VIKING SYMBOLS meaning and pronunciation 

Hi! Thank you so much for participating in the giveaway! I have picked out 3 random winners and contacted them ❤ hopefully I will have more giveaways in the future!!

Petition to create Duolingo icelandic please

If anyone is interested, It should be pointed out that many of the sigils, like Ægishjámur or Vegvísir are most likely not from the Viking age. As there are no records of them from that time. For instance, the earliest known recording of the Vegvísir was from 1860. Same with Ægishjálmur, which is similarly relatively young. Perhaps the earliest record of it goes back to a late 17th century manuscript, but I am unsure of this. A good video from Dr. Jackson Crawford gives a good explanation on these Icelandic magic symbols, he also has great video series on Old Norse and runes. Regardless, absolutely enjoyed the video!

My long-sword instructor has the helm of awe tattooed on his back. He got it after his ex stabbed him in the back with a steak knife. It hasn't happened again since so I guess it's working.

Hi, sorry but the Ægishjálmur and vegvisir are not viking age symbols: The symbol known as "Vegvisír" is an element of Icelandic folklore borrowed from continental occult magic from the "Testament of Solomon". It is around 160 years old and its use is limited to the second half of the 19th century in the Icelandic town of Akureyri. The only literary sources we have that come from Icelandic tradition are some mentions in three manuscripts, which are based on each other. The "Vegvisír" is not a symbol used or having its origins in the Viking Age, and due to the 800-year gap should not be associated with it. The same goes for the Ægishjálmur which appears visually in a 1670 grimoire titled "Galdrakver" in Iceland and the vegvisir in a single collection of magic signs assembled by Geir Vigfússon in 1860 in the "Huld Manuscript" to be more precise. They are both Christian symbols taken from Solomon's testament and found in Iceland in occult magic books. They have no connection with the Viking Age and should not be associated with it ...

When i'm drunk my Icelandic accent drastically improves.

It's really fascinating to me, learning about Viking history

"Valknute" in Norwegian would translate into something like "death knot". Best regards, Norwegian. :-) And it is pronounced very similar in Norwegian as you do in this video, but do put an E on the end there.

3:12 is not a real viking symbol! it was used only recently in Iceland by some occultist dude that mixed elements from other cultures

In German we are having the word "Wegweiser" which sounds and looks pretty similar to Vegvisir. Means something like sign post or destination panel. :)

way finder in German means “Wegweiser” sounds pretty similar to vegvísir

I love hearing you pronounce these beautiful Icelandic words! Learning to pronounce them for anyone who didn't grow up speaking that language sounds incredibly difficult

Fun fact about the Helm of Awe and the Vegvisir: we have no proof of them from the Viking Age, the earliest record of them being from the 19th century.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: I am not a PHD or historian but I have researched these topics extensively out of my own personal interests. The Vegvisir and Ægishjálmur are *not* Viking or Norse symbols, they came later than that. The Vegvisir first appears in a Christian Icelandic manuscript called the Huld Manuscript from 1860, it comes from mainland European magic and most likely not anything from the Norse age. The Ægishjálmur is a bit more blurry, as there is a 'helm of awe' referred to in the Eddas, however this item is exactly that, a helmet. The symbol we associate with it does not appear until the 17th century as another occult symbol. I'm not saying they're not authentuc to Iceland, I myself have a Vegvisir tattooed alongside Icelandic runes, but they did not exist alongside the Vikings. Btw, given that you've been inandated with emails about runes Hrafna, I would be happy to take on a few questions about using/transliterating them into the types I am most familiar with. Takk fyrir :) Edit: you hinted to this but we actually have no idea what the Valknut meant or what it's real name was, as 'Valknut' only appeared in the 1940s. We just know it was associated with Óðin because we find it next to depictions of animals like Ravens that he was associated with.

when I was in elementary school as a danish person, we were actually taught to read runes, but I totally forgot the skill by now

Why do you say vegvisir and helm is viking symbols.? they where made up in mid 1800s. they are icelandic staves, nothing to do with vikings..

Viking and Norse runes and symbols and their meanings are so cool, I don't care what anyone says

I wish i lived in Iceland to buy all these jewellery without paying for a ship to cross all over the ocean to Brazil :(

We read things like 'To Kill a Mockingbird' and they get to read badass Norse poems... of course.

I wear a mjölnir as I'm a blacksmith and from what I was told Thor was the patron saint of blacksmiths

Vegvisir is NOT a Viking Age symbol. Even your presentation says that. We should stop spreading misinformation about Scandinavia's cultural heritage. No matter how much a company is paying to advertise their jewelry.

