Runes were first of all a writing system. They served names, ownership, commemoration, messages, and many other purposes. Some inscriptions invoke protection, healing, curses, or supernatural aid.
Repetition, unusual sequences, and formulae may have magical functions but are often ambiguous. Meaning arises from wording, object, find context, and comparison—not from the sign alone.
The fixed divinatory meanings widely assigned to each rune today are mostly modern. Hrafnspeki therefore separates historical rune names and sources from modern divination without dismissing contemporary practice.