- Name
- *algiz (or *alhiz; uncertain)
- Meaning
- unknown; 'elk' and 'protection' have been proposed
- Name known from
- Only the Old English name eolhx / eolh-secg 'elk-sedge' (rune poem) survives, probably corrupt; the Gothic letter name ezec has also been compared
- Transliteration
- z
- Sound
- /z/, later Proto-Norse ʀ (a palatal r-sound)
- Unicode
U+16C9runic letter algiz eolhx
Line of descent
History
The z rune is a stave with two branches rising from it, like a trident. Its sound never begins a word in Proto-Germanic, so the rune cannot have been named in the usual way, from a word beginning with its sound. Its original name is unknown. The only name preserved is Old English eolhx (and eolh-secg "elk-sedge" in the rune poem), which is probably corrupt. Reconstructions such as *algiz "elk" or *alhiz "protection, sanctuary" are guesses built on that English name and should be treated as such. The Gothic letter name ezec has also been brought into the discussion.
The sound was a voiced z, mostly at the end of words. That is where the rune usually appears, in nominative endings: hlewagastiz holtijaz on the Gallehus horn, erilaz on the Lindholm bone piece, wiwaz on the Tune stone. In Proto-Norse the z became an r-like sound, transliterated ʀ. In West Norse it had merged with r by the 11th century.
The shape matters for what came later. On the Kylver stone the rune is cut upside down, like ᛦ. From the 6th century the inverted form became usual in Scandinavia. That inverted rune is the Younger Futhark ýr ᛦ, which keeps the value ʀ and later wrote y. Printed editions and fonts do not always keep the two shapes apart, so the Unicode distinction between ᛉ (ALGIZ) and ᛦ (LONG-BRANCH-YR) is a modern convention, not a reliable guide to date. The Younger Futhark maðr rune ᛘ has the same shape as upright algiz, but it descends from ᛗ, not from this rune.
In England the rune lost its sound and survived as eolhx, which manuscripts use for Latin x.
In the rune poems
wexeð on wature, wundaþ grimme,
blode breneð beorna gehwylcne
ðe him ænigne onfeng gedeþ.
it grows in water, it wounds grimly,
it burns with blood every man
who makes any grab at it.
Original text from the public-domain editions named on each poem's page; translations are our own.
Where it is found
- Gallehus horn (DR 12): hlewagastiz holtijaz
- Lindholm bone piece (DR 261): ek erilaz
- Kylver stone (G 88), position 15, inverted
On inscriptions described on this site
Sources
- Samnordisk runtextdatabas (Rundata), signa DR 12, DR 261, G 88, N KJ72
- Dickins (1915), note to Old English rune poem l. 41 and Norwegian poem st. 16
- Wikipedia, 'Algiz', 'Kylver Stone' and 'Medieval runes' (checked 2026-10-26)