The 'Lemnian language' is a language of the 6th century BC spoken on the island of Lemnos. It is mainly attested by an inscription found on a funerary stele, termed the 'Lemnos stele', discovered in 1885 near Kaminia. However, fragments of inscriptions on local pottery show that it was spoken there by a community.^[1] Lemnian is academically accepted as being closely related to Etruscan. After the Athenians conquered the island in the latter half of that century, Lemnian was replaced by Attic Greek.

Contents

Writing system

Classification

Origin

Vowels

Speculative relationships

Indo-European hypothesis

The Lemnos stele

Translation of the Lemnos Stele

Is a numeral?

The value of <šivai>

The name of the person to whom this was dedicated

Suffixes <-m> & <-c>

Is Hulaie's age "60" or "40"?

Notes

Bibliography

See also

External links

Writing system

The inscriptions are in an alphabet similar to that used to write the Etruscan language and the older Phrygian inscriptions, all derived from Euboean scripts (Western Greek alphabet, alphabets of Asia Minor). These scripts are ultimately of West Semitic origin and were adapted by various peoples from before the 8th century BC.

Classification

A relationship between Lemnian, Etruscan and Raetian, sometimes grouped together as the Tyrsenian language group, is largely accepted because of the strong connections between vocabulary and grammar. For example,

★ both Etruscan and Lemnian share two unique dative cases, masculine '
★ -si' and feminine-collective '
★ -ale', shown both on the Lemnos Stele ('Hulaie-ši' "for Hulaie", 'Φukiasi-ale' "for the Phocaean") and in inscriptions written in Etruscan ('aule-si' "To Aule" on the Cippus Perusinus as well as the inscription 'mi mulu Laris-ale Velχaina-si' "I was blessed for Laris Velchaina").

★ They also share the masculine genitive in '
★ -s' and a simple past tense in '
★ -a-i' (Etruscan <-e> as in 'ame' "was" (<
★ amai); Lemnian <-ai> as in 'šivai' "lived").

Origin

The ancient Greek historian Herodotus referred to the pre-Greek population of Lemnos as Πελασγοι ('Pelasgoi'; see Pelasgians. However, according to other authors like Thucydides, the pre-Greek population of Lemnos were called Τυρσενοι ('Tyrsenoi' or alternatively, ''Tyrrhenoi''; see Tyrrhenians).

Vowels

Like Etruscan, the Lemnian language appears to have had a four-vowel system consisting of "i", "u", "a" and "e". Having a contrast between front and back vowels, it would appear to lack a high back vowel (a "u"-like sound) which is curious because this defies the linguistic universal of contrast maximization. Since vowel systems such as these without "u" are rare, it is strongly likely that what we transliterate as "o" from the symbol omikron was in fact meant to record a high, back, rounded vowel instead (written in IPA as /u/). This is not unusual considering that different languages may take the same letter to transcribe different sounds. It is rather coincidental that the languages neighbouring this region, namely Hittite and Akkadian, also happen to have the same four-vowel systems lacking "o". This suggests early areal influence.

