Search for runes online and you quickly run into a problem. One site shows you 24 symbols, another shows 16, a third promises you “Celtic runes” or “Slavic runes” that supposedly predate everything else. So which ones are real, and which are modern additions dressed up as ancient wisdom?
The honest answer is that the word rune covers several different things. There are genuine historical alphabets that people carved on stone and bone more than a thousand years ago. There are modern divination sets built for reading rather than writing. And there are a few systems floating around the internet that were invented recently, or never existed at all.
This page maps all of them. Understanding the types of runes helps you tell tradition from marketing, so you can choose a system with your eyes open. If you want the symbol-by-symbol meanings once you have picked one, our guide to rune meanings breaks each one down.
The Three Historical Runic Alphabets
Only three runic systems are true historical scripts, meaning people actually used them to write their languages. Each grew out of the one before it, shaped by the Germanic and Norse peoples who spoke different tongues across different centuries.
| System | Runes | Era | Region |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elder Futhark | 24 | ~150 to 800 CE | Germanic Europe, Scandinavia |
| Younger Futhark | 16 | ~800 to 1100 CE | Viking Age Scandinavia |
| Anglo-Saxon Futhorc | Up to 33 | 5th to 11th century | Early medieval England, Frisia |
These three are cousins, not rivals. If someone hands you a “runic alphabet” that is not one of these, it belongs somewhere else on this page.
Elder Futhark
The Elder Futhark is the oldest complete runic alphabet we have, and it is the one most readers start with. Its 24 characters were used across Germanic Europe and Scandinavia from roughly 150 to 800 CE, carved on weapons, jewelry, memorial stones, and personal objects.
The name comes from the sounds of its first six runes: F, U, TH, A, R, K. Each rune carried a sound value for writing and, according to later rune poems and tradition, a wider web of meanings tied to Norse life. Fehu spoke of cattle and wealth, Ansuz of the gods and communication, Isa of ice and stillness.
Because it is well documented and balanced at 24 symbols, the Elder Futhark became the standard set for modern divination. Most rune sets you can buy today use it. Our full Elder Futhark guide covers its history and structure, and you can pair it with the rune meanings reference to learn each symbol.
Younger Futhark
When the Elder Futhark traveled into the Viking Age, something surprising happened. The alphabet got smaller. The Younger Futhark trimmed the set down to 16 runes even as the Old Norse language grew more complex, which meant several runes had to pull double duty for different sounds.
This is the script of the Vikings in the strictest sense. It appears on the great runestones of Sweden, Denmark, and Norway between about 800 and 1100 CE, recording names, journeys, and memorials to the dead. It comes in a couple of styles, the long-branch and short-twig forms, which are really just different handwritings of the same 16 runes.
If you are drawn to runes for their Viking Age roots, this is the authentic script of that period. It carries less of the tidy one-symbol-per-sound clarity that beginners like, but it rewards anyone who wants their practice grounded in the actual Norse world.
Anglo-Saxon Futhorc
While Scandinavia was shrinking its alphabet, England went the other way. The Anglo-Saxon Futhorc expanded the older set to as many as 33 runes, adding new symbols to capture the sounds of Old English and, later, Old Frisian.
You even hear the change in the name. The first six runes now sounded out F, U, TH, O, R, C, giving us “futhorc” instead of “futhark.” The script flourished in early medieval England from roughly the 5th to the 11th century, showing up on objects like the Franks Casket and the Ruthwell Cross, alongside Christian inscriptions.
For an English speaker, the Futhorc has a natural pull. It was built to write a direct ancestor of modern English, so more of its sounds map cleanly onto the words you already use. It is the least commonly sold as a divination set, though, so expect to make your own or hunt a little harder.
Divination and Magical Systems
Not everything called a rune was ever an alphabet. Two popular systems are better understood as tools for reading and ritual, and both are worth knowing so you do not mistake them for historical scripts.
