Gyfu

Gyfu is the name for the g-rune ᚷ in the Anglo-Saxon rune poem, meaning "gift" or "generosity":

ᚷ Gyfu gumena byþ gleng and herenys,

wraþu and wyrþscype and wræcna gehwam

ar and ætwist, ðe byþ oþra leas.

Generosity brings credit and honour, which support one's dignity;

it furnishes help and subsistence

to all broken men who are devoid of aught else.

The corresponding letter of the Gothic alphabet is 𐌲 g, called giba. The same rune is also appears in the Elder Futhark, with a suggested Proto-Germanic name gebô "gift". J. H. Looijeng speculates (Looijenga 1997, p. 56) that the rune is directly derived from Latin X, the pronunciation of which may have been similar to Germanic gs in the 1st century, eg. Gothic reihs compared to Latin rex.

External links

• the Futhark (ancientscripts.com)
• Runes around the North Sea and on the Continent AD 150–700 by J. H. Looijenga (dissertation, Groningen University)