Your energy in giving info about the Iceland shows how much you love your country. Your energetic vibe attracts us more to really gain something about Iceland as there is no icelander to tell (i think🤔) about the Iceland. Love from India♥️🙏

The insense burner long ship was pretty cool. Its cool that you have the opportunity to link up with "norse" companies to do a give away

Ægishjálmur is not actually a Viking symbol, its a Icelandic magic stave found in the Galdrabók from around 1600. The Vegvísir similarly is not from the Viking age but is mentioned in the Galdrabók.

Awesome video 🤘🤘😍

I just love the sound of this language!

Several of those are popular with neopagans but are many centuries late to be viking

Ægishjálmur and Vegvísir aren't historically used by Old Nordic Peoples, particularly not the Vikings themselves. That jewelry company is questionable. They're just using you for advertisement. Ægishjálmur is an Icelandic Christian stave made in late Medieval and early Renaissance (1600s CE). It was fabricated by Renaissance Christians centuries after the Norse converted into Christianity by 1000 CE. It order for the stave to work, you must dedicate the ritual with a prayer to the Christian god and a belief in the trinity. Vegvísir itself is made very recently in Iceland in the 1860s. These aren't runes. These are modern sigils and charms being disguised as ancient sigils by modern people. If you display the ægishjálmur and vegvísir to the ancient people who spoke Old Norse in 980 CE, they will see it as a foreign mark. It's got nothing to do with Old Norse or Vikings whatsoever. These symbols are much closer to Medieval Christian and Renaissance folklore and esoterism, and 19th Century spiritualism and occultism that swept across modern Europe and the USA. In the 19th Century, people like Éliphas Lévi (a French Roman Catholic Deacon who turned to practice esoterism, alchemy, and Kabbalah) popularized the use of the vegvísir.

I have been studying Odinism for 20 years and feel that I have learned more watching your videos than I have ever been taught by any American. Thank you for what you do.

When i were in elementary school we were taught how to read runes and make whistling necklaces and other stuff Viking used to make.

I’m actually studying Medieval history in college, & will hopefully specialize in Norse culture! Thank you so much! 💕 ig: __sonnenblume

Except... no. Vegvisir is definitely not from the Viking Age, even your sources clearly state they are from the 19th and 20th centuries. Even further, it is linked to Christianity, not Norse. Aegishjalmur is a similar issue, dated - if I'm not mistaken - to the 15th century.

I didn't know that there was more than one type of ship use back then. Learned something new today. I think it's cool that you guys are taught your folklore in schools. That lip color looks good on you. IG: cmella626

Didn't know the edda was mandatory reading there, makes me happy.

Wait.. the "Valknut" is not a real thing, its true name should be "Hjarta Hrungnis". according to the poetic Edda. The jötunn's heart had that 3 chambered shape. Long story short: Hrungnir made a bet with Odin saying his horse was much faster than Odin's Sleipnir, of course Hrungnir lost the bet, he entered Valhalla ( or Argard.. i dont remember correctly) and detroyed part of it.. Thor killed him and when oppening his chest, Odin saw the 3 chambered heart ( the so called Valknut) IG: afskyalltyr

You should Check your sources. Is there any real historical Background or Just because a modern Company Put those Symbols in their juweliry, it gets "real"???

I just wanna say something for this woman: I love your voice. Like I'm a brazilian and i dont speak english a lot, but i watch the videos because i really love her Voice

Omg, just today I was thinking "where is Hrafna?" Haha

As many others have commented, the Vegvísir and Ægishjálmur symbols are not remotely "viking". They are Icelandic magical staves. I am currently at university for history and religion and I have a deep interest for this sort of thing. While there are references in the sagas to a "helm of terror", the Ægishjálmur symbol in this video first appears in the Huld manuscript which was written in the 1800s. It's a Christian magic symbol. The Vegvísir is another Christian magical stave that appears in the Huld manuscript. It is also mentioned in the Galdrabók, an Icelandic grimoire dating back to the 1600s, a period WELL after the Viking Age. It's really disappointing that ahistorical information is still being dispersed despite the wide availability to check sources. Even the sources provided in this video confirm that these symbols are not from the Viking Age and that they are actually Christian. Please note that I'm not trying to attack the video creator, nor am I saying that you can't like these symbols or get them tattooed. They're pretty cool magic staves and I understand the appeal, but please just do a bit more research so that people aren't absorbing false information. There are far too many "viking bros" out there making it hard for others to tell fact from fiction.

