The Rö runestone, designated under

Rundata The Scandinavian Runic-text Data Base ( sv, Samnordisk runtextdatabas) is a project involving the creation and maintenance of a database of runic inscriptions. The project's goal is to comprehensively catalog runestones in a machine-readable way f ...

as Bo KJ73 U, is one of

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

's oldest and most notable runestones.

Description

The Rö runestone was discovered in 1919 at the farm Rö on the island of Otterö, north of the fishing village

Grebbestad Grebbestad () is a locality situated in Tanum Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. As of 2010, there were 1,401 inhabitants, though this number can increase by as much as ten-fold during the summer. The town is also the harbour where the ...

Bohuslän Bohuslän (; da, Bohuslen; no, Båhuslen) is a Swedish province in Götaland, on the northernmost part of the country's west coast. It is bordered by Dalsland to the northeast, Västergötland to the southeast, the Skagerrak arm of the North Sea ...

. At that time, it was erected near the location where it was found, but currently resides in the

Swedish History Museum The Swedish History Museum ( sv, Historiska museet or Statens historiska museum) is a museum located in Stockholm, Sweden, that covers Swedish archaeology and cultural history from the Mesolithic period to present day. Founded in 1866, it operat ...

in Stockholm. The stone is made of granite and it is 2 metres tall and more than 1.2 metres wide. The inscription was made on a flat surface, unfortunately damaged due to flaking, and runs in four parallel rows from top to bottom. Using the

elder futhark The Elder Futhark (or Fuþark), also known as the Older Futhark, Old Futhark, or Germanic Futhark, is the oldest form of the runic alphabets. It was a writing system used by Germanic peoples for Northwest Germanic dialects in the Migration Peri ...

, the runes are composed in Proto-Norse exhibiting preserved declensions and intermediate vowels that would ultimately be lost when the language transitioned into Old Norse. The form of the runes suggests that the inscription dates from the early 5th century and is consequently the longest inscription from a period earlier than the 7th century. Because the location where this runestone stood is adjacent to an ancient sailing route, it is possible that the inscription was made by visitors and not by locals. The name Stainawarijaz in the text means "Stone Guard" or "Keeper of Stones." In addition, the word ''fahido'', often translated as "carved" or "inscribed," actually means "painted." Many runestones had their inscriptions painted, although there is no direct evidence that the Rö runestone was painted other than the use of this word.

Inscription

Transcription of the runes

:ek hra(z)az/hra(þ)az satido -tain ¶ ana----(r) ¶ swabaharjaz ¶ s-irawidaz ¶ ... stainawarijaz fahidoProject Samnordisk Runtextdatabas Svensk
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entry for Bo KJ73 U.

Transliteration

:Ek Hrazaz/Hraþaz satido ain ... Swabaharjaz s rawidaz. ... Stainawarijaz fahido.

Translation

:I, Hrazaz/Hraþaz raised the stone ... Suebian warrior with wide wounds. ... Stainawarijaz carved.

References

Sources

External links

Photograph of Rö runestone
5th-century inscriptions Runestones in Bohuslän Proto-Norse language Elder Futhark inscriptions {{Nordic-lang-stub