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Buyla inscription

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Buyla inscription
The buckled bowl bearing the Buyla inscription.
MaterialGold
CreatedMiddle or Late Avar Period (670 AD – 800 AD)
Discovered1799 near Nagyszentmiklós (today Sânnicolau Mare in Timiș County, Romania)
Present locationKunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna

The Buyla inscription is a 9-word, 56-character inscription written in the Greek alphabet but in a non-Greek language. It is found on a golden buckled bowl or cup which is among the pieces of the Treasure of Nagyszentmiklós[1][2] which are now in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.[1][3] The bowl is 12 cm in diameter and weighs 212 g, and has a handle or buckle, perhaps for hanging on a belt. The inscription is found around the outside of a circular design in the middle of the bowl. In the place where the inscription begins and ends, there is a cross. The inscription reads: ΒΟΥΗΛΑ·​ΖΟΑΠΑΝ·​ΤΕϹΗ·​ΔΥΓΕΤΟΙΓΗ·​ΒΟΥΤΑΟΥΛ·​ΖΩΑΠΑΝ·​ΤΑΓΡΟΓΗ·​ΗΤΖΙΓΗ·​ΤΑΙϹΗ.[4]

Prevailing opinion is that the language of the text is the West Old Turkic (and thus distinct from both Old Turkic and the ancestor of the modern-day Common Turkic languages),[5][6] and several translations have been proposed, but it has not been deciphered and the exact classification of the language has been a subject of debate.[1][7][2] Vilhelm Thomsen translated the inscription: "Boila zoapan finished this bowl [this drinking cup], which Boutaoul zoapan made suitable for hanging up."[8] Nikola Mavrodinov translated it: "Bouila zoapan made this cup; Boutaul Zoapan made this cup suitable for drinking from."[8] Gyula Németh translated it: "Boila chaban's bowl, which was made to his order; Boutaoul had a buckle made for it, and this is his bowl."[8] Paul Lazăr Tonciulescu translated it: "Jupan Buila [has] all rights, jupan Butaul [has the right of] entering [in] all towns.[9]

Description

[edit]

The treasure of Nagyszentmiklós

[edit]
Main article: Treasure of Nagyszentmiklós

The treasure of Nagyszentmiklós, of which the bowl is a part, consists of 23 decorated gold vessels weighing around 10 kg.[10][11][3] It was found in 1799 on the banks of the Aranca river, near Nagyszentmiklós (today Sânnicolau Mare in Timiș County, Romania),[12][3][13] in the region of Pannonian Avars settlement in the Carpathian Basin.[14] It was also attributed to the lower Danube Bulgars,[15][1] and Pechenegs (generally not accepted[16]), but the current view is that the treasure is most probably of Avar origin and closely related to the Avar culture.[17][14][15][18][16]

The objects were made by specialized craftsmen in the 7th and 8th centuries[17][19][14] and were hoarded by local lords.[20][21] The treasure was last "used" and buried in the second half of the 8th century or perhaps in the early 9th century.[14][21]

Some of the vessels bear runiform inscriptions. Similar characters can be found on a bone needlecase excavated in the Late Avar cemetery of Szarvas (in Békés County, Hungary) and dated to the second half of the 8th century.[10][22] Based on this evidence, some scholars proposed a similar date for the Nagyszentmiklós inscriptions.[10][13]

The inscription

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A drawing of the inscription made by József Hampel.

The Buyla inscription is engraved in Greek letters on the inner bottom of a round buckled bowl (no. 21 in József Hampel's list), on a flat ring surrounding a lavishly decorated disk.[23][24]

The inscription has the following text, easily readable, and uses a C-shaped glyph for sigma:[25][26][24]

† ΒΟΥΗΛΑ • ΖΟΑΠΑΝ • ΤΕϹΗ • ΔΥΓΕΤΟΙΓΗ • ΒΟΥΤΑΟΥΛ • ΖΩΑΠΑΝ • ΤΑΓΡΟΓΗ • ΗΤΖΙΓΗ • ΤΑΙϹΗ

The lower case equivalent is:

† βουηλα • ζοαπαν • τεση • δυγετοιγη • βουταουλ • ζωαπαν • ταγρογη • ητζιγη • ταιση

The transliteration is:

† bouēla • zoapan • tesē • dugetoigē • boutaoul • zōapan • tagrogē • ētzigē • taisē

With vowels changed to Koine equivalents:

