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In:From Carving Runestones to Digitizing Skaldic Poetry: Studies in Germanic philology and historical linguistics
Edited by David Bolter, Erin Noelliste, Christopher D. Sapp and Lane Sorensen
[Studies in Germanic Linguistics 11] 2026
► pp. 194–210

Chapter 12
+Inonin […]

Analogs and significance of the Latin inscription on the Karlevi runestone

 | University of California Berkeley
This content is being prepared for publication; it may be subject to changes.
The runic monument at Karlevi on Öland (Öl 1) has a fragmentary and garbled Latin inscription on its back side, probably executed by the same person/s responsible for the runic inscription. This article investigates possible analogs for the Latin phrase, suggests how the carvers might have come across it, and investigates its significance for the monument as a whole. It concludes by arguing that the Latin phrase serves a similar apotropaic function to invocations of the god Þórr on other Viking Age runestones.
Article outline
  • 1.The monument and its inscriptions
  • 2.Coins
  • 3.Swords
  • 4.Amulets
  • 5.Conclusion
  • Author queries
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
References (49)
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