The Germanic words for "Sun" have the peculiarity of alternating between -l- and -n- stems, Proto-Germanic*sunnon vs. *sôwilô or *saewelô. This continues a Proto-Indo-European alternation *suwen- vs. *sewol-, a remnant of an archaic, so-called "heteroclitic", declension pattern that remained productive only in the Anatolian languages. The Old English name of the rune, written sigel is most often explained as a remnant of an otherwise extinct l-stem variant of the word for "Sun", but alternative suggestions have been put forward, such as deriving it from Latinsigillum.
Development and variants
The Elder Futhark s rune is attested in two variants, a Σ shape, more prevalent in earlier inscriptions, and an S shape, more prevalent in later inscriptions. Coincidentally, the Phoenician letter šin from which the Old Italics letter ancestral to the rune was derived was itself named after the Sun, shamash, based on the Egyptian uraeus hieroglyph. The Younger Futhark Sol and the Anglo-Saxon futhorcSigel runes are identical in shape, a rotated version of the later Elder Futhark rune, with the middle stroke slanting upwards, and the initial and finalstrokes vertical. The Anglo-Saxon runes developed a variant shape, called the "bookhand" s rune because it is probably inspired by the long s in Insular script. This variant form is used in the futhorc given on the Seax of Beagnoth.
Rune poems
Modern usage
Armanen runes
The sig rune in Guido von List's Armanen Futharkh corresponds to the Younger Futharksigel, thus changing the concept associated with it from "sun" to "victory". It was adapted into the emblem of the SS in 1933 by Walter Heck, an SS-Sturmhauptführer who worked as a graphic designer for the firm of Ferdinand Hofstätter, a producer of emblems and insignia in Bonn. Heck's simple but striking device consisted of two sig runes drawn side by side like lightning bolts, and was soon adopted by all branches of the SS – though Heck himself received only a token payment of 2.5 Reichsmarks for his work. The device had a double meaning; as well as standing for the initials of the SS, it could be read as a rallying cry of "Victory, Victory!". Thus, during the Nazi era, the enforced spelling became Sieg, the German word for "victory", as this would especially promote Nazi propaganda of the "Endsieg". The symbol became so ubiquitous that it was frequently typeset using runes rather than letters; during the Nazi period, an extra key was added to German typewriters to enable them to type the double-sig logo with a single keystroke. Internationally-renowned American rock band Kiss uses :de:File:1980PressetextKISS-Logo.jpg|a different logo in Germany than it does for the rest of the world, due to the two 'S's in their logo resembling the double-sig rune.
