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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]

Examples

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

Elder futhark

Examples found in Elder Futhark inscriptions include:

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

Anglo-Saxon Futhorc

Bind runes are not common in Anglo-Saxon inscriptions, but double ligatures do sometimes occur, and triple ligatures may rarely occur. The following are examples of bind-runes that have been identified in Anglo-Saxon runic inscriptions:^[3][3]

• The word gebiddaþ is written with a ligatured double ᛞ (d͡d) on the Thornhill III rune-stone
• The name Hadda is written with a ligatured double ᛞ (d͡d) on the Derbyshire bone plate
• The word broþer is written with a ligatured ᛖ and ᚱ (e͡r) on some Northumbrian stycas
• The Latin word meus is written as mæus with a ligatured ᛗ and ᚫ (m͡æ) on the Whitby comb
• The inscription [h]ring ic hatt[æ] ("ring I am called") is written with a ligatured ᚻ and ᚪ (h͡a) on the Wheatley Hill finger-ring
• The names of the evangelists, Mat(t)[h](eus) and Marcus are both written with a ligatured ᛗ and ᚪ (m͡a) on St Cuthbert's coffin
• The name Dering may be written with a triple ligatured ᛞ, ᛖ and ᚱ ((der') on the Thornhill III rune-stone (this reading is not certain)
• The word sefa is written with a ligatured ᚠ and ᚪ (f͡a) on the right side of the Franks Casket
• Ligatured ligatured runes ᛖᚱ (e͡r), ᚻᚪ (h͡a) and ᛞᚫ (d͡æ) occur in the cryptic runic inscription on a silver knife mount at the British Museum

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.

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) )

See also

• Cipher runes

References