Scandinavia has a rich history of the raising of runestones, monuments in stone of varying sizes for honoring the fallen. Among these there exist a group of runestones that mention a land far away from the cold winds of the north, the land of the Byzantine Empire, stretching from the Balkans to the edge of Anatolia with Greece at its center. Scandinavia and the former Byzantine empire has a long history between them where many made their way down the eastern rivers of the Rus to finally reach the city of Constantinople or ‘Miklagard’ as the Scandinavians called it, the great city. Here in the vast empire of the Greeks many Scandinavians saw an opportunity for wealth and fortune. Many of these however did not return home, they died in Greece and for some of them a runestone was raised in their memory. These would form the so-called Greece runestones, a collection of 27 runestones which will be explored in this thesis. The travelers to Greece also left behind their own writings at places like the Hagia Sophia and the Piraeus Lion. Where with their own words they tell of their journey to this distant land, which will also be covered along with the Greece runestones. The aim of this thesis is to explore these writings to hopefully give a greater insight to the early medieval Scandinavian society and what would motivate so many to travel all the way to Greece. This together with an analysis of the import of byzantine coins to the baltic area will hopefully provide us with a better understanding of these motives and at what period these travels primarily took place.

<p>Abstract</p><p>The aim of this study is to describe similarities and differences in the inscriptions of runestones in</p><p>today's county of Kronoberg, the former county of Värend and, in addition, a part of the former</p><p>county of Sunnerbo. The study is based on 27 remaining runestones which are analysed through</p><p>choice of words and runes, orthography and decorations.</p><p>The section of choice of words and runes are categorised and based on the choice of choosing</p><p>one particular word over another and of choosing one particular rune over another. Orthography is</p><p>based on the spelling of five particular words; efter, sten, reste, hjälpe and och. Monophtongisation</p><p>is discussed and analysed. The section of decorations has two subsections; 1) crucifixes and</p><p>”suns”, and 2) other forms of decoration.</p><p>The study showed that the runestones had some significant numbers of similarities and</p><p>differences. The study also showed that the option of choosing one word, or rune, over another was</p><p>probably a conscious choice made by the runic inscriber himself. The spelling of the five words</p><p>revealed a limited number of spelling choices, and that monophtongisation had occurred in some</p><p>words. The majority of the runestones had some form of decoration, usually a crucifix, which were</p><p>categorised. However, attribution could only be made in a few cases, due to the limited amount of</p><p>criteria used.</p><p>Keywords: crucifixes, decorations, Kronoberg, monophtongisation, runes, runestones, Sunnerbo,</p><p>Värend</p>

Abstract The aim of this study is to describe similarities and differences in the inscriptions of runestones in today's county of Kronoberg, the former county of Värend and, in addition, a part of the former county of Sunnerbo. The study is based on 27 remaining runestones which are analysed through choice of words and runes, orthography and decorations. The section of choice of words and runes are categorised and based on the choice of choosing one particular word over another and of choosing one particular rune over another. Orthography is based on the spelling of five particular words; efter, sten, reste, hjälpe and och. Monophtongisation is discussed and analysed. The section of decorations has two subsections; 1) crucifixes and ”suns”, and 2) other forms of decoration. The study showed that the runestones had some significant numbers of similarities and differences. The study also showed that the option of choosing one word, or rune, over another was probably a conscious choice made by the runic inscriber himself. The spelling of the five words revealed a limited number of spelling choices, and that monophtongisation had occurred in some words. The majority of the runestones had some form of decoration, usually a crucifix, which were categorised. However, attribution could only be made in a few cases, due to the limited amount of criteria used. Keywords: crucifixes, decorations, Kronoberg, monophtongisation, runes, runestones, Sunnerbo, Värend

Runristningen på Malstastenen, där både förfäder och marker redovisas, har tolkats som ett uttryck för odal. Runstenar och hur de relaterar till odal är uppsatsens genomgående tema. Uppsatsens primära källmaterial är Malstastenen. Studien avgränsas till Rogsta socken, norra Hälsingland och järnåldern. För att belysa odalsystemets relationella bindningar, kommer ett för detta forskningsfält nytt teoretiskt och metodologiskt perspektiv att introduceras, entanglement. Analysen visar att odalsystemet genomgår en kris när Skandinavien kristnas. Kyrkan tar nu över själavården och motsätter sig det hedniska gravskicket hög. Här uppstår ett brott i odalssystemet. För att återkoppla den döde till odalsystemet restes istället runstenar som ett substitut till gravhögar. Uppsatsens tolkning av de senvikingatida runstenarna kan eventuellt förklara den stora ökning av kristna runstenar som då sker i Skandinavien. / The runic inscription on the Malsta runestone contains accounts of ancestors and lands and is interpreted as an expression of odal. Runestones and their connection to odal is the overall theme of this thesis. The primary source material is the Malsta runestone. The study is delimited to Rogsta Parish, northern Hälsingland and the iron age. To fully understand the relational connections within the odal system, a new theoretical and methodical approach will be introduced to the odal research field, entanglement. In the analysis a crisis in the odal system is detected, instigated by the Christianization of Scandinavia. As the church takes over the care of the dead and opposes the heathen burial mounds, a rift in the odal system appears. To reconnect the dead to the odal system, runestones are erected as a substitute for burial mounds. The thesis interpretation of the late Viking age runestones might also explain the sudden raise of Christian runestones during this period.

