Ahmet ÜnalMultilinguales Handwörterbuch des Hethitischen /
A Concise Multilingual Hittite Dictionary Hititçe /
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About this book deutschenglishtürkçe

A Concise Multilingual Hittite Dictionary
A Hittite, English, German and Turkish Dictionary

From as early as 1670 v. Chr, Hittite was written on clay tablets through the medium of the Babylonian cuneiform script; it thus represents the oldest attested Indo-European language. After more than a hundred years of continuous study, involving decipherment and the unravelling of textual context, the research process is now almost accomplished. Each excavation season in the Hittite homeland of Anatolia provides, in addition to the discovery of archaeological objects, further textual finds, enriching our knowledge of the vocabulary and subject matter covered. Although the former Hittite capital of Boğazköy-Hattusa was until recently the exclusive supplier of these clay tablets, different archives of greater importance are now being discovered in provincial cities. The specific self-dynamics in the research field pose a challenge for scholars, because the new material brings fresh information which needs to be evaluated in every respect. The rapid increase in basic evidence also necessitates changes in the format of manuals relating to history and grammar, and the upgrading of dictionaries to satisfy modern standards and take account of enhanced levels of knowledge.

The “Hittite Dictionary” of J. Friedrich, from the year 1952, which once constituted a comprehensive reference tool, is now outdated in ist semantic data and the completeness of ist entries. The extended second edition of this Munich publication (1974 ff.) and the Chicago Hittite Dictionary (1980 ff.) are making comparatively slow progress; so far only the letters A-H and L-Š, respectively, have been dealt with. One of the disadvantages inherent in large-scale dictionaries is that they contain encyclopaedic references, rendering them unsuitable for everyday use as consultative works. On the other hand, some other dictionaries concern themselves only with the etymological aspect of the language. Consequently, a comprehensive dictionary, detailing the whole Hittite vocabulary, is a long-awaited development.

The dictionary submitted here contains approximately 12,000 words, exceeding all previous compilations in the extent of ist coverage. It differs from others in further respects. Constantly referring to current levels of knowledge, ist author has been at pains to encompass the entire Hittite vocabulary alongside the conjugation and declination forms of all words. A full list of rarely attested words is also included. Contrary to the usual practice in Hittite lexicography, the dictionary does not exclude the numerous words from other languages which occur in the texts and therefore represents the most complete lexical work to date. Moreover, it is multilingual in the sense that it offers the meanings of Hittite words in German, English and Turkish, thus obviating lengthy recourse to modern “mediator dictionaries.” This factor will make it an indispensable aid beyond the German linguistic area, among English- and Turkish-speaking researchers.

The comprehensive character of the dictionary ensures that it is relevant to a variety of disciplines: general and historical linguistics, comparative linguistics, religious research, cultural history and social anthropology. In particular, it will assist research in the following subjects: Ancient Near Eastern studies, Ancient Anatolian studies, Indo-European studies, Greek and Latin Philology, Indology, Iranian studies, Old Persian history, Old Testament studies and Bible research. The new Hittite Dictionary represents a compact, but nonetheless exhaustive reference work.

Ihr Werk im Verlag Dr. Kovač

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