Study › Runes & Norse › Dagaz
Dagaz (ᛞ) is the twenty-fourth rune of the Elder Futhark. Its name means "day", and its meaning is the new stage: dawn, awakening, a threshold crossed, light after dark. It cannot be reversed.
Keywords: dawn, awakening, threshold, new stage, illumination
What does the Dagaz rune mean?
Dagaz is the twenty-fourth rune of the Elder Futhark. It comes after Othala and closes the Futhark.
Its name means "day". It stands for a new beginning, a new stage — and for the light of dawn that scatters the darkness and brings illumination and enlightenment. Dagaz shows itself in the moment of initiation: a symbolic death and rebirth into a new stage of life, as day turns to night and back into day.
Othala and Dagaz are opposite archetypes that complete each other. Othala is an inheritance, something of great value. Dagaz is the natural next step for it: the great leap forward that carries it on.
Dagaz means "day". It is a new stage, the rising of the sun, enlightenment, the spread of light and the dissolving of darkness — and a decisive change, like the one when night ends and day begins. Dagaz is a non-reversible rune.
It begins the cleansing formula with Wunjo, and follows Othala.
Dagaz in a reading
Dagaz in love
A new dawn in love. Awakening feelings. A turning point. The relationship reaches a new stage. Seeing each other in a new light.
Dagaz and money
A bright new start. Waking up to opportunities. A breakthrough moment. A new phase of business. Clarity on finances.
Dagaz and health
A turn for the better. Renewed vitality. A critical point passed. A new stage of healing. Clarity about your health.
Dagaz on the spiritual path
Spiritual dawn. Awakening. Crossing a threshold. A new level of consciousness. Enlightenment.
Can Dagaz be reversed?
No. Dagaz looks the same either way up, so it has no reversed meaning: it reads the same however it falls.
Dagaz in the rune poems
The rune poems are the oldest sources for the runes' meanings. Here is what each one says of Dagaz, first as written, then in English.
Norwegian Rune Poem
Icelandic Rune Poem
Anglo-Saxon Rune Poem
Dæg byþ drihtnes sond, deore mannum,
mære metodes leoht, myrgþ and tohiht
eadgum and earmum, eallum brice.Day, the glorious light of the Creator, is sent by the Lord;
it is beloved of men, a source of hope and happiness to rich and poor,
and of service to all.
Questions
How do you pronounce Dagaz?
Say it "DAH-gahz".
What does the Dagaz rune look like?
Dagaz (ᛞ) is like a bow tie, or an hourglass lying on its side.
Can Dagaz be reversed?
No. Dagaz looks the same either way up, so it has no reversed meaning.