Everything about The Meldorf Fibula totally explained
The
Meldorf fibula is a
Germanic spring-case-type fibula found in
Meldorf,
Schleswig-Holstein in
1979. Though the exact circumstances of the recovery of the fibula are unknown, it's thought to have come from a crematory grave, probably that of a woman. On typological grounds it has been dated to the mid
1st century AD, and possibly bears the oldest
runic inscription found to date.
Inscription
The inscription, found on the fibula's
foot and carried out in the tremolo or assay puncture technique, remains the subject of lively debate. The controversy revolves primarily around whether the graphemes are to be understood as runic, proto-runic or Latin characters. Finds from
Vimose – particularly a comb with the inscription
harja dated to ca.
160 AD – are generally considered to be the oldest runic artifacts yet found. If the inscription on the Meldorf fibula is runic, then it has far-reaching implications regarding the question as to the origin and development of the
Elder Futhark.
Interpretations
Düwel and Gebühr (1981) suggest that the inscription contains four runes, reading (left to right)
hiwi, which they interpret as meaning "for the spouse" or "mater familias". Attested cognates and related words would include:
Old Saxon and
Old High German hīwa, "spouse"; Old Saxon and Old High German
hīwiski, "family"; Old Saxon
hīwian and Old High German
hīwan, "to marry";
Gothic heiwa- in
heiwa-frauja, "master of the house" or "husband".
This interpretation gained renewed attention with the discovery of Wijnaldum B, a small golden pendant of possibly Mediterranean origin dated to ca.
600 AD, in
Leeuwarden,
Friesland in 1990. On the back is a runic inscription which Looijenga (1997) and Düwel (2001) read as
hiwi, "for the mater familias".
Odenstedt (1989) interprets the inscription as being composed in the
Latin alphabet, reading (right to left)
IDIN, which he translates as a personal name, the gender of which remains uncertain; if feminine "for Ida", if masculine, "for Iddo". Seebold (1994) also agrees with this interpretation.
Mees (1997), like Düwel, interprets the inscription as runic, but instead reads (right to left)
iṛiḷi, which he translates as "to the
(rune-)master".
Other possible readings include Latin
nidi, runic or Latin
irih,
hiri, or runic
iwih,
iþih,
hiþi.
The fibula is kept in
Gottorp,
Schleswig-Holstein.
Further Information
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