Philology (from Ancient Greek φιλολογία ( philología ) 'love of word') is the study of language in oral and written historical sources . It is the intersection of textual criticism , literary criticism , history , and linguistics with strong ties to etymology . Philology is also defined as the study of literary texts and oral and written records, the establishment of their authenticity and their original form, and the determination of their meaning. A person who pursues this kind of study is known as a philologist . In older usage, especially British, philology is more general, covering comparative and historical linguistics .
62-520: Hermann Karl Usener (23 October 1834 – 21 October 1905) was a German scholar in the fields of philology and comparative religion . Hermann Usener was born at Weilburg and educated at its Gymnasium . From 1853 he studied at Heidelberg , Munich , Göttingen and Bonn . In 1858 he had a teaching position at the Joachimsthalschen Gymnasium in Berlin. He was Professor 1861 to 1863 at
124-833: A full B.A. as well as graduate courses. St. Michael's College at the University of Toronto and St. Francis Xavier University offers the only B.A. of its kind in Canada with a dual focus on Celtic literature and history, while the Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies at the University of Toronto offers courses at a graduate level through their Centre for Medieval Studies, along with St. Francis Xavier University . Other Canadian universities which offer courses in Celtic, Scottish or Irish studies include Cape Breton University , Saint Mary's University, Halifax , Simon Fraser University ,
186-497: A nit-picking classicist" and only the "technical research into languages and families". In The Space Trilogy by C. S. Lewis , the main character, Elwin Ransom, is a philologist – as was Lewis' close friend J. R. R. Tolkien . Dr. Edward Morbius, one of the main characters in the science fiction film Forbidden Planet , is a philologist. Philip, the main character of Christopher Hampton 's 'bourgeois comedy' The Philanthropist ,
248-644: A physician and member of the Princedom of Nassau's medical council. On 4 September 1866, Usener married Caroline (Lily) Dilthey in Marburg (25 February 1846–14 March 1920). She was the sister of the philosopher Wilhelm Dilthey and the archaeologist Karl Dilthey . In 1899, his daughter married the classical philologist Albrecht Dieterich . Usener's son, Karl Albert Hermann (1876–1928) was an Oberleutnant . Philology Classical philology studies classical languages . Classical philology principally originated from
310-473: A reconstructed text accompanied by a " critical apparatus ", i.e., footnotes that listed the various manuscript variants available, enabling scholars to gain insight into the entire manuscript tradition and argue about the variants. A related study method known as higher criticism studies the authorship, date, and provenance of text to place such text in a historical context. As these philological issues are often inseparable from issues of interpretation, there
372-522: A script used in the ancient Aegean, was deciphered in 1952 by Michael Ventris and John Chadwick , who demonstrated that it recorded an early form of Greek, now known as Mycenaean Greek . Linear A , the writing system that records the still-unknown language of the Minoans , resists deciphering, despite many attempts. Work continues on scripts such as the Maya , with great progress since the initial breakthroughs of
434-763: Is Prof. Katherine Forsyth . The first Jesus Professor of Celtic at the University of Oxford was John Rhŷs . The University of Wales established the Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies , also covering Welsh studies . The Institute of Cornish Studies is based in Falmouth, Cornwall . In North America, Celtic scholars and students are represented professionally by the Celtic Studies Association of North America. Several universities in Canada offer some Celtic studies courses, while only two universities offers
496-569: Is a professor of philology in an English university town . Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld , the main character in Alexander McCall Smith 's 1997 comic novel Portuguese Irregular Verbs is a philologist, educated at Cambridge. The main character in the Academy Award Nominee for Best Foreign Language Film in 2012, Footnote , is a Hebrew philologist, and a significant part of the film deals with his work. The main character of
558-741: Is also sponsored by the CRBC and welcomes scholars from around the world with an interest in the Celtic (and minority) languages and cultures to study Breton, the least known of the living Celtic languages. Celtic studies are also taught at other universities elsewhere in Europe, including the Charles University in Prague (Czech Republic), University of Poznań (Poland), The John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin (Poland), Moscow State University (Russia), Uppsala University (Sweden) Irish studies are taught at