Speculative relationships

Indo-European hypothesis

Some modern scholars have claimed that the Tyrrhenian family as a whole is distantly related to the Indo-European languages (IE), citing similarities in grammatical endings and vocabulary. With the paucity of complete texts, this is merely conjecture at present. For now, many remain conservative and consider Tyrrhenian to be an isolate group. A connection with IE is merely one of the strongest possibilities so far but not proven satisfactorily. Some contend that the <-s> and <-l> genitival endings seen in Tyrrhenian languages are evidence of substrate influence from the ''Anatolian'' languages (which are part of the Indo-European family), acquired during a time when Tyrrhenian languages were still centered around Asia Minor.
Linguist Polat Kaya made a word to word translation of the supposed indo european, eteocypriot or who knows what else plates into turkic language
3. THE TRANSCRIPTION OF THE LEMNOS ISLAND INSCRIPTION
Text 1 transcription:
HaTaPASE : I : aNAaPaTaTa AKER : TAKARISTe QAM . APA .aNÇaSAP : IERaTa aNASaMaTa eReSeNASaP
[Hatapase : i : anaapatata aker: takariste qam . apa . ançasap : ierata anasamata eresenasap ]
Turkish : Hatapasa : iy : anaapa tata ak er : takariste kam . apa . ançasap : iy erata anam atasi er esen asap
Eng.: Hatapasa : O grandfather honest man : Thracian? shaman .father. thus lays? : O brave father my mother's
father sound thinking? man
Text 2 transcription:
aNÇaSAIS : QAM : I. APAM : aNÇaSAP iÇeKeSi . I : AQaS : IEQiSeNÇTaTa IERaTa aNASaTa ISaQAS
[ançasais : qam : i . apam : ançasap içekesi.i : aqas : ieqisençtata ierata anasata isaqas]
Turkish : ança SAIS [= Sayas, Ais, Ak Ayas, Tengri, Zeus, Ajax] : kam : iy apam : boylece yatip? iç akasi .
iy : aga : iy ekesenç [=ikiz?] tata [=dede] iy er ata anaata iy Saka
Eng.: thus Sais [=Ais, Zeus, Ajax] : shaman : O my father : thus laid? local's gentleman [=local's elderman] .
O : Lord : O twins? grandfather O brave father my mother's father O Saka
Text 3, line 1 transcription:
HaTaPASaQIS : aPaTaKaS ANÇaSAPE : IERaTa IASaTa :EQeSeNÇTaTa: TaTaQER aTaNA
[Hatapasaqis : apatakas ançasape : ierata iasata : eqesenç tata : tataqer atana]
Turkish : Hatapasa : apataka? boylece yatip? : iy er ata iy as [us, akilli] ata : eqesenç [=ikiz?] tata [=dede] :
tatak [atak?] er ata ana
Eng.: Hatapasakis : apataka=? thus laid? : O brave father O wise father : twins? grandfather : fearless? man father mother
Text 3, line 2 transcription:
eRaTaM : HARAPaSaTa : ISAQAS : EPeTeISTe : ARAS : TaS 50? : aPaTaKE :
[eratam : Harapasata : isaqas : epeteiste : aras : tas 50? : apatake :]
Turkish : er atam : Harapas [falci] ata : iy Saqa : Epeteiste : aras?: tas [=yas] 50?: apatake? :
Eng.: my brave father : haraspex father : O Saka : Epeteiste : aras=? : age 50? : apatake=? :
Text 3, line 3 transcription:
ISaQAS : AQaSI : aNÇaSAP iÇeKeSI : APAM KaM : AQaSI : ATaMAS
[isaqas : aqasi : ançasap içekesi : apam kam : aqasi : atamas]
Turkish : iy Saqa : agasi (beyi) : boylece yatip? içekesi[=yerin olgun kisisi]: apam kam : agasi : atama
Eng.: O Saka : Lord : thus laid? local's gentlman [local's elderman]: my father shaman : Lord : to my father
4. DESCRIPTION OF WORDS IN TURKISH AND IN ENGLISH:
Text No.1
Transcription ...../..... Turkish Definition .....//..... English definitions
1. HaTaPASE : ...../..... Hatapasa .....//..... [Hatapasa, name of deceased man] :
2. I : ...../..... i (=iy) : .....//..... [O] :
