#kaunan

— Kaunan —

Sometimes called “Kenaz”, Kaunan translates into “Torch”, and represents knowledge and enlightenment. Much like a candle or torch is used to see text in a darkened room, Kaunan represents not so much the knowledge itself, but the process of learning and discovery.

Some sources state this rune translates into “Ulcer” and represents mortality and pain. It is such a different meaning that I decided to do some research. Here’s what I found:

There are three main translations of the rune poems—the Icelandic, the Norwegian, and the Anglo-Saxon translations—and these poems are the main way we know anything at all about the meanings of the runes. The runes started as a 24-character alphabet called the Elder Futhark. Later this evolved into a larger alphabet called the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc, which had upwards of 30 characters (it’s hard to pinpoint exactly how many characters this alphabet had, as some findings show additional runes that are only ever seen in a few places). The third and last variant of the runic alphabet was called the Younger Futhark, and it reduced the Elder Futhark into 16 characters. The Younger Futhark is the alphabet that was most commonly used during the Viking Age, and it is the rune set that the Icelandic and Norwegian Rune Poems talk about. The Anglo-Saxon Futhorc is the set talked about by the Anglo-Saxon Rune Poem. There is no rune poem that we know of that talks about the Elder Futhark directly. As the alphabets changed, some of the names and meanings of the individual runes changed, too. The Elder Futhark called the rune “Kaunan” Or “Kenaz”, which we know translated into “torch”. In the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc, the rune changed appearance and was called “Cēn”, which also translates into torch. It isn’t until the Younger Futhark when the rune changes appearance again slightly and is now called “Kaun”, which translates into “Ulcer”. The passages in the Rune Poems for this rune reflect the meaning—“torch” in the Anglo-Saxon translation, “ulcer” in the Icelandic and Norwegian translations.

For this specific project, I’m wanting to focus more on the Elder Futhark, since it is the oldest runic alphabet and the one that the other two can trace their origins to. It is also the rune set that I see most other people posting about and using. After I finish researching the Elder Futhark, though, I would like to do the same thing with the Futhorc and Younger Futhark.

Kaunan /Forn (2017, By Norse Music)

Wonderful music is coming..