The Hurrian Language – Isolate, Northeast Caucasian, or Distant Indo-European Connections?

🌐 Embark on a captivating journey into the mysterious realm of the Hurrian language with Learn Hittite! Join us as we unravel the enigma of Hurrian origins, delve into the fascinating Mitanni state, and explore the textual treasures that unveil the secrets of Hurrian.

🕵️‍♂️ This introductory video promises an epic exploration. Here's what's in store:

Background: Uncover theories about Hurrian origins and the intriguing Mitanni state.

Linguistic Connections: Discover Hurrian's relationship with Urartian and the attempts to link it with other language families - including, surprisingly, the Indo-European family.

Phonology and Morphology: Dive into the intricacies of Hurrian language structure, exploring noun and verb formation. Witness Hurrian cuneiform in action as we examine texts and sentences from authentic materials.

By the end, you'll grasp the agglutinating and ergative nature of Hurrian.

🎓 Gain insights into the groundbreaking work of scholars like Ephraim Speiser, Ilse Wegner, and Roger D. Woodard. Plus, discover three recommended resources for further exploration into the ancient languages of the Near East.

🔗 Have questions or insights? Share them in the comments below!

📌 Note: Delve into the exploration of fragmentary languages with an understanding that some aspects are debated, and definitive answers may be elusive. 🌍🔠

Sources: (approximately, they are in the order they first appear in the video)

⭐Woodard, R. (Ed.). (2008). The Ancient Languages of Asia Minor. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511486845

There are two German versions of Wegner’s Hurrian Grammar, the first has been translated into English.
⭐Wegner, I. (2000). Einführung in die hurritische Sprache. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz.
Wegner, I. (2007). Einführung in die hurritsche Sprache (2nd rev. ed.). Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz
Wegner, I. (1995). Suffixaufnahme in Hurrian: Normal Cases and Special Cases. In F. Plank (Ed.), Double Case: Agreement by Suffixaufnahme. New York, NY. Oxford Academic.

⭐Speiser, E. A. (1940). Introduction to Hurrian. The Annual of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 20, xi–230. https://doi.org/10.2307/3768466

Fournet, A., & Bomhard, A. R. (2010). The Indo-European Elements in Hurrian. La Garenne Colombes / Charleston. (166 pages).

Laroche, E. (1980). Glossaire de la langue houritte. Editions Klincksieck. Paris.

Hrozny, B. (1915). Die Lösung des hethitischen Problems. Mitteilungen der Deutschen Orient-Gesellschaft, 56, 17–50.

Michalowski, P. (1986). The Earliest Hurrian Toponymy: A New Sargonic Inscription. Zeitschrift für Assyriologie, 76, 4-11

Moran, W. (1992). The Amarna letters. Johns Hopkins University Press

Diakonoff, I. M., & Starostin, S. A. (1986). Huro-Urartian as an Eastern Caucasian Language. Münchener Studien zur Sprachwissenschaft, Beiheft, N.F., 12, München.

Kassian, A. (2010). [Review of the book The Indo-European Elements in Hurrian by A. Fournet and A. R. Bomhard (2010)]. The Journal of Language Relationship, issue 4, pp. 199-206.

Farber, W. (1971). Zu einigen Enklitika im Hurrischen (Pronomen, Kopula, syntaktische Partikeln). Orientalia, 40(1)

Wilhelm, G. (1991). A Hurrian Letter from Tell Brak. Iraq, 53, 159–168
Wilhelm, G. (1998). Die Inschrift des Tisatal von Urkes. in G. Buccellati and M. Kelly-Buccellati (eds.) : 117-143.

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