Definitions
Definitions
1 vala
u, f. the rolling knuckle-bone, Lat. talus, Gr. ἀστράγαλος; in Icel. these bones are dried and used for winding clews of yarn (þráðar-vala); in the old heathen times they seem to have been used for fortune-telling, whence the compds, völu-brjótr, m. a knuckle-breaker, a nickname, Sd.: völu-spakr, adj. ‘knuckle-wise’ prophetic (?), Edda (in a verse): völu-mæltr, adj. talking thick, as if with a knuckle-bone rolling in one’s mouth: hvel-vala, a rolling pebble, Þd. (poët.)
2 vala
II. the name of a dog; vappaðu með mér, vala … keyrðu féð í hala, a ditty.
Runic Inscription
Runic Inscription
vala
The runic text above represents the Old Norse word "vala" as it might appear in runic inscriptions from the Viking Age (c. 800-1100 CE).