The "helm of awe" and other similar staves aren't in any way shape or form viking. They come from the Huld manuscript written in the 1840s, with no previous attestations. They're cool looking symbols, but they're christian in origin and from centuries after the viking age. If you want symbols the vikings actually used then go for younger futhark, which is contemporary with the period.

My mother taught me about runes, Norse stories, & the eddas when I was little. They are all so ingrained into me(The deities, the runes, & the symbols). I still use rune vocalics every day to bring in helpful or needed frequencies. It is reassuring, empowering, and part of my morning routine.

My favorite rune/symbol is Tyrs "T", cause he's my favorite god.

I know how to read runes and it's so fun when my Marvel loving classmates ask me to help them when they want to write their favorite character's name in runes on their body as fake tattoos

Ægishjálmur and Vegísir are NO viking symbols! They are icelandic galdrastafír from the middle ages! And Thor's hammer (or Mjölner, as we call it here in Sweden now in these days) and the Valknut are ancient scandinavian symbols that existed before the viking age, yes here in Sweden you can find them on picture stones from Gotland for example, which were made in the vendel age, yes, that would be the time period right before the viking age, but Thor is actually the earliest identified norse god that is known for has been whorshiped by both the sàmi people up north of Sweden, Norway, Finland and Russia and the north germanians in scandinavia since the bronze age and who is most likely the illustrerated god (with the hammer) in the so-called "Skomakaren" which is a rock carving in Backa, Sweden, from the bronze age, so yeah...

We need a tutorial on Icelandic rolling of the R.

So incredible how Germanic based languages still contain similar words like Vegvisir - in German Wegweiser what means a Map, a compass or a sign to show the way 😊

whomever reads runes to these days deserves a place among the gods, Haraldsønn here give you thanks , love Icelandic 🥰

The symbol you call “vegvísur” here dates from modern time Iceland, and was not a Viking symbol, nor part of Norse mythology. You may want to read the Wikipedia article you showed a screenshot of, as it goes into detail about the origin and meaning.

The way she says drakkar warms my soul. What a beautiful language icelandic is.

The symbols covered in this video are not from the Viking age at all, ex. Vegvísir, drawn versions of Ægishjálmur. These are much later, specifically Icelandic symbols derived from magical sigils which were popular on the Continent derived from bastardized versions of Middle Eastern magical traditions spread by Christianity. Basically, the actual Viking Age Germanic peoples of Northern Europe would not have recognized these symbols, and references that seem to refer to them in older literature (i.e. the Ægishjálmur of saga literature almost certainly refers to a physical helmet with magical properties and not a magical stave) are almost certainly referring to some other phenomenon or symbol based on similarities in composition between these symbols and those found in grimoires from a similar period in continental Europe, indicating a common origin for the two. The Huld Manuscript isn't that old at all, folks. If you're interested in this period in history, read about it from academic sources that are peer reviewed, because there's a metric ton of horseshit being passed around about ancient Nordic peoples to help sell spellbooks to gullible, historically illiterate neopagans, as well as the sorts of talismans which are being sold in this video. Vegvísir, Ægishjálmur, and the other symbols found in Icelandic grimoires are neat and pretty, but learn your history before you go putting something on your skin or around your neck without understanding its historical significance. I can't imagine the creator of this video had any ill intent, however. It is hard to find good sources about these sorts of things. If you want a good source, look up Jackson Crawford, a professor of the Old Norse language who makes videos about this stuff.

I was doing research on the Viking culture and runes recently. During that time I read about how Valknut is pronounced and you were correct with the pronunciation of it.

Almost everything you said is untrue.. I don't know how you got your information, but it's really bad! Please don't talk about culture you understand nothing about.

The vegvisir is not a viking symbol. Is from the 1500's or something. Much later than viking period.