620-544: Is credited with having finally proven Celtic to be a branch of the Indo-European language family. From 1821 to 1864, he served as a professor of oriental literature and general linguistics in Berlin. In 1896, Kuno Meyer and Ludwig Christian Stern founded the Zeitschrift für celtische Philologie (ZCP), the first academic journal solely devoted to aspects of Celtic languages and literature, and still in existence today. In
682-519: Is derived from the Greek φιλολογία ( philología ), from the terms φίλος ( phílos ) 'love, affection, loved, beloved, dear, friend' and λόγος ( lógos ) 'word, articulation, reason', describing a love of learning, of literature, as well as of argument and reasoning, reflecting the range of activities included under the notion of λόγος . The term changed little with the Latin philologia , and later entered
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#1732851394699744-516: Is no clear-cut boundary between philology and hermeneutics . When text has a significant political or religious influence (such as the reconstruction of Biblical texts), scholars have difficulty reaching objective conclusions. Some scholars avoid all critical methods of textual philology, especially in historical linguistics, where it is important to study the actual recorded materials. The movement known as new philology has rejected textual criticism because it injects editorial interpretations into
806-616: Is seen by many as having been established by Johann Kaspar Zeuss (1806–1856). In 1847, he was appointed professor of linguistics at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich . Until the middle of the 19th century, Celtic studies progressed largely as a subfield of linguistics. Franz Bopp (1791–1867) carried out further studies in comparative linguistics to link the Celtic languages to the Proto-Indo-European language . He
868-417: Is treated amongst other scholars, as noted by both the philologists R.D Fulk and Leonard Neidorf who have been quoted saying "This field "philology's commitment to falsification renders it "at odds with what many literary scholars believe because the purpose of philology is to narrow the range of possible interpretations rather than to treat all reasonable ones as equal". This use of falsification can be seen in
930-646: The Library of Pergamum and the Library of Alexandria around the fourth century BC, continued by Greeks and Romans throughout the Roman and Byzantine Empire . It was eventually resumed by European scholars of the Renaissance , where it was soon joined by philologies of other European ( Romance , Germanic , Celtic ), Eurasian ( Slavic , etc.), Asian ( Arabic , Persian , Sanskrit , Chinese , etc.), and African ( Egyptian , Nubian , etc.) languages. Indo-European studies involve
992-689: The National University of Ireland, Galway , University College Cork , University College Dublin (the successor institution to the Catholic University), National University of Ireland, Maynooth , Trinity College Dublin , University of Limerick , Mary Immaculate College, Limerick , Dublin City University . The Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS), School of Celtic Studies, is a research institution but does not award degrees. DIAS and
1054-517: The Philipps University of Marburg . It is also taught at the University of Vienna . Only Marburg, Vienna and Bonn maintain formal programs of study, but even then usually as a subsection of comparative or general linguistics. Only Marburg offers an M.A. course specifically in Celtic Studies. No Celtic studies research has taken place in the former centres of Freiburg, Hamburg or Berlin since
1116-466: The Royal Irish Academy are leading publishers of Celtic Studies research, including the journals Celtica and Ériu . In Northern Ireland, Queen's University Belfast and Ulster University offer Celtic studies programmes. In Northern Ireland, Queen's University Belfast and Ulster University also offer Celtic studies. In 1874, Donald MacKinnon became the first Chair of Celtic studies at
1178-414: The University of Bern , then at the University of Greifswald , before becoming professor at the University of Bonn . The Bonn School of classical philology was led by Usener with Franz Buecheler . Usener was a large-scale thinker who combined scholarly research with theoretical reflection. His research on the ancient world used a comparative method, drawing on a variety of ethnological material for
1240-415: The University of Burgos (Spain) and the University of A Coruña ( Galicia ). Galicia also has its own Institute for Celtic Studies . Celtic Studies are taught at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels at the University of Sydney (Australia), which also hosts the triennial Australian Conference of Celtic Studies. The International Congress of Celtic Studies is the foremost academic conference in