3. aNAaPaTaTa ...../..... anaapa tata [=dede].....//..... [grand father (from mother's side)]
4. AKER : ...../..... ak er : .....//..... [honest man; flawless man] :
5. TAKARISTe ...../..... takariste .....//..... [=Possibly ancient name of Thrace]
NOTE : probably Takariste > Takar + ia? >> Tarak + ia? > Trakya]; [-iste (=-ia?) indicative of a place]
6. QAM . ...../..... kam . .....//..... [shaman] .
7. APA . ...../..... apa . .....//..... [father] .
8. aNÇaSAP : ...../..... ançasap (=böylece yatip?):.....//..... [thus he is dead or laid?] :
9. IERaTa . ...../..... i (=iy) er ata . .....//..... [oh brave father] .
10. aNASaMaTa ...../..... anam ata(=anamin atasi) .....//..... [my mother's father]
11. eRSeNASaP ...../..... er sen asap (=ölüp?) .....//..... [you brave man died?]
Text No. 2
12. aNÇaSAIS : ...../..... ança Sayas {Sayas(Sais=Ak Ayas, Tengri)} : .....//..... [here Sais(=Ais, Zeus)] :
13. QAM : ...../..... kam : .....//..... [shaman] :
14. I . ...../..... i (iy) . .....//..... [O] .
15. APAM : ...../..... apam : .....//..... [my father] :
16a. aNÇaSAP ...../..... ançasap (=böylece yatip?) .....//..... [thus laid?]
16b. iÇeKeSi . ...../..... içekesi (=yerin efendisi; yerin olgun kisisi) . .....//..... [local's gentleman; local's elderman] .
17. I : ...../..... i (=iy) : .....//..... [O] :
18. AQaS : ...../..... aka (=aga, bey) : .....//..... [lord] :
19. I ...../..... i (=iy) .....//..... [O]
20. eQiSeNÇTaTa: ...../..... ekisenç (=ikiz?) tata: {tata (=dede)} .....//..... [twins? grandfather] :
21a. IERaTa ...../..... i (=iy) er ata .....//..... [O brave father]
21b. aNASaTa ...../..... anaata .....//..... [mother's father]
22. ISaQAS ...../..... i (=iy) Saka .....//..... [O Saka! (Scyth as called by Greeks)]
Text No.3, line 1
23. HaTaPASaQIS: ...../..... Hatapasa : .....//..... [Hatapasakis, name of the deceased man]:
24a. aPaTaKaS ...../..... apaataka (?) .....//..... [apaatakas= ? ]
24b. ANÇaSAPE : ...../..... ançasape (=boylece yatip?): .....//..... [thus he is dead?] :
25a. IERaTa ...../..... i (=iy) er ata .....//..... [O brave father]
25b. IASaTa : ...../..... i(=iy) as (=us,akilli) ata : .....//..... [O wise father] :
26 EQeSeNÇTATA : ...../..... ekesenç tata {(=ikiz? dede)} .....//..... [one of a twins? father]
27a. TaTaQER ...../..... tatak (=atak?) er .....//..... [fearless? man]
27b. aTaNA ...../..... ata, ana .....//..... [father, mother]
Text No.3, line 2
28. eRaTaM : ...../..... er atam : .....//..... [my brave father] :
29. HARAPaS aTa : ...../..... Harapas(=falci) ata : .....//..... [Haraspex (=diviner) father] :
30. ISAQAS : ...../..... i (=iy) Saka : .....//..... [O Saka] :
31. ePeTeISTe : ...../..... Epeteiste (birth place) : .....//..... [Town of Hephaistia in Lemnos island] :
32. ARAS : ...../..... aras (=?) : .....//..... [aras=?] :
33. TaS 50? : ...../..... tas (=yas) 50? : .....//..... [at the age of 50?] :
34. aPaTaKE : ...../..... apatake (=?) : .....//..... [apatake =?] :
Text No.3, line 3
35. ISaQAS : ...../..... i (=iy) Saka : .....//..... [O Saka] :
36. AQaSI : ...../..... akasi (=agasi, beyi) : .....//..... [Lord] :
37a. aNÇaSAP ...../..... ançasap (=burada yatip?) .....//..... [here lies?]
37b. iÇeKeSI : ...../..... içekesi (=yerin efendisi, olgun kisisi) .....//..... [local's gentleman; local's elderman] :
38a. APAM ...../..... apam .....//..... [my father]
38b. KaM : ...../..... kam : .....//..... [shaman] :
39. AQaSI : ...../..... akasi (=agasi) : .....//..... [Lord] :
40. ATaMAS ...../..... atama .....//..... [to my father]
END OF PART 1 of 3