† buila • zoapan • tesi • dugetoigi • butaul • zoapan • tagrogi • itzigi • taisi

Paleographic and epigraphic considerations

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Some of the letters of the inscription have distinctive shapes. The letters sigma and epsilon have broad arcs.[27] The base line of delta juts out on both sides.[28] Beta has also a prominent base line, a form found in the Greek inscriptions from Bulgaria dated to the early 9th century,[27][29][30] but otherwise it is rarely attested in the Greek-writing world: only[27][29] on several Cherson coins of the Byzantine emperor Basil I (867-886)[29][30][31] and also on one inscription of the same emperor, found in Mesembria (today Nesebar, Bulgaria).[29][32] The shape of alpha is also attested on the 9th century Greek inscriptions from Bulgaria.[27] On the other hand, omega's unusual shape, with a middle vertical line higher than the rounded sides, is specific for the 6th century Greek inscriptions and the oldest forms of the Greek Uncial script.[27][33]

Vowels

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In this inscription there is a free alternation between ε and αι, η and ι, and ο and ω.[34][35] These groups became homophones in Koine Greek, merging to /ɛ/, /i/ and /o/.[34][36] Also ου was read /u/,[36] υ was read /y/,[37][35][36] and οι was read either /y/[37][36] or /ø/.[38]

Interpretations

[edit]

In the late 19th century, József Hampel suggested that the treasure of Nagyszentmiklós was buried by Gepids in the 4th or 5th century AD,[39][40] and attempted to decipher the text of the inscription using the Greek language. Three words end in -γη, which was read by Hampel as the Greek γῆ = "land, country". He concluded that the inscription records two Gepid princes, Bouila and Boutaoul, and the three lands they ruled: Tagro, Etzi and Dygetoi.[41][42][43] The last toponym was connected with the Getae of the Classical Antiquity.[44][43] This interpretation was sharply criticized by Vilhelm Thomsen and Gyula Németh, who showed that the language of the inscription cannot be Greek, but an old Turkic language.[45][46]

Today almost all scholars share the view that the text was written in a Turkic language,[1][47][2] but it has not been deciphered and the exact classification of the language has been a subject of debate.[1][7] It has been often compared with the Turkic Bulgar language of the First Bulgarian Empire,[35][7][30] attested on several 8th-9th century inscriptions found in north-eastern Bulgaria and written in Greek letters.[48] More recently Eugene Helimski argued the language is close to Proto-Tungusic,[49] but this proposal was rejected by Marcel Erdal as far-fetched.[50]

Buyla

[edit]
Main articles: Boyar and Boila

It is generally agreed that the first word is the Turkic title buyla or boyla (also spelled boila[51]) which is attested on several Old Turkic and Danube Bulgar inscriptions[52][53] and also mentioned by some 9th and 10th centuries Byzantine authors.[52][54] Some scholars proposed that Buyla should be read as a personal name in this text, as titles were often taken as personal names.[2][52] There are more vessels in the treasure of Nagyszentmiklós that mention the name Buyla, such as a goblet.

Butaul

[edit]
Main article: Butaul

Butaul is usually read as a personal name.[2][55][56] It may be interpreted as "son of Buta" with the final -ul being a development of the Turkic oğul = "son".[55][56] This etymology was challenged based on the observation that according to the predominant model of construction of Turkic patronymics, the possessive forms oğlu or oğli are expected.[55][57] Based on the names attested on Old Turkic inscriptions, Erdal posited the reading But Aul.[55]