1302-614: The University of Edinburgh , in 1882. Aberdeen, Glasgow and the University of the Highlands and Islands also have Celtic studies departments. A major funder of UK Celtic Studies doctoral studies is the AHRC-funded Centre for Doctoral Training in the Celtic Languages, which admitted PhD students in the period 2014–2019. The CDT in Celtic Languages is administered through Celtic and Gaelic at the University of Glasgow and its director
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#17328513946991364-479: The University of Freiburg in 1887; he succeeded to the equivalent chair at the University of Bonn in 1913. His notability arises from his work on Old Irish . For his masterwork, Handbuch des Altirischen ("Handbook of Old Irish", 1909), translated into English as A Grammar of Old Irish , he located and analysed a multitude of Old Irish manuscripts. His work is considered as the basis for all succeeding studies of Old Irish. In 1920, Julius Pokorny (1887–1970)
1426-612: The University of Guelph and the University of Ottawa . In the United States, Harvard University is notable for its Doctorate program in Celtic studies. Celtic studies are also offered at the universities of Wisconsin-Milwaukee , California–Berkeley , California–Los Angeles , Bard College , and many others, including programs in which a student may minor, like at the College of Charleston . Some aspects of Celtic studies can be accessed through Irish Studies programmes, such as at
1488-615: The University of Notre Dame . In 1804, the Académie Celtique was founded with the goal of unearthing the Gallic past of the French people. France also produced the first academic journal devoted to Celtic studies, Revue Celtique . Revue Celtique was first published in 1870 in Paris and continued until the death of its last editor, Joseph Loth , in 1934. After that point it was continued under
1550-613: The University of Oxford , in 1874 and for Donald MacKinnon , first Chair of Celtic at the University of Edinburgh , in 1882. Institutions in the United Kingdom that have Celtic Studies departments and courses are: the Universities of Aberdeen, Aberystwyth, Bangor, Cambridge, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Exeter (which houses the Institute of Cornish Studies ), Glasgow, Oxford, Swansea, Trinity St David's, Queen's University Belfast, Ulster University,
1612-546: The printing press , and translated into vernacular languages. Academic interest in Celtic languages grew out of comparative and historical linguistics , which were established at the end of the 18th century. In the 16th century, Renaissance humanist George Buchanan , a native speaker of the Scottish Gaelic language , comparatively studied the Goidelic languages . The first major breakthrough in Celtic linguistics came with
1674-593: The 1990s. The last remaining chair in Celtic studies, that at Humboldt University of Berlin , was abolished in 1997. The only Chair of Celtic studies in Continental Europe is at Utrecht University (in the Netherlands). It was established in 1923, when Celtic studies were added to the Chair of Germanic studies on the special request of its new professor A. G. van Hamel . Celtic studies are taught in universities in
1736-872: The English language in the 16th century, from the Middle French philologie , in the sense of 'love of literature'. The adjective φιλόλογος ( philólogos ) meant 'fond of discussion or argument, talkative', in Hellenistic Greek , also implying an excessive (" sophistic ") preference of argument over the love of true wisdom, φιλόσοφος ( philósophos ). As an allegory of literary erudition, philologia appears in fifth-century postclassical literature ( Martianus Capella , De nuptiis Philologiae et Mercurii ), an idea revived in Late Medieval literature ( Chaucer , Lydgate ). The meaning of "love of learning and literature"
1798-597: The Irish language is taught to a greater or lesser extent in schools across the island of Ireland. The beginning of Celtic Studies as a university subject in Ireland might be dated to Eugene O'Curry 's appointment as professor of Irish history and archaeology at the Catholic University of Ireland in 1854. In the republic, Celtic Studies, either as full Celtic Studies programmes or as Irish language programmes, are now offered in
1860-643: The Netherlands. Written studies of the Celts, their cultures, and their languages go back to classical Greek and Latin accounts, possibly beginning with Hecataeus in the 6th century BC and best known through such authors as Polybius , Posidonius , Pausanias , Diodorus Siculus , Julius Caesar and Strabo . Modern Celtic studies originated in the aftermath of the Gutenberg Revolution , when many of these classical authors were rediscovered, mass produced using