http://www.compmore.net/~tntr/lemstelea.html
i like how greek nationalist conservatives always edit what i write

The Lemnos stele

The stele was found built into a church wall in Kaminia and is now at the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. The 6th century date is based on the fact that in 510 BC the Athenian Miltiades invaded Lemnos and Hellenized it. The stele bears a low-relief bust of a helmeted man and is inscribed in an alphabet similar to the western ("Chalcidian") Greek alphabet. The inscription is in Boustrophedon style, and has been transliterated but had not been successfully translated until serious linguistic analysis based on comparisons with Etruscan, combined with breakthroughs in Etruscan's own translation started to yield fruit.
The inscription consists of 198 characters forming 33 to 40 words, word separation sometimes indicated with one to three dots. The text consists of three parts, two written vertically and one horizontally. Comprehensible is the phrase ''avis sialchvis'' ("aged sixty", B.3), reminiscent of Etruscan ''avils maχs śealχisc'' ("and aged sixty-five").
Transcription:
:front:
::A.1. hulaieš:naφuθ:šiaši
::A.2. maraš:mav
::A.3. sialχveiš:aviš
::A.4. evisθu:šerunaiθ
::A.5. šivai
::A.6. aker:tavaršiu
::A.7. vanalasial:šerunai:murinaic
:side:
::B.1. hulaieši:φukiasiale:šerunaiθ:evisθu:tuveruna
::B.2. rum:haraliu:šivai:eptešiu:arai:tiš:φuke
::B.3. šivai:aviš:sialχviš:marašm:aviš:aumai

Translation of the Lemnos Stele

In order to properly translate the stele, one must sift through a sea of hearsay and speculation that abounds about this cloudy text. Some words attract an especially inordinate amount of controversy, yielding multiple and conflicting translations for the same word. We need to obtain a more accurate picture of what this text is telling us. The only way to do this is through a balanced analysis of the smallest details while keeping sight of the larger context at the same time.

Is a numeral?

One debated word is . The word is seen in ''A.2'' and assumed by some to be part of a phrase identifying the age of a deceased person with further comparison to Etruscan . Thus is often translated as "five" with resemblance to Etruscan 'five' and 'fifty'. However this is probably incorrect because the age is repeated ''twice'' in the text, once on line ''A.3'' and another on ''B.3'' where is nowhere to be seen. Some claim that must be a scribal error for '
★ mavašm'. However, this is unlikely because it occurs twice ( on line ''A.2''). Whatever the value of really is, it is most likely not a number.

The value of <šivai>

Most have already seen that <šivai aviš sialχviš> is surely related to well-attested phrases in Etruscan, most notably 'lived 76 years' (inscription known as TLE 880). Since is without a doubt 'to die' in Etruscan, there is strong likelihood that Lemnian 'šivai' means 'died' and thus the person to whom this stele is dedicated had died at the age of 60. But who then was this person?

The name of the person to whom this was dedicated

As one would expect, the person being celebrated is very likely at the beginning of the text on ''A.1'' () with a genitive suffix '-š' attached, meaning 'of' as it does in Etruscan. The name is repeated again at the very beginning of line ''B.1'' () with a dative suffix '-ši' meaning "to" or "for", which is again comparable to Etruscan <-si>. Immediately after we find <φukiasiale> with another recognizable dative suffix from Etruscan, '-ale'. Thus the name of the person deceased is most likely 'Hulaie Phukiasi'. Both the first ''and'' last names are given the dative suffix on line ''B.2''. This may seem odd to English speakers, but this is the pattern we see also in Etruscan -- means 'I am of Laris Meminiie', not 'I am of Laris of Meminiie', written on a cup in Campania (ETP 30). So this last name on the stele is then further compared with <φuke> (line ''B.2'') presumed to mean Phocaea, an important region in Asia Minor in those times. This suggests that he was Phocaean, and thus called literally ''Hulaie the Phocaean''.

