Sowilo
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- See Sigel (Oh My Goddess!) for the anime character.
Sol was, in Norse mythology, the goddess of the sun, a daughter of Mundilfari and Glaur and the wife of Glen, and the name of the Younger Futhark s rune. The corresponding Old English name is Sigel (siȝel)., continuing Proto-Germanic *Sôwilô or *Saewelô. The Old High German Sun goddess is Sunna, sister of Sinhtgunt (Nanna) (Merseburg Incantations).
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[edit] Etymology
The Germanic words for "Sun" have the peculiarity of alternating between -l- and -n- stems, Proto-Germanic *sunnon (Old English sunne, Old Norse, Old Saxon and Old High German sunna) vs. *saewel- (Old English and Old Norse sol, Gothic sauil). This contines a PIE alternation *suwen- vs. *sewol- (Avestan xweng vs. Latin sol, Etruscan Usil, Greek helios, Sanskrit surya, Welsh haul, Old Irish suil "eye"), a remnant of an archaic, so-called "heteroclitic", declination pattern that remained productive only in the Anatolian languages.
[edit] The Goddess
Every day, Sol rode through the sky on her chariot, pulled by two horses named Arvak and Alsvid. She was chased during the day by Skoll, a wolf that wanted to devour her. Solar eclipses signified that Skoll had almost caught up to her. It is fated that Skoll will eventually catch Sol and eat her, though she would then be replaced by her daughter. The earth was protected from the full heat of the sun by Svalin, who stood between the earth and Sol. In Norse belief, the sun did not give light; this was caused by the manes of Alsvid and Arvak.
Sol was also called Sunna, Sunne and Frau Sunne, which is a derivation of the words sun and Sunday. The sun itself was called Alfrodull, meaning "glory of elves".
[edit] Sol rune
 Elder Futhark Sowilo rune, earlier ("Σ") variant. |
 Elder Futhark Sowilo rune, later ("S") variant. |
 Anglo-Saxon Sigel / Younger Futhark Sol rune |
 oblique Sig Rune as used in Nazi mysticism |
[edit] Elder Futhark
The Elder Futhark s rune (reconstructed name *Sowilo) is attested in two variants, a Σ shape (four strokes), more prevalent in earlier (3rd to 5th century) inscriptions (e.g. Kylver stone), and an S shape (three strokes), more prevalent in later (5th to 7th century) inscriptions (e.g. Golden horns of Gallehus, Seeland-II-C).
[edit] Younger Futhark and Anglo-Saxon Futhorc
The Younger Futhark Sol and the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc Sigel runes are identical in shape, a rotated version of the later Elder Futhark rune, with the middle stroke slanting upwards, and the initial and final strokes vertical. Anglo-Saxon sigel (siȝel) is phonologically sījel /si:jel/ (from *sæwel), the yogh being only orthographical.
The Anglo-Saxon rune poem:
- ᛋ semannum symble biþ on hihte, \ ðonne hi hine feriaþ ofer fisces beþ, / oþ hi brimhengest bringeþ to lande.
- "The Sun is ever a joy in the hopes of seafarers / when they journey away over the fishes' bath, / until the courser of the deep bears them to land."
The Icelandic rune poem:
- ᛋ er skýja skjöldr / ok skínandi röðull / ok ísa aldrtregi. / rota siklingr.
- "Sun is shield of the clouds / and shining ray /and destroyer of ice."
The Norwegian rune poem:
- ᛋ er landa ljóme / lúti ek helgum dóme.
- "Sun is the light of the world / I bow to the divine decree."
[edit] Modern usage
[edit] Armanen Runes
The Sig rune in Guido von List's Armanen Futharkh were very loosely based on the Younger Futhark Sigel, thus changing the concept associated with it from "Sun" to "victory" (German Sieg), arriving at a sequence "Sig", "Tyr" in his row, yielding Sigtyr, a name of Odin.
[edit] Nazi usage
List's runes were later adopted and modified by Karl Maria Wiligut who was responsible for their adoptions by the NSDAP and subsequently used widely on insignia and literature during the Third Reich most strikingly as the insignia of the Schutzstaffel (SS).
[edit] Germanic neopaganism
The Sowilo rune is commonly used by Germanic neopagans, often without political implications.
[edit] See also
- Rune poem
- SS unit insignia
- Fascist symbolism
- Germanic paganism
- Germanic neopaganism
- Sun chariot
- Trundholm Sun Chariot
- Sigelwara Land
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Norse mythology |
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| Sources: Poetic Edda | Prose Edda | The Sagas | Volsung Cycle | Tyrfing Cycle | Rune stones | Old Norse language | Orthography | Later influence | |
| Society: Viking Age | Skald | Kenning | Blót | Seid | Numbers | |
| People, places and things |
| Runes | see also: Rune poems · Runestones · Runology · Runic divination · Runes in popular culture | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Elder Fuþark: | ᚠ | ᚢ | ᚦ | ᚨ | ᚱ | ᚲ | ᚷ | ᚹ | ᚺ | ᚾ | ᛁ | ᛃ | ᛇ | ᛈ | ᛉ | ᛊ | ᛏ | ᛒ | ᛖ | ᛗ | ᛚ | ᛜ | ᛞ | ᛟ | ||||||
| Anglo-Saxon Fuþorc: | ᚠ | ᚢ | ᚦ | ᚩ o | ᚱ | ᚳ c | ᚷ ȝ | ᚹ | ᚻ | ᚾ | ᛁ | ᛄ | ᛇ eo | ᛈ | ᛉ x | ᛋ | ᛏ | ᛒ | ᛖ | ᛗ | ᛚ | ᛝ | ᛞ | ᛟ œ | ᚪ a | ᚫ æ | ᚣ y | ᛠ ea | ||
| Younger Fuþark: | ᚠ | ᚢ | ᚦ | ᚬ ą | ᚱ | ᚴ | ᚼ | ᚾ | ᛁ | ᛅ a | ᛋ | ᛏ | ᛒ | ᛘ | ᛚ | ᛦ ʀ | ||||||||||||||
| transliteration: | f | u | þ | a | r | k | g | w · | h | n | i | j | ï | p | z | s · | t | b | e | m | l | ŋ | d | o | ||||||
