Galdr was a form of chanted or intoned charm-speech mentioned in the Poetic Edda and Old Norse sagas. Very little of it survives in complete form — most of what's practiced today under this name is modern reconstruction, revived largely through 20th-century Heathen and Ásatrú movements.
Historically, galdr was closely tied to the runes — the Hávamál's Rúnatal section directly connects Odin, the runes, and chanted charm-speech. This list includes the 24 Elder Futhark runes, whose names and traditional associations are well documented by historians and linguists, alongside attested god-names, greetings, and concepts from the Eddas and sagas. Treat this as a historical and literary starting point, not a continuous unbroken oral tradition.
Very little complete galdr survives — these entries are attested names and formulas, not full spell-texts.
Modern practitioners typically speak a name or rune with intention, rather than following a lost original formula.
For more depth, the Poetic Edda (especially Hávamál) is widely published in translation.
Combine a invocation with a short intention and closing line, and hear the whole thing read aloud.
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