Witch’s runes are a modern set, usually 13 small pictorial symbols such as the sun, the moon, a ring, and crossed spears. They were designed in the 20th century as a simple oracle, closer in spirit to a compact tarot deck than to the Futhark. There is no ancient lineage here, and that is fine. They work well for quick, intuitive readings, and our witch’s runes guide walks through each symbol and how to cast them.
Icelandic magical staves, or galdrastafir, are a different creature again. These are the elaborate sigils you find in early-modern Icelandic grimoires, symbols like the Vegvisir and the Aegishjalmur. They are not letters and do not spell anything. Each stave is a single magical design meant for protection, guidance, or a specific working. Some borrow rune-like strokes, but they belong to a later grimoire tradition, which our Icelandic magic staves guide explains in full.
Modern and Misnamed “Runes”
This is where honesty matters most, because the internet is generous with runic systems that history never recorded.
The Armanen runes are the clearest example of an invented set with real followers. The Austrian mystic Guido von List published this 18-rune system in 1908, claiming he received it in a vision. It borrows shapes from the Younger Futhark but rearranges and reinterprets them through his own esoteric philosophy. The Armanen runes are genuinely used by some modern occultists, so they are worth knowing about, but they date to the 20th century, not to antiquity.
Then there are the labels that sound ancient and simply are not:
- Celtic runes. The Celts did not use runes. Their writing system was Ogham, a distinct script of notched lines along a central stem. “Celtic runes” is a modern mashup that borrows the mystique of both.
- Slavic runes. No attested runic alphabet exists for the ancient Slavs. Claims about “Slavic runes” or systems like the so-called Slavic staves rest on modern reconstructions and, in some cases, outright forgeries.
- Greek runes. The ancient Greeks wrote in the Greek alphabet. There was never a Greek runic script. The phrase usually points to someone dressing Greek letters in runic styling.
None of this makes those symbols useless if they speak to you personally. It only means you should call them what they are. Building a practice on accurate history keeps you honest with yourself and with anyone you read for.
Which Type of Rune Should You Use?
With the landscape mapped, the choice gets much easier. It comes down to what you actually want from your runes.
- For learning and divination, start with the Elder Futhark. It is the best documented, the most balanced at 24 runes, and the set nearly every modern book, deck, and course is built around. You will find the most support here.
- For Viking Age authenticity, choose the Younger Futhark. If your heart is set on the runestone tradition of the Norse world, this is the script the Vikings themselves carved.
- For an English connection, look at the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc. It was made to write a forerunner of your own language, which many English speakers find deeply resonant.
- For a simple pictorial oracle, try witch’s runes. No memorizing a 24-rune alphabet, just 13 clear images you can read almost immediately.
Many practitioners end up knowing more than one. It is common to read with the Elder Futhark day to day while studying the Younger Futhark for its history. Pick one to begin, get comfortable, and let curiosity lead you outward from there.
Types of Runes FAQ
How many types of runes are there?
There are three genuine historical runic alphabets: the Elder Futhark, the Younger Futhark, and the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc. Beyond those, you will find modern divination sets like witch’s runes, magical sigil systems like Icelandic staves, and invented sets like the Armanen runes. So the number depends on whether you count only historical scripts or every system that uses the name.
What is the most common rune alphabet?
The Elder Futhark is by far the most common, both historically as the ancestor of the other scripts and today as the standard set for divination. When a book, app, or rune set says “runes” without further detail, it almost always means the 24 runes of the Elder Futhark.
Are Celtic runes real?
No. The Celts used Ogham, a script of notched lines, and never had a runic alphabet. “Celtic runes” is a modern invention that blends Celtic imagery with runic styling. The symbols can still hold personal meaning for you, but they are not historical.
Which runes should a beginner use?
Beginners should start with the Elder Futhark. Its 24 runes are well documented, widely supported by books and sets, and balanced enough to learn without a mismatch between symbols and sounds. Once you feel steady, our rune meanings guide helps you go deeper, and you can branch into other systems later.