Table of Contents

Introduction
The origin of the runes
The older futhark
Inscriptions in the older futhark
The development of runes in Anglo-Saxon England and Frisia
The English and Frisian inscriptions
The development of runes in Scandinavia
Scandinavian inscriptions of the Viking Age
The late Viking-Age and medieval runes
Scandinavian inscriptions of the Middle Ages
Runic writing in the post-Reformation era
Cryptic inscriptions and cryptic runes
Runica manuscripta and rune names
The making of runic inscriptions
The reading and interpretation of runic inscriptions
Runes and the imagination: literature and politics
A brief history of runology
Where to find runic inscriptions
Glossary
Phonetic and phonemic symbols
The articulation of speech sounds
Transliteration conventions
The spelling of edited texts
Index of inscriptions

Reviews

A clear and authoritative textbook as well as an attractive, amply illustrated, and well-made artifact. It is written in an accessible style that nevertheless does not oversimplify. Michael Barnes has set a new standard, providing us with a clear and dedicated textbook for teaching the study of runes.
*STUDIES IN MEDIEVAL AND RENAISSANCE TEACHING*

Barnes has succeeded in systematizing for students an elusive body of knowledge, and models...a careful, logical approach.
*MEDIEVAL REVIEW*

Extremely welcome [and] likely to attract an international readership. The book covers essential aspects of runology and it provides us with a succinct research overview.
*NOWELE*

An accessible and useful introduction to the topic.
*YEARS WORK IN ENGLISH STUDIES*

Provides students with an introduction to the topic which is both accessible and erudite. It brings the reader up to date on current issues in the discipline and demonstrates the concern with methodological rigour for which its author is well known.
*HISTORY*

Not only a handbook but a textbook for the study of runes.
*CHOICE*

A prudently structured, lucidly written, and judiciously reasoned overview of a subject that has engendered much divisiveness among experts. [...] A first-rate contribution.
*ANGLIA*

[An] immaculately produced book. [...] This book is both a pioneering textbook of runic studies and a reference resource on runes, thus serving the needs of students of language studies, medieval history and cultural matters, and the just plain curious.
*REFERENCE REVIEWS*

Overall, the book is abundant in interesting material, well-written, and.is a rare reliable source on this often overdramatized aspect of our field.
*COMITATUS*

An immaculately scholarly and notably rational introduction to runology. [It] tells the reader everything he or she needs to know about runes and how to study them. It will be invaluable to students.
*TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT*