A boat of which the mast is formed with the bind runes þ=r=u=t=a=R= =þ=i=a=k=n, on the runestone Sö 158 at Ärsta, Södermanland. The bind runes tell that the deceased was a strong thegn.

A bind rune is a ligature of two or more runes. They are extremely rare in Viking Age inscription, but are common in pre-Viking Age (Proto-Norse) and in post-Viking Age (medieval) inscriptions.^[1]

In some names on runestones, such as the name of the carver of the runes, bind runes may have been ornamental and used to highlight the name.^[2]

[edit] Examples

The entire inscription could be inserted in the same staff, with the exception of the i rune.

[edit] Elder futhark

Examples found in Elder Futhark inscriptions include:

• Stacked Tiwaz runes: Kylver Stone, Seeland-II-C
• Gebô runes combined with vowels: Kragehul I

[edit] Anglo-Saxon Futhorc

Examples from Anglo-Saxon Futhorc:

• Futhorc ᛡ Ior is a bind rune of Gyfu and Is^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Modern use

• The Bluetooth logo merges the runes analogous to the modern Latin alphabet letters h and b; (Hagall) and (Berkanan) together, forming a bind rune.

[edit] Gallery

The i ͡ŋ bind rune	The a and the þ runes in ligature on the Rök Runestone	The "chair s" bind rune of the Younger Futhark	The s and k runes in ligature in the Old Norse word skipari ("sailor") on the Tuna Runestone in Småland
A bind rune found on a runestone from Sønder Kirkby, Denmark	Bluetooth logo (21st-century bind rune of (Hagall) and (Berkanan) )

[edit] See also

• Cipher runes

[edit] References

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