This is the Germanic rune 'Man.' It occurs as one of the letters in a runic alphabet, called a futhark after the first few letters F, U, Th, A, R, and K. Here is an image of a complete runic futhark:
This is the Germanic rune 'Man.' It occurs as one of the letters in a runic alphabet, called a futhark after the first few letters F, U, Th, A, R, and K. Here is an image of a complete runic futhark:
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While runic language research remains an ongoing process, most researchers agree that runic scripts developed as a form of writing in northern Europe around the 2nd century C.E. Two main families developed over time -- the Anglo-Saxon/Frisian and the Scandinavian.
Different runes have different meanings depending on their language family of origin. The meanings of 'Man,' when occuring in Germanic writings (part of the former family), have been determined to be either Birth, Life, or Eternal Life, depending on the context.
During the Romantic period at the end of the 19th century, many Germans eschewed the trappings of Christianity in an effort to return to the cultural institutions of their ancient tribal ancestors. The rune 'Man' appeared both as a grave marker for the dead and as a symbol indicating birth date (along with its inverse opposite 'Yr' indicating date of death). Here's an example:
For more information about runes, futharks, and the ongoing linguistic research regarding them, visit the Norwegian Computing Centre for the Humanities (NCCH) site in Oslo.
This symbol is not a rune. This is called a "Wolfzeichen" (Wolf-sign). Ancient Germanic tribes marked their territory by chopping this sign (or variations of it) into tree trunks with their axes. As far as I can tell, it has no deeper historical meaning other than as a territorial marker.