What is the Elder Futhark?

The Elder Futhark is the oldest runic alphabet, with 24 runes. Each rune carries a sound and a meaning: wealth, strength, protection, journey: and they are used for divination and meditation.

How do I learn to read runes?

Start with one rune at a time: its name, its meaning, and how it shows up in your day. The dictionary links each rune to a full guide, and the Rune of the Day tool gives you one rune to work with daily.

Rune Dictionary

82 runes and runic concepts, each with a full guide in the library. Search by name or browse the list.

Reading a rune

Runes are older than the tarot by more than a thousand years, and they read differently: each rune is a force: a resource, a boundary, a current: rather than a personality. The 24 runes of the Elder Futhark cover the whole grammar of a life: wealth and need, protection and passage, harvest and inheritance. The dictionary gives you the entry point; the guide behind each rune traces its role in the system.

Go deeper

Rune of the day →
All rune guides →

Frequently asked questions

How many runes are in the Elder Futhark?

Twenty-four. Later alphabets: the Younger Futhark and the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc: have different counts, but the Elder Futhark is the classic system for divination.

Can I make my own runes?

Yes: stones, wood, or clay marked with the 24 shapes are traditional. The material matters less than the practice of learning each rune by hand and by meaning.