The Sikul language is a dead language spoken by the Siculas - one of the pre-Roman peoples of Sicily (the other two, Sikans and Elimites , were the island's earlier population, not related to the Sikuls).
| Sikul language | |
|---|---|
| Self name | is unknown |
| Countries | Italy |
| Regions | Sicily (east) |
| Extinct | approx. I c. BC. |
| Classification | |
| Category | Languages ββof Eurasia |
Indo-European family
| |
| Writing | Greek alphabet (western variety) |
| Language Codes | |
| ISO 639-1 | - |
| ISO 639-2 | - |
| ISO 639-3 | scx |
| IETF | |
Content
- 1 Sikul inscriptions in the Greek alphabet
- 2 Similarities to Italian
- 3 See also
- 4 notes
- 5 Literature
Sikul Greek Greek inscriptions
In Sicily, a large number of vessels with inscriptions in the Greek alphabet were found, but not in the Greek language [1] . Unfortunately, most of these inscriptions are very scarce, no more than one or two words.
In the early 1960s , Askos (a vessel type) of the 5th century BC was discovered in Centurip . e. , which is currently kept in the archaeological museum of Karlsruhe ( Germany ). On this vessel is represented the longest known inscription in the Sikul language, made by the local variety of the Greek alphabet. Presumably, the inscription indicates that the vessel had a votive purpose. Studies of the vocabulary and syntax of the inscription showed that its language is Indo-European and has a lot of similarities with Latin , and therefore the Sikul language can be attributed to the Latin-Faliski group of Italian languages , as well as the Avzons , Falisks and Enotra . During excavations in the Adrano zone, on the site of the ancient city ββof Mendolith , city ββgates with the Sikul inscription of the VI century BC were discovered . e.
Similarities to Italian
As some Roman authors ( Mark Terentius Varron and Diodorus of Sicily ) reported, Siculas penetrated Sicily from the Apennine Peninsula , so it is very likely that they spoke the language of the Indo-European family (the hypothesis is supported by the fact that they brought the art of iron processing to the island and domesticated horse ).
Terence Varron, in his treatise De lingua latina [2], noted numerous similarities between the Siculian and Latin languages , suggesting that the Sicula came from Rome. Thus, the vocabulary of the Sikul language could reflect the heritage of the Latin-Avzon-Sikul community disintegrated in Italy .
Similarity with the Latin language is also observed in the vocabulary of the found Sikul inscriptions. In particular, the verb form pibe is an imperative "drink", akin to the similar Latin form bibe and Sanskrit piba . [3]
See also
- Sican language
- Elim language
Notes
- β HesperΓ¬a, 16: Studi sulla grecitΓ di occidente, βIl Guerriero di Castiglione di Ragusa, Greci e Siculi nella Sicilia sud-orientaleβ, a cura di Lorenzo Braccesi, Roma, βL'ERMAβ di BRETSCHNEIDER, 2002
- β Mark Terence Varron . De lingua latina. 1, 101
- β Benjamin W. Fortson IV, Indo-European Language and Culture . Second edition. Malden / Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009, p. 469.
Literature
- Ulrich Schmoll, Die vorgriechischen Sprachen Siziliens. 1958