maðr in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
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