Tiwaz (ᛏ): meaning of the rune of the god Týr, courage and justice

Who is Tiwaz?

Tiwaz is written ᛏ: an arrow pointing upward, a vertical staff topped by two oblique strokes. It is the seventeenth rune of the Elder Futhark and represents the sound t. It opens the third family, sometimes called “the family of Týr”.

Its reconstructed name *tīwaz is that of a god: Týr in Old Norse, Tiw in Old English. The name is one of the oldest in all of Germanic mythology.

The rune's name and its meaning

The Germanic god *Tīwaz belongs to the same family as the Greek god Zeus and the Roman god Jupiter: the Indo-European word designating “the bright sky” or “a god”. Over the centuries, the god's role shifted toward war and justice.

His name survives in our calendar: Tuesday in English comes from Tīwesdæg, the day of Tiw. In German, Dienstag refers instead to a nickname of the same god, linked to the assembly (Thing).

What the runic poems say

“One-handed” refers to a famous myth: that of the wolf Fenrir, whom the gods wanted to bind.

Inscriptions and ancient uses

According to the medieval account of the Gylfaginning, the gods wished to bind the wolf Fenrir. Only Týr agreed to put his hand in its mouth as a pledge of good faith. When the wolf realised it had been tricked, it tore off his hand. The figure is thus that of a god who sacrifices something out of commitment.

In the Sigrdrífumál, a medieval poem, one is told to carve victory runes on the hilt of a sword while invoking Týr twice. Earlier, the Lindholm amulet (2nd–4th century) bears several t runes in a row, sometimes read as an invocation, and the Kylver stone ends with a series of t runes. These readings should be treated with caution. Finally, a 3rd-century dedication on Hadrian's Wall, made by Frisian soldiers to “Mars Thincsus”, is often compared with the god of assemblies (þing).

Tiwaz in a modern reading: upright

Reminder: rune casting is a modern practice. Here is what contemporary books say.

Upright, Tiwaz is associated with courage, justice, loyalty to a cause and discipline. The image of the arrow adds that of direction: aiming straight. Many authors also read in it the idea of a sacrifice made for a principle.

In a spread, it may invite you to ask what you care about enough to commit to, and at what price. It does not say that you will win: it speaks of uprightness and commitment.

Reversed Tiwaz

Reversed, the arrow points downward: authors read in it a lack of courage, a misplaced commitment, an injustice, a useless sacrifice, or a discipline that has turned into rigidity.

As always, these are modern conventions, not verdicts. You may also read it as a reminder: a principle defended without flexibility can hurt.

A reflection exercise with Tiwaz

Write down the three values you hold most dear, then, opposite each one, a recent situation in which you lived it and one in which you departed from it.

Then choose a concrete commitment, small but precise, that you could keep for a month (writing to a loved one, finishing a piece of work). Note the date and hold yourself to account.

Tiwaz's place in the futhark

Tiwaz is rune no. 17 of 24. It occupies position 1 in the third family (aett), sometimes called the Tyr family. It follows Sowilo and precedes Berkano.

Tiwaz opens the last family. In the modern order, the eight runes of this family speak of growth (birch), relationships (horse, human being), water, the hero Ing, day and inheritance: a series centred on collective life.

To see all the runes in relation to one another, see the rune guide and the page the Elder Futhark: history and reading of the 24 runes.

Frequently asked questions

Also read

The meanings mentioned belong to tradition and symbolism. They are neither promises of results nor medical advice. Back to Guide to the runes.