[gothic-l] Kovel cursive runes? Rinnandeins runos fram Kaubaila?

Fri Feb 20 11:01:15 UTC 2004

Ahjau, thau bandwjand thai ana Kaubailiskamma uzda aljakunjans
taiknos sum gutane runastabe kuni rinnando?  Aiththau waitei
thatainei ufmeleins ist--  Aiththau smithataikns aufto?

Is it just me, or are those strange symbols on the Kovel spearhead a
cursive form of the Gothic runes?  Or maybe just a signature...  Or a
maker's mark perhaps?

Ei manleikan saihwaith, gaweisoth Thizos Skeireinais Gawaurkeinais.
Anaukann hwo/hwas hwa thizo thar brunno, thau magi atgagg bi ijos
gastaldan?

http://germa.germsem.uni-kiel.de/gotisch/runica.html

For a picture, see The Skeireins Project.  Has anyone read any of the
sources here, or have access to them?

Gaurdaun jah Taijlr, Gakanneins du thizai fairnjon
Naurthiskon: "sokjandam thaim Danim jah Swejam futhark ana fillam
meljandam brukjan, ist idreigoth thatei thiudos austra-naurthiskos ni
aiw us izo runastabim suma stabe leitila ni baurgun kunja, bokom
gatil, jah ustauheina."

Gordon & Taylor, An Introduction to Old Norse: "...the Danes and
Swedes made an attempt to use the runic futhark for writing on
vellum.  It is a pity that the East Norse nations did not preserve
and develop a miniscule from their runes."

Ith faurusnau Gutans?  Fidwor sind bandwo hiuhmans ana gaidai, soei
at Suszycznon bi kaubail bigitana was in Ukrajeinalanda.  Ains
skeiriba wisands runisks, ussiggwada hiuhma, fram taihswon:
TILARITHS.  Thize aljane 'waurde' twa sis abraba galeikond.
Thunkjand raihtis swe so samo laggei swaswe so runisko innmeleins,
ith filu ainfalthizans habandona stabins jah buganans, sis misso
gahaftnodos jah sik sildaleikaba swaswe Pitmanis ataugjandans
sniumihandus!  Thauhjabai thai stabeis fullaainfalthidai sind, mahts
ist nauh this namins gaumjan (thau ahjan?) stomin.  Ith inu
frisahtins managizons, aiththau this brukidins hwa kunnan biuhtis,
thanamais insakan sijai thatainei thairhsaihwan.  (Gabairaith tho in
sniumihandau gibanon wulthrs du alaleitilaim dailim jah gawisse
gabrukein jah thize stabe inmaideinons bi thammei laistjai aiththau
faurrinnai - akei ijos aftra nu gasaihands, rahnja ei tho twa waurda
aufto thatainei ainfalthidaim taujanda bokom inu wokalins.)

But were the Goths there first?  There are four sets of symbols on
the spearhead, found at Suszyczno near Kovel in the Ukraine.  One is
obviously runic and reads, right to left: TILARITHS - a name (of the
spear? owner? maker?).  Two of the other 'words' look very similar to
each other.  They seem about the same length as the runic
inscription, but have much simpler curved letters, joined up to look
surprisingly like Pitman Shorthand!  In spite of the radical
simplification, it's possible to see (imagine?) the basic outline of
the name.  But without more examples, or some idea of the conventions
used, we can only speculate.  (Compare the importance given in
shorthand to tiny details, the use of ligatures, and the changes in
letters depending on what comes before or after - although looking at
them again now, I reckon these two 'words' are probably just made of
simplified letters with the vowels missed out.)

Jah mito, dugiu atsaihwan ei thize 'waurde' ainhwatharizuh boka
aftumista galeikoth hrigga, aiththau mundrein, thizo aina innuman
habandei kreitu, jah ainhwatharoh wamm aigandeins midjata - sunnins
taikns aufto, swaswe sa stafs Sauil.

It might be worth noting that the final letter of each of
these 'words' takes the form of a target-like circle - a solar symbol
perhaps, like the 'sauil'-rune.

Fidurdo ist 'waurd' allis antharleik bi laudjai, waihstans swethauh
haband, akei inu swa manag raihtaba standandona triwa.  Maguth ahjan
ei thata samo bandweith namo, ith thunkeith hwa maurgizo.  Wasu aiw
bi runai gaskeirith, thau runiskaim fulginstabim?  Istu raihtis thata
samo namo?  Istu nauh futhark ali?  Sijaina runastabeis, thau munjau
thans twans stabans hindumistans A jah Th - sou mundreigo ufhafto?
Antharai thunkeith thrim sintham K.  Magunu stathinamo wisan hwar in
fairhwau, thau spillawaihts (swaswe: "[Afleith] du Walahallai!"),
thau afhugeins?  Hwari allis sijai, thau aina runa.  Skuljau manne
jai awiliudon hwizai/hwamma, thoei/saei meina hilpan, aiththau
inliuhtjan, magi in thizai halbai.

The fourth 'word' is very different in form - angular, but without so
many uprights as the runes.  It might conceivably stand for the same
name, but it looks a slightly shorter.  Has this been interpreted in
terms of runes, or runic ciphers?  Is it the same name?  Is it yet
another alphabet?  If they are runes, I guess the last two could be A
and Th - the directional suffix?  The others look like a row of 3 K-
runes.  Might they be the name of a real place, a mythological
reference (effectively: "[Go] to Valhalla!"), or a spell?  Or am I
barking up the wrong rune-tree...  I'd be very grateful if anyone can
help/enlighten me here.

Bi spedistin, idreigo thatei thai at thamma Skeireinais Statha
manleikans ni allis skeirjai sind silbans! - kannu hwas/hwoh hwar ana
wabja thos jah thizo austrathiudiskano runameleino ataugjaindau
frisahteis?  Bigitandin mis raihtis thizo rathjon leitila inn
romaniskans mithsatidos stabe (Baizainjai, Sjarnai, Thamisthaurp),
ith andtilonds runaskeireins unwisseins allos, sijai fagr silbo
saihwan waihts.  Goth sijai jah sums all-thata-bi-thans-
Gutthiudiskans-runastabins ufkunthi samath rikands natjastath
waurkjan, jabai ju ni sijai ains.

Finally, it's a shame the images on the Skeireins Site aren't
altogether clear (skeirs) themselves.  Does anyone know anywhere on
the internet with images of these and other East Germanic runic
inscriptions?  I've found a few of them (Bezenye, Charnay, Dahmsdorf)
transcribed in Roman characters, but given the all uncertainties of
fathoming runes, it would be nice to see the real thing.  It would be
good to make a website collecting together in one place all that is
known on the Gothic runes, if there isn't one already.

llama_nom

a.m.

Her sind thos us _Letcani_ jah _Szabadbattyan_ innmeleinos mith
Pietroassa hriggs, in "Chapter 5":

http://www.ub.rug.nl/eldoc/dis/arts/j.h.looijenga/

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