A dwarf is a type of supernatural being in Germanic folklore. Accounts of dwarfs vary significantly throughout history; however, they are commonly, but not exclusively, presented as living in mountains or stones and being skilled craftspeople. In early literary sources, only males are explicitly referred to as dwarfs. However, they are described as having sisters and daughters, while male and female dwarfs feature in later saga literature and folklore. Dwarfs are sometimes described as short; however, scholars have noted that this is neither explicit nor relevant to their roles in the earliest sources.
Fakenham is a market town and civil parish in Norfolk, England. It is situated on the River Wensum, about 25 miles north-west of Norwich. The town is at the junction of several local roads, including the A148 from King's Lynn to Cromer, the A1067 to Norwich and the A1065 to Swaffham.
A rune is a letter in a set of related alphabets known as runic alphabets native to the Germanic peoples. Runes were used to write Germanic languages before they adopted the Latin alphabet, and for specialised purposes thereafter. In addition to representing a sound value, runes can be used to represent the concepts after which they are named (ideographs). Scholars refer to instances of the latter as Begriffsrunen. The Scandinavian variants are also known as fuþark, or futhark, these names derived from the first six letters of the script, ⟨ᚠ⟩, ⟨ᚢ⟩, ⟨ᚦ⟩, ⟨ᚨ⟩/⟨ᚬ⟩, ⟨ᚱ⟩, and ⟨ᚲ⟩/⟨ᚴ⟩, corresponding to the Latin letters ⟨f⟩, ⟨u⟩, ⟨þ⟩/⟨th⟩, ⟨a⟩, ⟨r⟩, and ⟨k⟩. The Anglo-Saxon variant is futhorc, or fuþorc, due to changes in Old English of the sounds represented by the fourth letter, ⟨ᚨ⟩/⟨ᚩ⟩.
The Elder Futhark, also known as the Older Futhark, Old Futhark, or Germanic Futhark, is the oldest form of the runic alphabets. It was a writing system used by Germanic peoples for Northwest Germanic dialects in the Migration Period. Inscriptions are found on artifacts including jewelry, amulets, plateware, tools, and weapons, as well as runestones in Scandinavia, from the 2nd to the 10th centuries.
Anglo-Saxon runes are runes used by the Anglo-Saxons as an alphabet in their native writing system. Today, the characters are known collectively as the futhorc from the sound values of the first six runes. The futhorc was a development from the 24-character Elder Futhark. Since futhorc also recorded Old Frisian along with Old English, the term Anglo-Frisian runes is also used. They were likely to have been used from the 5th century onward.
The Ruthwell Cross is a stone Anglo-Saxon cross probably dating from the 8th century, when the village of Ruthwell, now in Scotland, was part of the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Northumbria.
The Franks Casket is a small Anglo-Saxon whale's bone chest from the early 8th century, now in the British Museum. The casket is densely decorated with knife-cut narrative scenes in flat two-dimensional low-relief and with inscriptions mostly in Anglo-Saxon runes. Generally thought to be of Northumbrian origin, it is of unique importance for the insight it gives into early Anglo-Saxon art and culture. Both identifying the images and interpreting the runic inscriptions has generated a considerable amount of scholarship.
A runic inscription is an inscription made in one of the various runic alphabets. They generally contained practical information or memorials instead of magic or mythic stories. The body of runic inscriptions falls into the three categories of Elder Futhark, Anglo-Frisian Futhorc and Younger Futhark.
The sequence alu is found in numerous Elder Futhark runic inscriptions of Germanic Iron Age Scandinavia between the 3rd and the 8th century. The word usually appears either alone or as part of an apparent formula. The symbols represent the runes Ansuz, Laguz, and Uruz. The origin and meaning of the word are matters of dispute, though a general agreement exists among scholars that the word represents an instance of historical runic magic or is a metaphor for it. It is the most common of the early runic charm words.
A bind rune or bindrune is a Migration Period Germanic ligature of two or more runes. They are extremely rare in Viking Age inscriptions, but are common in earlier (Proto-Norse) and later (medieval) inscriptions.
The Caistor-by-Norwich astragalus is a roe deer astragalus found in an urn at Caistor St. Edmund, Norfolk, England in 1937. The astragalus is inscribed with a 5th-century Elder Futhark inscription, reading ᚱᚨᛇᚺᚨᚾraïhan "roe deer". The inscription is the earliest found in England, and predates the evolution of the specifically Anglo-Frisian Futhorc. As the urn was found in a cemetery that indicated some Scandinavian influence, it has been suggested that the astragalus may be an import, perhaps brought from Denmark in the earliest phase of the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain. The inscription is an important testimony for the Eihwaz rune and the treatment of Proto-Germanic *ai. The h rune has the Nordic single-bar shape ᚺ, not the Continental double-bar ᚻ which was later adopted in the Anglo-Frisian runes.
There are seven known rings of the Anglo-Saxon period bearing futhorc inscriptions. Futhorc are Anglo-Saxon runes which were used to write Old English.
The Nine Herbs Charm, Nigon Wyrta Galdor, Lay of the Nine Healing Herbs, or Nine Wort Spell is an Old English charm recorded in the tenth-century CE. Anglo-Saxon medical compilation known as Lacnunga, which survives on the manuscript, Harley MS 585, in the British Library, in London. The charm involves the preparation of nine plants.
The Canterbury charm is an Old Norse runic charm discovered inserted in the margin of an Anglo-Saxon manuscript from the year 1073.
Magic in Anglo-Saxon England refers to the belief and practice of magic by the Anglo-Saxons between the fifth and eleventh centuries AD in Early Mediaeval England. In this period, magical practices were used for a variety of reasons, but from the available evidence it appears that they were predominantly used for healing ailments and creating amulets, although it is apparent that at times they were also used to curse.
Three Anglo-Saxon metrical charms "Against a dwarf" are contained within the Lacnunga, which seek to heal an afflicted person by ridding them of a dwarf.
The Ribe skull fragment is a section of human skull bone inscribed with runes and unearthed in 1973 in an archaeological excavation at Ribe, Denmark. It dates to circa 725 CE.
The Ribe healing stick is a pinewood stick found at Ribe, Denmark, with a heavily pagan-inspired Christian spell. It dates to circa 1300 CE.
The Sigtuna rib is a 12th-century runic amulet found in the 1990s in Sigtuna, Uppland, Sweden
A prominent position is held by rings in early Germanic cultures, appearing both in archaeology throughout areas settled by Germanic peoples, and in textual sources discussing their practices and beliefs. They are notably associated with the related aspects of wealth, being used as forms of currency in the Early Medieval Period, and swearing sacred oaths, often dedicated to, or witnessed by, the gods. The sacrality of rings is reflected in Germanic mythology and ring bestowal held a central role in maintaining functional relationships between rulers and their retinues. The cultural roles of rings continued to varying extents during and after the Christianisation of the Germanic peoples, such as in gift-bestowal and oath-swearing.