Helm of awe is NOT viking Aegishjalmur is NOT viking They are 18th century icelandic magic

Hæ Hrafna, Ég heiti Marcus og er sænskur. Ég er að læra íslensku og ég elska tungumálið. Ég byrjaði að horfa á myndböndin þín þegar ég fann “teaching Icelandic” seríuna þína. I'm afraid that's the extent of my abilities thus far since I've been learning for about a month, next year I'll be taking a beginner's course as well. Anyway, watching your videos has not only given me insight into the language but also Iceland as a country, I feel like very little is known about it even among the Nordic countries, and learning more about Iceland is a major motivation when studying Icelandic. Another motivation is that I'm also very interested in Norse myth and viking history, my hope is that learning Icelandic will give me more insight into this shared Scandinavian heritage. Takk fyrir

This is an ad dressed up in authenticity to sell goods that aren't Viking. Valknut was the only symbol talked about found in Viking era ruins. Helm of Awe and Vegvisir both made their first appearances 1k years after Viking ended. Helm of awe originally came with instructions on how to use it to pray to the one God.

hello Hrafna, you should do colab with Dr. Jackson Crowford, he has a youtube channel about nordic language, runes and literature

Plot twist: The Helm of Awe is actually a snowflake..

man wish i was born in iceland would have loved to read those books as well. i am dutch and we have one province that got alot to thank the vikins for. its the province called Friesland. in the north of the netherlands. the only province that got invaded by the vikings. The frysian language is an very old viking language. ofc it got changed over the years but it roots come from the vikings. they still find viking stuff in the ground. they have found a viking ship as well. yeah viking is an awesome historical culture. well not for the people of those time but still. its very interesting subject.

Vegvisir and Aegishjalmur have absolutely nothing to do with vikings😅

Skål to all my pagan brothers and sisters around the world!

I recently started studying the magical staves and runes as well as anything and everything norse and find it fascinating! I'm an American of Icelandic decent and am planning a trip to Iceland so I'm trying to learn as much as I can before I go. It's become my new favorite hobby to learn about my ancestors!

A couple years ago, I got to tour the modern viking ship Draken Harold Hårfagra. It was really a sight to behold and amazing that it had crossed the Atlantic!

The Aegishjalmur and Vegvisir are not norse or viking. Icelandic? Yes. Viking? No. They have no earlier date than the 17th century, and are irrelevant to norse mythology, didn't even exist during the Viking Age.

From a country of conquers to another : Really happy to see you're back. Cheers from Portugal

Can we replace all our college feminist with Icelandic women?

I'm trying to imagine your Dad wearing all this jewellery, looking like an Icelandic cross between Justin Bieber and Mr.T.

this is super misinformed, don't believe it. Cringe

The Vegvisir is an 18th century Icelandic magical stave that is thought to guide people through storms. It's also used as moral and ethical navigation, to help keep you on the “right path”. There's little evidence to support it actually being used by the Vikings, however that doesn't necessarily mean they didn't. I like the symbol either way. But to me it's more moral and ethical navigation then actual navigation 😅

I'd love to hear more about the way they teach the viking times in Icelandic schools.

I'm just finishing up the first semester of my master's degree and I feel for you.

Please just stop spreading nonsense! Ægishjálmur and Vegvisír are neither pagan, nor viking, but christian occult symbols. They were invented by christian occultists on Iceland, long after the viking age. These symbols first appeared in the Huld Manuscript, written by Geir Vigfússon in 1860.

I was just thinking to myself “I haven’t seen a video from Hrafna in a while.” Such a cool collab! Definitely going to have to slide on over to their website and check out the merch.

A sometime ago, I learned how to read runes and became passionate to learn more about the norse culture. Today I follow even the faith. May the gods bless you

I think it's really cool that there are similarities between languages. In Germany "wayfinder" is called "Wegweiser" which sounds really hard like "Vegvísir" 😃

Rune’s & Bind Rune’s not Symbols 🤦‍♂️also the Vegvisir is Icelandic Rune & not of the Viking age it was made in the 1860’s 🤣 so idk how Vikings would wear it painted on there forehead or on anything else if it wasn’t made by them?

...." it smells like inside a viking ship" oh yes. I'm sure that smells lovely. 🤣

The rotating Vegvisir pendant looks like a Canadian Toonie.

I love this, I have the Ægishjálmur tattoo on the back of my neck and i made my own set of runes 🥰 i’d love to get more norse staves tattooed on me but Im impulsive so i need to think it through 😂 I don’t know if I’ve said before but my father is Norwegian so I’ve been learning more about my Norse heritage recently and I love the culture, I love the eddas, I love the regard for nature and the way of living ☺️

ok so lets clear this up: Aegishjalmur and Vegvisir is NOT viking by any mean. Hard to call it norse even. It commed from a manuscript from 19th century. It's a modern time sigile, most probably christian even

The helm of awe isn't remotely viking. It's an icelandic stave. One of about three ridiculous non viking symbols that wannabe viking fanboys always tattoo on themselves. Of course the very next one is the vegvisir which isn't viking either.

