Examining Sol in 2024

Sol Year, Blizzard, Storms, Hearthside Blog, Radio Canada

These posts are sometimes the hardest to keep up with, since it is a long-term project that may or may not yield anything interesting. In addition, I have found this year particularly difficult, at first due to personal time constraints, but also because this year has been surprising me!

Rune Rasmussen talks of a 19 year cycle which he associates each year with a rune in the Swedish rune poem. What I am doing each year is looking at the rune poems, plus historical data, to see if I can predict trends for the year. Think of it as a Heathen Farmer’s Almanac or something.

I had initial thoughts based on the rune Sol as to what that might mean for 2024, and went to historical data to see if I might be correct. The year 2005 was marked by drought and wildfires across much of Canada and Northwestern Europe. There was also a tendency towards large winter storms in Eastern Canada. Similarly, in 1986 Winnipeg was hit by a massive blizzard and in 1967 New Brunswick was hit by a huge winter storm and Alberta had a massive snowstorm in April that required the military to be sent in for assistance. Record precipitation was recorded that year across Canada. 1948 was a year marked by flooding in British Columbia, suggesting high precipitation again.

This year, the tendency locally seems to be trending towards flooding, but not to an extreme. There has been more precipitation than expected so far. We have had many wildfires, however, suggesting things are not as good as they seem on the surface. So far the garden is thriving and the environment is green and flourishing. We have had several drought years leading up to this and so the flooding is a welcome relief to the natural world. It is almost as if things are going back into balance after the Aun year. We are yet to see how the winter will hit us.

That said, I like to look at Sweden as well since this is where the rune poem is from that Rune Rasmussen is basing his findings on. The last Sol year was 2005. Stockholm recorded a summer high temperature of 32.1 degrees Celsius on July 12th, which is quite hot. However, in 1986 the summer was recorded as being notably rainy. In 1967, Sweden became focused on climate threats, noting the rising annual global temperatures. It was subject to extreme winter storms as well as a heatwave in September and windstorms in October. In addition, both 1967 and 1948 marketed years with more geomagnetic storms in Scandinavia.

It seems like for the Sol year there is a lot of variation in climate expectations between Canada and Sweden. Canadians can expect more precipitation (but also wildfires) with a large chance of big winter storms. Sweden can expect extreme weather of some sort and perhaps geomagnetic storms, leading to high visibility of the Northern Lights. So, it seems like the year is to be marked with extremes that help to rebalance us after the Aun year.

Now for the fun part, adding in the rune poems. We will start with the Swedish rune poem, as that is what Rune uses in his book:

Swedish

Sol i himbla hogest

Sol in heaven highest

I.e. Blasahr

I.e. windy year

The part about it being a windy year makes sense both with the extremes in weather, and the extremes in political climate. Wind storms in Sweden and increased awareness of climate change in other Sol years seem to back this up. But what does it mean that Sol is in highest heaven? Is this to be taken at face value that it will be hot and sunny, or is there a hidden metaphor here? Perhaps what needs to be exposed is illuminated now.

Icelandic

Sól er skýja skjöldr

ok skínandi röðull

ok ísa aldrtregi.

Sun = shield of the clouds

and shining ray

and destroyer of ice.

The Icelandic poem seems fairly weather based. The sun determines the weather. It is interesting that the sun is described as the shield of the clouds, rather than the clouds as the shield of the sun. Do we need the sun to help us rebalance the climate this year?

Norwegian

Sól er landa ljóme;

lúti ek helgum dóme.

Sun is the light of the world;

I bow to the divine decree.

Here we see a religious element. Is this a Christianization of the poem, or are we talking about Sol as a divine being? What is clear is that we are affected by the natural world, whether we like it or not. The climate of this year will affect our lives. Perhaps that is literal, or perhaps it is a metaphor for political climate.

Anglo-Saxon

Sigel semannum symble biþ on hihte,

ðonne hi hine feriaþ ofer fisces beþ,

oþ hi brimhengest bringeþ to lande.

The sun is ever a joy in the hopes of seafarers

when they journey away over the fishes' bath,

until the courser of the deep bears them to land.

This one surprised me, as often it is the Anglo-Saxon poem that is heavily Christianized. Here we see that it is a good year for travel by sea. This may be another reference to the wind that was mentioned in the Swedish rune poem.

The political climate in Sol years is also important to this analysis. We have already talked a bit about growing climate concerns in Sweden historically in these Sol years. 2005 was marked by protests and political turmoil, as well as a rise in feminism. In 1986 the Swedish Prime Minister was assassinated, so it was another year of political unrest. The year 1948 was also marked by rioting and an election, so it seems there is a very intense political theme through Sol years in Sweden.

In Canada political changes and upheavals also seem prevalent. In 2005, same sex marriage was recognized in Canada. In politics the Conservatives try to topple the Liberal government. The year 1986 sees the Canadian dollar plummet. In 1929, the stock market crashed leading to the Great Depression in 1930.

1967 marks a special year for Canada, as it was 100 years since confederation. This lead to it be one of the best years for Canada’s economy and the atmosphere was overall hopeful. That said there were signs of political unrest under the surface. The Prime Minister resigned, nationalism was on the rise, and Quebec’s separatist movement was getting underway. The youth were caught up in the hippie movement, and change was on the horizon. Similarly, in 1948, there was optimism as Newfoundland held a referendum and decided to join Canada.

Overall, it seems that a Sol year brings storms, whether literal or winds of change that are intertwined throughout this year. These changes may present as upheaval or positive movements depending on the political climate. Be prepared for surprises and changes as well as extremes. Sol illuminates things that will continue into the upcoming years. Historically this has included the Great Depression, the rise of the FLQ in Canada, and environmental movements in Sweden.

Sources

The Nordic Animist Year by Rune Rasmussen

Annual 2005 Global Climate Report

https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/monthly-report/global/200513

Stockholm Weather 2005

https://www.extremeweatherwatch.com/cities/stockholm/year-2005

2005 Weather History in Stockholm

https://weatherspark.com/h/y/84156/2005/Historical-Weather-during-2005-in-Stockholm-Sweden#Figures-Temperature

2005 Winter Storm in Montreal

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/storm-drops-record-snowfall-on-montreal-1.567778

Summer Weather in Sweden 1986

https://weatherspark.com/h/s/84156/1986/1/Historical-Weather-Summer-1986-in-Stockholm-Sweden