Rune 17 of 24 · Tyr's aett
Tiwaz
“the god Tiw (Norse Týr)” · sound: t
Can be drawn reversed when reversals are on.
Historical evidence
Named for the god Týr. The Norse poems call him the one-handed god, recalling the myth in which he lost a hand to the wolf Fenrir. The Old English poem (tir) treats it as a guiding sign or star that keeps faith with princes and never fails.
The name Tiwaz is a modern reconstruction of the Proto-Germanic name; the Elder Futhark’s own names are not recorded.
In the rune poems
Original
Tir biþ tacna sum, healdeð trywa wel
wiþ æþelingas; a biþ on færylde
ofer nihta genipu, næfre swiceþ.English
Tir [a guiding star, or the god Tiw] is one of the signs; it keeps faith well with nobles; it is always on its course above the mists of night, and never fails.
Original
Týr er æinendr ása;
opt værðr smiðr blása.English
Týr is the one-handed among the gods; the smith often has to blow [the bellows].
The Norwegian rhyme pairs each rune with a second line that rhymes with the first and often has no obvious connection to it.
Original
Týr er einhendr áss
ok ulfs leifar
ok hofa hilmir
Mars tiggi.English
Týr is the one-handed god and the wolf’s leavings and the ruler of temples. Mars. Lord.
Each Icelandic stanza ends with two words: a Latin gloss of the rune’s name and a poetic word for a king or chieftain that alliterates with the rune. Both are translated as they stand.
Original texts as printed in Bruce Dickins, Runic and Heroic Poems of the Old Teutonic Peoples, Cambridge University Press, 1915. Public domain. The English translations are Scryway’s own, made line by line from these texts; square brackets mark uncertain or added words. No published translation is reproduced.
Modern interpretation
From 20th-century and later divinatory practice, written for Scryway. Not a historical meaning.
Keywords: justice, honour, courage
Upright
Courage, fairness and commitment to what is right, even at a cost to yourself. A clear aim.
Reversed
Lost motivation, unfairness, or a conflict not worth the sacrifice.