What Are Runes? Runes are an alphabetic script used by the people of Northern Europe from the first century until the Middle Ages. Apart from their use as a written alphabet, the runes also served as a system of symbols used for magic and divination. Runes stop being used as the Roman alphabets became the preferred script of most of Europe, but their forms and meanings were preserved in inscriptions and manuscripts. The primary characteristic, which distinguishes a runic alphabet from other alphabets, is that each letter, or rune, has a meaning. For example, "ay", "bee", and "cee" are meaningless sounds denoting the first three letters in our alphabet, the names of the first three runes, "fehu", "uruz", and "�urisaz" are actual words in the Germanic language, meaning "cattle", "aurochs", and "giant", respectively. Runes also have magical and religious meanings as well, which turns the simple process of writing into a magical act. They are also used for divinatory readings and to create magical spells. Today, runes have been rediscovered as a symbolic system and have gained immense popularity as a means of divination. People today are turning to runes as a source of guidance like tarot cards.
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