Honestly needs to be a learning module for like Duolingo or Memrise for Icelandic and Old Norse @_its_ya_boi_tyler_

6:35 Gungnir could mean something along the lines of The weapon wielded by or slayer/killer of cowards or the coward referring to either Fenrir or Odin

Ask to an archaeologist or someone who studies Viking history, none of these symbols are from Viking age. Actually they come from judeo/christian magic, brought by European monks. So yes they have been made in Iceland but the culture wich they come from is not pagan at all. Viking have never seen these symbols, they’ve been created centuries after Viking age. Please do research 🙏

Beautiful jewelry!!! That’s is for explaining the meanings of the symbols. It made me want to carve them into my tools.

Gungnir was Odin’s spear that never missed, the relation with the name and coward may be associated with Odin’s fickle nature and how he’s often use magik and tricks to cause death rather than committing the killing himself, reference poetic edda’s when he causes the king to fall on his sword whilst approaching Odin speaking evil words.

Just came across your channel and love it! Also love the jewellery and the boat! Ordering at least three items! Thanks from fellow Viking ❤️

Ægishjálmur is a Christian Symbol though, so is it really a Viking symbol? Vegvisir is another of the Christian Symbols, so again the question goes: Is it really a Viking symbol?

I actually got a Vegvísir tattood on my arm with runes around it then a Christian cross with at the end a spear pointing to the trinity knot on my inside wrist

I dedicate my life to learning and loving different cultures and one of my favorites is Norse or Icelandic so having you here teaching me is a dream come true, I loved the symbols growing up but neverrrr knew what they truly meant until now thank you so much

This was really interesting because I've always been curious about Bjork's Vegvisir tattoo

Helm of Awe is not a viking symbol. Not in the slightest. It's a modern CHRISTIAN stave. No correlation to the Vikings in anyway.

“Odin kills the creator of worlds” Humans- “HAIL THE ALL FATHER”

I have recently found out that I myself am Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish. I have embraced my Viking heritage. Congrats on the winners.

I love when i travel abroad and people call me a viking ''wow so you are a viking'' when i say im from Norway, feels good 😆 Also thank you Hrafna for showing the jewellery website.

The aegishjalmur and the Vegvisir are not viking symbols. They are jewish symbols from Solomonic magic. Neither of these shows up prior to Christian Iceland. Not many people know this.

It is interesting that Icelandic alphabet has no ü, Ü, ű, Ű.

You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid my eyes on.

The 2 first symbols arent from the viking/norse age. Those symbols are medieval Icelandic staves, dating to the 17th century ish. Both Ægishjalmur and Vegvisir are commonly mistaken as viking age symbols, but theyre not.

2:35 The Helm of Awe is a symbol from the Poetic Edda, but we still have to take it with a grain of salt considering that the Edda was written by a Christian and was written after the peak of the so-called Viking Age (this period is usually given as roughly from 800 to 1100 AD), so these texts could have been strongly influenced both by the Christian religion and by the fact that we don't have many reliable sources to verify the historical accuracy of this symbol except for the rune stones. The meaning may therefore be correct but it is not very appropriate to promote it as a "Viking symbol". 3:57 Unlike the previous symbol, the Vegvísir is very accurately documented, so it is certainly not a "Viking" symbol. The first mention of this symbol dates back to about 1860. Again, the meaning may be said correctly but we are talking about a relatively modern symbol with no historical background, so it has little in common with the so-called "Vikings". This symbol was therefore popularized only in later times. 4:50 there is not much to say here, this symbol is depicted on period finds and is therefore truly a historical symbol. 5:28 Valnut is a historically documented symbol, but there are constant discussions about the meaning and there is no clear answer to the question of what the symbol represents (the symbol can represent the 9 worlds or also death) so if you want to wear this symbol as a jewelry or as a tattoo take note that the meaning is unclear. 6:09 here again there is not much to add, it is Odin's weapon that never misses, made by Sons of Ívaldi. It is mentioned in many stories of Norse mythology. All in all, it should be noted that there is no such thing as a book or text written by "Vikings", the Norsemen only passed on stories verbally except for a few rune stones, all the writings and texts we draw from today were written by Christian writers and it is almost certain that many things were altered. So we have only distorted information about their religion. I highly recommend everyone to do a thorough research and not to put on the first YT video you find, the lady certainly didn't mean it badly but next time it would be better to focus more on the informativeness of the video and less on the promotion of sponsors.