The orthography of Östergötland’s 11th century runic inscriptions varies widely, in part due to the lack of spelling norms at the time. This thesis seeks to identify other causes for the observed variation, based on the frequency and distribution of aspects of inscription orthography. The Old Norse words ræisa and stæin in the phrase “raised the stone” were analyzed based on the main vowel and its status as a monograph or digraph. The presence or absence of þ in inflected ræisa was also included as an indicator of age. All runic inscriptions in Östergötland with definite key word orthography were included, 169 in total. The analysis reveals that most inscriptions are clustered in three regions, each with a dominant vowel. By region, these are ei (west), i (central) and ai (east), with vowel consistency between ræisa and stæin the norm. The consonant þ in inflected ræisa is most common in the west and east. The vowel orthography together with the distribution of þ implies a relative chronology for Östergötland’s runic inscriptions, where the ongoing monophthongization is reflected in digraphs and monographs. The detailed orthography distribution of these variables shows that the main clusters align with the known 11th century quarries at Borghamn (west) and Vreta (central). Stoneworking at a shared site resulted in a transfer of knowledge, including runestone design and orthography which became a local norm as it spread. The lack of a unifying quarry in eastern Östergötland resulted in a more diverse local orthography, and possibly hampered the building of the first stone churches during the early 12th century. / Östergötlands runinskrifter från 1000-talet varierar stort i sin ortografi, delvis på grund av bristen på stavningsnormer när de ristades. Uppsatsen eftersträvar att identifiera andra orsaker för denna variation, baserat på frekvensen och distributionen av vissa aspekter i inskrifternas ortografi. De fornnordiska orden ræisa och stæin i inskriftsfrasen “reste sten” analyserades baserat på huvudvokalen samt om den var en monograf eller digraf. Användning av þ i böjda former av ræisa inkluderades som ett tecken på inskriftens ålder. Samtliga runinskrifter i Östergötland med en säker nyckelordsortografi analyserades, totalt 169 stycken. Resultaten visar att de flesta inskrifterna är grupperade i tre regioner som har varsin dominant vokal. Vanligast i väster är ei, i den centrala regionen råder i och i öster råder ai, med normen att samma vokal används i både ræisa och stæin. Konsonanten þ i böjd ræisa är vanligast i väster och i öster. Vokalortografin tillsammans med þ-distributionen indikerar en relativ kronologi för Östergötlands runinskrifter, där vokalernas monoftongering under 1000-talet återspeglas i digrafer och monografer. De analyserade variablernas distribution visar att huvudgrupperingarna sammanfaller med de kända stenbrotten från 1000-talet vid Borghamn (i väster) och Vreta (centrala regionen). Att stenarbetet skedde vid en gemensam site ledde till en omedveten kunskapsöverlämning mellan ristare. Inskriftsortografi kopierades och blev lokala normer allt efter att den spreds. Bristen på ett större stenbrott som informell, gemensam arbetsplats i östra Östergötland ledde till en mer varierad lokalortografi. Detta kan ha hindrat stenkyrkobygget lokalt under tidigt 1100-tal.

<p>This thesis rewievs present day research on the settlement of Östra Aros in central Sweden. The thesis deals with the period from late Iron age to about 1270 AD, when the Swedish archdiocese moved to the already existing early-medieval settlement of Östra Aros, thus becoming the medieval town of Uppsala. The basis of the thesis is the study of a variety of source materials, such as artefact studies, runestones, topography and the prehistoric and early medieval hinterland. The thesis centers on archaeological excavation data and dating of settlement structures, particularly focusing on the settlements establishment. Through a critical review of primarily the written record and the archaeological data, the settlements characteristics and functions are discussed, emphasising when and if the settlement could be described as a town, central- or trading place.</p>

This thesis rewievs present day research on the settlement of Östra Aros in central Sweden. The thesis deals with the period from late Iron age to about 1270 AD, when the Swedish archdiocese moved to the already existing early-medieval settlement of Östra Aros, thus becoming the medieval town of Uppsala. The basis of the thesis is the study of a variety of source materials, such as artefact studies, runestones, topography and the prehistoric and early medieval hinterland. The thesis centers on archaeological excavation data and dating of settlement structures, particularly focusing on the settlements establishment. Through a critical review of primarily the written record and the archaeological data, the settlements characteristics and functions are discussed, emphasising when and if the settlement could be described as a town, central- or trading place.

Despite being in a geographical area abundant of rune stones, there are few found in the Stockholm archipelago. This paper explores these stones and why this is by examining the preserved rune stones in two archipelago municipals; Vaxholm and Österåker, their locations and who placed the stones there.