Alu (runic) - Etymology

Etymology

Although the literal meaning of the word alu is generally accepted to be "ale," i.e. "intoxicating beverage," researchers have found it necessary to look deeper into the significance of the term. Earlier proposed etymologies for the word sought a connection with Proto-Germanic *aluh "amulet, taboo" from *alh "protect." Cognates in Germanic dialects would include Old English ealh "temple," Gothic alhs "temple," and Old Norse alh "amulet." Edgar Polomé initially proposed an etymological connection between Germanic alu and Hittite alwanza "affected by witchcraft," which is in turn connected to Greek alúõ "to be beside oneself" and Latvian aluôt "to be distraught." This etymology was later proven faulty and subsequently dropped by Polomé, though he continues to suggest that a common semantic denominator connects these words with alu.

Linguistic connections have been proposed between the term and the Proto-Germanic term *aluþ, meaning "ale," and subsequently the word is sometimes translated as meaning "ale," though this linguistic approach has been criticized as having "crucial difficulties." Polomé takes the word to belong to the "technical operative vocabulary" of the Germanic peoples, originally referring to "an ecstatic mental state as transferred to a potent drink" used in religious rituals in Germanic paganism.

Raetian North Etruscan dedicatory votive objects have been discovered featuring alu where the term means "dedication". Connections have been proposed between these objects and the term alu found on runic inscriptions. Theories have been proposed that the term was loaned into Runic usage from this source.