1922-599: The United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. These studies cover language, history, archaeology and art. In addition, Celtic languages are taught to a greater or lesser extent in schools in Wales, the island of Ireland, Scotland, Cornwall and the Isle of Man. The formal study of Celtic Studies at British universities in the late nineteenth century gave rise to the establishment of chairs for Sir John Rhŷs , first Jesus Professor of Celtic at
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1984-590: The United Kingdom is the AHRC-funded Centre for Doctoral Training in the Celtic Languages, which admitted PhD students in the period 2014–2019. The CDT in Celtic Languages is administered through Celtic and Gaelic at the University of Glasgow and its director is Prof. Katherine Forsyth . Celtic studies and Irish studies are taught in universities in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland . These studies cover language, history, archaeology and art. In addition,
2046-543: The University of the Highlands and Islands and the University of Wales, Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies . The top five rated degree-awarding programmes/departments as of 2017 are; (1) Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic at University of Cambridge (2) Welsh and Celtic Studies at Bangor University (3) Welsh and Celtic Studies at Cardiff University (4) Celtic and Gaelic at University of Glasgow (5) Irish and Celtic Studies at Queen's University, Belfast . A major funder of Celtic Studies doctoral studies in
2108-614: The affinity and origins of the European languages . He compared a 1000-word lexicon of Irish and Welsh and concluded that they were originally the same, then comparing the numerals in many other languages. The second big leap forwards was made when Sir William Jones postulated that Sanskrit , Avestan , Greek, Latin and many other languages including "the Celtic" derived from a common ancestral language. This hypothesis, published in The Sanscrit Language (1786), would later be hailed as
2170-579: The ancient languages of the Near East progressed rapidly. In the mid-19th century, Henry Rawlinson and others deciphered the Behistun Inscription , which records the same text in Old Persian , Elamite , and Akkadian , using a variation of cuneiform for each language. The elucidation of cuneiform led to the decipherment of Sumerian . Hittite was deciphered in 1915 by Bedřich Hrozný . Linear B ,
2232-485: The comparative philology of all Indo-European languages . Philology, with its focus on historical development ( diachronic analysis), is contrasted with linguistics due to Ferdinand de Saussure 's insistence on the importance of synchronic analysis . While the contrast continued with the emergence of structuralism and the emphasis of Noam Chomsky on syntax , research in historical linguistics often relies on philological materials and findings. The term philology
2294-658: The concept of a momentary god . This phrase entered the English-speaking world, to describe deities who seem to exist only for a specific purpose, time and place. He also trained an impressive list of students, and belonged to a long dynasty of students of Winckelmann . One such student was Friedrich Nietzsche : after initial support, Usener turned against him as a scholar after reading The Birth of Tragedy . Other students included Hermann Diels , Paul Natorp , Hans Lietzmann , Albrecht Dieterich , Richard Reitzenstein , and Aby Warburg . Ulrich von Wilamowitz-Moellendorff ,
2356-477: The debate surrounding the etymology of the Old English character Unferth from the heroic epic poem Beowulf . James Turner further disagrees with how the use of the term is dismissed in the academic world, stating that due to its branding as a "simpleminded approach to their subject" the term has become unknown to college-educated students, furthering the stereotypes of "scrutiny of ancient Greek or Roman texts of
2418-501: The discovery of the Indo-European language family , from which grew the field of Indo-European studies . Although Jones' trail-blazing hypothesis inspired numerous linguistic studies, it was not until Bavarian linguist Johann Kaspar Zeuss 's monumental Grammatica Celtica (volume 1, 1851; volume 2, 1853) that any truly significant progress was made. Written in Latin , the work draws on
2480-478: The earliest Old Irish , Middle Welsh and other Celtic primary sources to construct a comparative grammar, which was the first to lay out a firm basis for Celtic philology . Among his many other achievements, Zeuss was able to decipher and explain Old Irish verbal and grammatical rules and also definitively linked the Celtic languages to the Indo-European language family German Celtic studies ( Keltologie )
