Laguz
Laguz
Runic alphabet letter
*Laguz or *Laukaz is the reconstructed Proto-Germanic name of the l-rune ᛚ, *laguz meaning "water" or "lake" and *laukaz meaning "leek". In the Anglo-Saxon rune poem, it is called lagu "ocean". In the Younger Futhark, the rune is called lögr "waterfall" in Icelandic and logr "water" in Norse.
The corresponding Gothic letter is 𐌻 l, named lagus. The rune is identical in shape to the letter l in the Raetic alphabet.
The "leek" hypothesis is based not on the rune poems, but rather on early inscriptions where the rune has been hypothesized to abbreviate *laukaz, a symbol of fertility, see the Bülach fibula.
Rune Poem:[1] | English Translation: |
ᛚ Lögr er, fællr ór fjalle foss; |
A waterfall is a River which falls from a mountain-side; |
ᛚ Lögr er vellanda vatn |
Water is eddying stream |
ᛚ Lagu bẏþ leodum langsum geþuht, |
The ocean seems interminable to men, |