Dagaz

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This article contains runic characters. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of runes.

The d rune (ᛞ) is called dæg "day" in the Anglo-Saxon rune poem. The corresponding letter of the Gothic alphabet 𐌳 d is called dags. This rune is also part of the Elder Futhark, with a reconstructed Proto-Germanic name *dagaz.

Its "butterfly" shape is possibly derived from Lepontic san.^[1]

Rune poems[edit]

The name is only recorded in the Anglo-Saxon rune poem, since the rune was lost in the Younger Futhark:

Rune Poem:^[2]	English Translation:
Anglo-Saxon ᛞ Dæg byþ drihtnes sond, deore mannum, mære metodes leoht, myrgþ and tohiht eadgum and earmum, eallum brice.	Day, the glorious light of the Creator, is sent by the Lord; it is beloved of men, a source of hope and happiness to rich and poor, and of service to all.

On runic inscription Ög 43 in Ingelstad, one Dagaz rune is translated using the Old Norse word for "day" as the personal name Dagr.^[3]

^ David Stifter, "Lepontische Studien: Lexicon Leponticum und die Funktion von san im Lepontischen", in: Akten des 5. Deutschsprachigen Keltologensymposiums, Zürich, 7.–10. September 2009. Hrsgg. Karin Stüber et al. [= Keltische Forschungen, Allgemeine Buchreihe A1], Wien: Praesens Verlag 2010, 359–374
^ Original poem and translation from the Rune Poem Page Archived 1999-05-01 at the Wayback Machine.
^ Project Samnordisk Runtextdatabas Svensk - Rundata entry for Ög 43.