2542-520: The famous decipherment and translation of the Rosetta Stone by Jean-François Champollion in 1822, some individuals attempted to decipher the writing systems of the Ancient Near East and Aegean . In the case of Old Persian and Mycenaean Greek , decipherment yielded older records of languages already known from slightly more recent traditions ( Middle Persian and Alphabetic Greek ). Work on
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2604-677: The field of Celtic Studies and is held every four years. It was first held in Dublin in 1959. The XV International Congress of Celtic Studies was held at the University of Glasgow in 2015. In 2019, the XVI ICCS was held at Bangor University and the XVII ICCS will be held at Utrecht University in 2023. The Derek Allen Prize , awarded annually by the British Academy since 1977, rotates between Celtic Studies, Numismatics and Musicology. Recent winners in
2666-457: The first position of its kind in Germany. He was followed in 1911 by Kuno Meyer (1858–1919), who, in addition to numerous publications in the field, was active in the Irish independence movement. Perhaps the most important German-speaking Celticist was Swiss scholar Rudolf Thurneysen (1857–1940). A student of Windisch and Zimmer, Thurneysen was appointed to the chair of comparative linguistics at
2728-432: The focus lying on the study of the various Celtic languages , living and extinct. The primary areas of focus are the six Celtic languages currently in use: Irish , Scottish Gaelic , Manx , Welsh , Cornish , and Breton . As a university subject, it is taught at a number of universities, most of them in Ireland, the United Kingdom, or France, but also in the United States, Canada, Australia, Germany, Poland, Austria and
2790-457: The leading German classical scholar of the following generation, studied at Bonn 1867-9; but tended to disagree with Usener. Their correspondence has been published. His works include: Hermann Usener's parents were Georg Friedrich Usener (20 August 1789–15 April 1854), Landesoberschultheiß in the Amt of Weilburg and his wife Charlotte Henriette Caroline Vogler (1798–1855), daughter of Georg Vogler,
2852-687: The name Études Celtiques . The University of Western Brittany (Brest) offers a two-year, international European-Union certified master's degree course entitled "Celtic languages and Cultures in Contact". It is part of the Centre for Breton and Celtic Research (CRBC). Closely linked to this MA programme, the University of Western Brittany organizes an intensive two-week Summer School in Breton Language and Cultural Heritage Studies every year in June. This Summer School
2914-507: The original principles of textual criticism have been improved and applied to other widely distributed texts such as the Bible . Scholars have tried to reconstruct the original readings of the Bible from the manuscript variants. This method was applied to classical studies and medieval texts as a way to reconstruct the author's original work. The method produced so-called "critical editions", which provided
2976-517: The origins of older texts. Philology also includes the study of texts and their history. It includes elements of textual criticism , trying to reconstruct an author's original text based on variant copies of manuscripts. This branch of research arose among ancient scholars in the Greek-speaking world of the 4th century BC, who desired to establish a standard text of popular authors for both sound interpretation and secure transmission. Since that time,
3038-601: The phonetic approach championed by Yuri Knorozov and others in the 1950s. Since the late 20th century, the Maya code has been almost completely deciphered, and the Mayan languages are among the most documented and studied in Mesoamerica . The code is described as a logosyllabic style of writing. In English-speaking countries, usage of the term "philology" to describe work on languages and works of literature, which had become synonymous with
3100-626: The practices of German scholars, was abandoned as a consequence of anti-German feelings following World War I . Most continental European countries still maintain the term to designate departments, colleges, position titles, and journals. J. R. R. Tolkien opposed the nationalist reaction against philological practices, claiming that "the philological instinct" was "universal as is the use of language". In British English usage, and British academia, philology remains largely synonymous with "historical linguistics", while in US English , and US academia,
3162-449: The publication of Archaeologia Britannica (1707) by the Welsh scholar Edward Lhuyd , who was the first to recognise that Gaulish , Welsh, Cornish , and Irish all belong to the same language family . Lhuyd also published an English translation of a study by Paul-Yves Pezron into Gaulish. In 1767 James Parsons published his study The Remains of Japhet, being historical enquiries into
