Alu (runic)

The sequence alu (ᚨᛚᚢ) is found in numerous Elder Futhark runic inscriptions of Germanic Iron Age Scandinavia (and more rarely in early Anglo-Saxon England) between the 3rd and the 8th century. The word usually appears either alone (such as on the Elgesem runestone) or as part of an apparent formula (such as on the Lindholm "amulet" (DR 261) from Scania, Sweden). The symbols represent the runes Ansuz, Laguz, and Uruz. The origin and meaning of the word are matters of dispute, though a general agreement exists among scholars that the word represents an instance of historical runic magic or is a metaphor (or metonym) for it. It is the most common of the early runic charm words.

The word disappears from runic inscriptions shortly after Migration Period, even before the Christianization of Scandinavia. It may have lived on beyond this period with an increasing association with ale, appearing in stanzas 7 and 19 of the Old Norse poem Sigrdrífumál, compiled in the 13th century Poetic Edda, where knowledge of invocative "ale runes" (Old Norse ölrúnar) is imparted by the Valkyrie Sigrdrífa. Theories have been suggested that the unique term ealuscerwen (possibly "pouring away of alu"), used to describe grief or terror in the epic poem Beowulf, recorded around the 9th to 11th century, may be directly related.

ALU

ALU, alu or Alu may refer to:

Computing and science

Organizations

People

Places

Villages and boroughs

Volcanoes

Other

See also

Potato

The potato is a starchy, tuberous crop from the perennial nightshade Solanum tuberosum L. The word "potato" may refer either to the plant itself or to the edible tuber. In the Andes, where the species is indigenous, there are some other closely related cultivated potato species. Potatoes were introduced outside the Andes region approximately four centuries ago, and have since become an integral part of much of the world's food supply. It is the world's fourth-largest food crop, following maize, wheat, and rice. The green leaves and green skins of tubers exposed to the light are toxic.

Wild potato species can be found throughout the Americas from the United States to southern Chile. The potato was originally believed to have been domesticated independently in multiple locations, but later genetic testing of the wide variety of cultivars and wild species proved a single origin for potatoes in the area of present-day southern Peru and extreme northwestern Bolivia (from a species in the Solanum brevicaule complex), where they were domesticated approximately 7,000–10,000 years ago. Following centuries of selective breeding, there are now over a thousand different types of potatoes. Over 99% of the presently cultivated potatoes worldwide descended from varieties that originated in the lowlands of south-central Chile, which have displaced formerly popular varieties from the Andes.

Alu (musician)

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Alu is a Los Angeles-based eclectic chanteuse and composer who blends cabaret, goth, trip-hop and jazz into unique cinematic soundscapes. Her music has been compared to Björk, Kate Bush, Tim Burton and Federico Fellini. She is known for her dark yet quirky lyrics and fantasy storytelling.

Alu is featured on the soundtrack to Clive Barker's The Midnight Meat Train, Public Radio International, NPR and Echoes Radio. Her post-apocalyptic ballad "Last Lullaby" is included in the 2007 controversial action thriller "Juncture" by film director James Seale.

Alu's song "Circus Cosmos" was Echoes Radio Producer/Host John Diliberto's No. 1 Song of 2008 and her sophomore CD "Lobotomy Sessions" made his Top Ten List of 2008 for Best Album. "Lobotomy Sessions" was also one of Echoes 25 Essential Albums of 2008 (Staff Picks and Listeners' Poll).

Alu was nominated for two 2009 Just Plain Folks Music Awards in the Female Singer Songwriter Category: Best Album ("Lobotomy Sessions") & Best Song ("Buzzin' in my Brain").