Want to learn more about Norse Vikings? We provide information and insight for people interested in Viking Age Scandinavia. The present web site is a dynamic resource that treats on current and past issues related to Norse cultural heritage. The Viking Rune offers unique online features: free Rune Converter and Motto Generator. We are committed to greater access to knowledge about the Vikings, which is the only way to dispel the myth about Norse warriors as cruel and bloodthirsty raiders who did nothing but kill, pillage and rape. The Viking Rune is always up-to-date with the latest developments in North Germanic studies, including hot archeological finds in Scandinavia and elsewhere.


From the category archives:

Old Norse

Viking Words in English

October 1, 2009 Old Norse
Old Norse dictionary

How many loanwords from Old Nose are there in the standard English language? Viking origin of the words ‘ransack’ and ‘slaughter’ probably would not surprise anyone, but very “peaceful” words like ‘leg’, ‘sky’ or ‘window’ are also of Scandinavian provenance. The verb ‘get’, one of the most used in English, was actually borrowed from Old [...]

Read the full article →

Create Life Mottos in Old Norse Online

July 20, 2009 Old Norse
Vikings attacking

Just added a new feature: the Old Norse motto generator. This allows to create viking mottos or slogans online through a user friendly interface according to five grammatical patterns. The first one is «(noun) and (noun)». Choosing words in drop down menus allows to create such Old Norse phrases as «blood and death», or «sword [...]

Read the full article →

The Rune Converter

March 26, 2009 Old Norse
Runes

Just added a page with a new feature: the Rune Converter. One can input a word or phrase, press the “convert” button and get the same sequence of signs in runes. So the converter transforms the letters of the Roman alphabet into runic writing. What distinguishes it among similar scripts is its extended functionality: there [...]

Read the full article →

Songs for the Philologists by J. R. R. Tolkien

October 20, 2008 Old Norse
Ring

Songs for the Philologists is reputed to be one of the rarest items in the list of books authored or co-authored by J. R. R. Tolkien. The events preceding its publication are worth noting: while a professor at Leeds, Tolkien and E. V. Gordon founded a Viking Club, where undergraduates and tutors drank beer and [...]

Read the full article →