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#17328513946993224-449: The relationship between languages. Similarities between Sanskrit and European languages were first noted in the early 16th century and led to speculation of a common ancestor language from which all these descended. It is now named Proto-Indo-European . Philology's interest in ancient languages led to the study of what was, in the 18th century, "exotic" languages, for the light they could cast on problems in understanding and deciphering
3286-453: The results of human mental processes. This science compares the results of textual science with the results of experimental research of both psychology and artificial intelligence production systems. In the case of Bronze Age literature , philology includes the prior decipherment of the language under study. This has notably been the case with the Egyptian , Sumerian , Assyrian , Hittite , Ugaritic , and Luwian languages. Beginning with
3348-418: The science fiction TV show Stargate SG-1 , Dr. Daniel Jackson , is mentioned as having a PhD in philology. Celtic studies Celtic studies or Celtology is the academic discipline occupied with the study of any sort of cultural output relating to the Celtic -speaking peoples (i.e. speakers of Celtic languages ). This ranges from linguistics, literature and art history, archaeology and history,
3410-443: The scientific understanding of the boundaries of the Celtic language area and the location of the homeland of the Celtic peoples. In what became East Berlin chair in Celtic languages at what was renamed Humboldt University has remained unoccupied since 1966. Today, Celtic studies is only taught at a handful of German universities, including those of Bonn, Trier , and Mannheim , the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz , and
3472-421: The second half of the century, significant contributions were made by the Orientalist Ernst Windisch (1844–1918). He held a chair in Sanskrit at the University of Leipzig ; but he is best remembered for his numerous publications in the field of Celtic studies. In 1901, the Orientalist and Celtologist Heinrich Zimmer (1851–1910) was made professor of Celtic languages at Friedrich Wilhelm University in Berlin,
3534-458: The study of social and religious matters. His theoretical method was phenomenological or hermeneutical, and centred on social psychology and cultural history . He was influential most of all through his work on the formation of religious concepts, which influenced thinkers such as Albrecht Dieterich , Ludwig Radermacher , Aby Warburg , Walter F. Otto , and Ernst Cassirer . In his book “The Names of Gods” ( Götternamen , 1896), Usener introduced
3596-404: The text and destroys the integrity of the individual manuscript, hence damaging the reliability of the data. Supporters of new philology insist on a strict "diplomatic" approach: a faithful rendering of the text exactly as found in the manuscript, without emendations. Another branch of philology, cognitive philology, studies written and oral texts. Cognitive philology considers these oral texts as
3658-401: The wider meaning of "study of a language's grammar, history and literary tradition" remains more widespread. Based on the harsh critique of Friedrich Nietzsche, some US scholars since the 1980s have viewed philology as responsible for a narrowly scientistic study of language and literature. Disagreements in the modern day of this branch of study are followed with the likes of how the method
3720-440: Was appointed to the chair of Celtic languages at Friedrich Wilhelm University , Berlin. Despite his support for centrist German nationalism and membership in the Catholic Church in Germany , he was forced out of his university position by the Nazis on account of his Jewish ancestry. He subsequently fled as a refugee to Switzerland but returned to Germany in 1955 to teach at Ludwig Maximilians University in Munich. In Berlin, he
3782-413: Was narrowed to "the study of the historical development of languages" ( historical linguistics ) in 19th-century usage of the term. Due to the rapid progress made in understanding sound laws and language change , the "golden age of philology" lasted throughout the 19th century, or "from Giacomo Leopardi and Friedrich Schlegel to Nietzsche ". The comparative linguistics branch of philology studies
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#17328513946993844-463: Was succeeded in 1937 by Ludwig Mühlhausen , a devout Nazi. After World War II , Celtic studies predominantly continued in West Germany and the Second Austrian Republic . Studies in the field continued at Freiburg, Bonn, Marburg , Hamburg as well as Innsbruck ; however, an independent professorship in Celtic studies has not been instituted anywhere. In this period, Hans Hartmann , Heinrich Wagner and Wolfgang Meid made notable contributions to
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