Suffixes <-m> & <-c>

The comparison between the instances of both and helps us to properly identify a suffix '-m' which when compared to Etruscan is the phrasal conjunctive meaning 'and'. A phrasal conjunctive is a suffix used specifically to link two sentences together. An example of phrasal conjunction is "I went to school ''and'' I listened to the teacher". In Etruscan, phrasal conjunction is distinguished from ''nominal'' conjunction (eg: "''both'' the father ''and'' the mother", Pillar of the tomb of Claudii in Cerveteri, 4th c.BCE) where two nouns, not two phrases, are linked with another suffix, <-c>. Surprisingly, we see that in Lemnian '-c' may indeed be also used as a second conjunction suffix (note line ''A.7'' )

Is Hulaie's age "60" or "40"?

Another important controversy involves the value of itself. Some say it's 'of 60'; some say it's 'of 40'. This confusion stems from the interpretation, or rather misinterpretation, of the Tuscania dice, an important Etruscan find. On the dice we find the numbers '1' to '6' just as we find on modern dice, except they have been kindly written out in letters for us by the person who made them long ago. Many presume that the pattern of the numbers as they are arranged on the six sides of the dice is such that the value for each side when added to the value on the opposite side equals seven. See Etruscan numerals for further information on this debate.
Assuming this pattern is real for a moment, if we find <ša> on one side and on the other, and if we are certain from other texts that is "three", then <ša> must be "four" since 3 + 4 = 7. Unfortunately, these are only ''assumptions'' based on even more assumptions. Other Etruscan dice have been found which do not show the same pattern. We can't assume. For all we know the Tuscania dice could in fact show another equally valid pattern: Maybe all the sides when subtracted give three (eg: <ša> "six" minus "three" perhaps).
Also, based on the first pattern, if <ša> is really "four", must be "six" but it is known that the pre-Greek name of 'Tetrapolis' (meaning 'Four-cities' in Greek) was <Υττηνια> "Yttenia", thought to be a Tyrrhenian name containing the numeral and dating to a time when Etruscans were still in Asia Minor and the Aegean islands (nb. Herodotus' account in ''Histories''). Thus some insist the opposite, that means "four" and <ša> means "six". Which value should we give this number?
Some common sense is in order by directing our attention to the phrase . Since Etruscan is known to mean 'grandson', it stands to reason that Hulaie is a grandfather. If he were truly '40', we can't explain the mention of his grandson here who is surely old enough to have participated in the funeral to have special mention! Further while there was much hardship in ancient times, nobility were known to live much longer than common folk. Forty would still be a little young for someone with enough money to erect a stele with his name on it.
So in all, it's likelier that Hulaie was in fact sixty at the time of his death, meaning that has the value of 'of 60' and that Etruscan <ša> must mean "six".

Notes

1. Bonfante, page 11.

Bibliography

★ Etruscan, Bonfante, Larissa, , , University of California Press, 1990, ISBN 0-520-07118-2 Part of this book are displayed online at [1].

★ Neues Handbuch des Etruskischen, Steinbauer, Dieter H., , , Scripta Mercaturae Verlag, ,

See also

★ Etruscan civilization

★ Aegean languages - Language family to which Lemnian belongs.

★ Etruscan language

★ ''Liber Linteus'' - An Etruscan inscription.

★ ''Tabula Cortonensis'' - An Etruscan inscription.

★ ''Cippus perusinus'' - An Etruscan inscription.

★ ''Pyrgi Tablets'' - An Etruscan inscription.

★ Eteocypriot

★ Eteocretan

★ Cortona - Ancient Etruscan city (''Curtun'').

External links

★ A Gloss of the Lemnian Inscription

★ History of Etruria

★ Etruscan Grammar

★ The Etruscan Texts Project (ETP)

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