Zoapan

[edit]
Main article: Župan

In 1900, Karl Brugmann derived the Common Slavic *županъ from župa "district, small administrative region",[58] an etymology that was accepted by many linguists.[59]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Alemany 2009, p. 5.
  2. ^ a b c d e Róna-Tas 1999, pp. 131–132.
  3. ^ a b c Daim 2003, p. 515.
  4. ^ Gyula Moravcsik, Byzantinoturcica: Sprachreste der Türkvölker in den byzantinischen Quellen (1983)
  5. ^ Deliyannis, Deborah (2019). Fifty Early Medieval Things. Cornell University Press. p. 171.
  6. ^ Helimski 2000, p. 45.
  7. ^ a b c Göbl & Róna-Tas 1995, p. 19.
  8. ^ a b c according to Gyula László and István Rácz (The treasure of Nagyszentmikloś, 1984)
  9. ^ Paul Lazăr Tonciulescu - "De la Țara Luanei la Ieud", Editura Miracol, București, 1998
  10. ^ a b c Pohl 1988, p. 182.
  11. ^ Bálint 2010, p. 153.
  12. ^ Hampel 1885, p. 3.
  13. ^ a b Róna-Tas 1999, p. 131.
  14. ^ a b c d Daim 2003, p. 516.
  15. ^ a b Fiedler 2008, p. 218.
  16. ^ a b Paroń 2021, p. 173.
  17. ^ a b Bálint 2010, pp. 153, 155.
  18. ^ Róna-Tas 1999, p. 132.
  19. ^ Curta 2006, p. 94.
  20. ^ Bálint 2010, p. 155.
  21. ^ a b Róna-Tas 1999, pp. 131, 264.
  22. ^ Róna-Tas 1999, pp. 127, 131.
  23. ^ Hampel 1885, p. 44.
  24. ^ a b Erdal 1988, p. 221.
  25. ^ Hampel 1885, p. 47.
  26. ^ Thomsen 1918, p. 15.
  27. ^ a b c d e Erdal 1988, p. 222.
  28. ^ Erdal 1988, pp. 222–223.
  29. ^ a b c d Beševliev 1963, p. 21.
  30. ^ a b c Thomsen 1918, p. 27.
  31. ^ Wroth 1908, pp. 442–443.
  32. ^ Бешевлиев 1952, p. 31.
  33. ^ Beševliev 1963, p. 19.
  34. ^ a b Thomsen 1918, pp. 18–19.
  35. ^ a b c Erdal 1988, p. 223.
  36. ^ a b c d Petrounias 2007, pp. 602–605.
  37. ^ a b Thomsen 1918, p. 19.
  38. ^ Erdal 1988, p. 224.
  39. ^ Hampel 1885, p. 58.
  40. ^ Göbl & Róna-Tas 1995, p. 14.
  41. ^ Hampel 1885, pp. 47–51.
  42. ^ Göbl & Róna-Tas 1995, p. 13.
  43. ^ a b Thomsen 1918, p. 17.
  44. ^ Hampel 1885, pp. 48–50.
  45. ^ Thomsen 1918, pp. 17–18.
  46. ^ Göbl & Róna-Tas 1995, pp. 17–18.
  47. ^ Göbl & Róna-Tas 1995, pp. 18–19.
  48. ^ Fiedler 2008, pp. 189–191.
  49. ^ Helimski 2000, pp. 271–277.
  50. ^ Erdal 2007, p. 79.
  51. ^ Pohl 1988, pp. 182, 305.
  52. ^ a b c Göbl & Róna-Tas 1995, p. 22.
  53. ^ Erdal 1988, pp. 225–226.
  54. ^ Erdal 1988, p. 225.
  55. ^ a b c d Erdal 1988, p. 226.
  56. ^ a b Göbl & Róna-Tas 1995, p. 23.
  57. ^ Helimski 2000, p. 271.
  58. ^ Brugmann 1900, p. 111.
  59. ^ Alemany 2009, p. 7.

Bibliography

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  • Alemany, Agustí (2009). "From Central Asia to the Balkans: the title *ču(b)-pān". In Allison, Christine; Joisten-Pruschke, Anke; Wendtland, Antje (eds.). Daēnā to Dîn: Religion, Kultur und Sprache in der iranischen Welt. pp. 3–12.
  • Bálint, Csanád (2010). "Avar goldsmiths' work from the perspective of cultural history". In Adams, Noel; Entwistle, Chris (eds.). Intelligible Beauty: Recent Research on Byzantine Jewellery. pp. 146–160.
  • Бешевлиев, Веселин (1952). Епиграфски приноси (in Bulgarian). София: БАН. p. 96.
  • Beševliev, Veselin (1963). Die protobulgarischen Inschriften. Volume 23 in the series Berliner Byzantinistische Arbeiten (in German). Berlin: Akademie-Verlag.
  • Brugmann, Karl (1900). "Aksl. župa 'Bezirk'". Indogermanische Forschungen. 11: 111–112. doi:10.1515/9783110242539.111. S2CID 170500221.
  • Brückner, Alexander (1908). "Über Etymologische Anarchie". Indogermanische Forschungen. 23: 206–219. doi:10.1515/if-1909-0118. S2CID 202507000.
  • Curta, Florin (2006). Southeastern Europe in the Middle Ages, 500-1250.
  • Daim, Falko (2003). "Avars and Avar archaeology. An introduction". In Goetz, Hans Werner; Jarnut, Jörg; Pohl, Walter (eds.). Regna and gentes: the relationship between late antique and early medieval peoples and kingdoms in the transformation of the Roman world. pp. 463–570.
  • Erdal, Marcel (1988). "The Turkic Nagy-Szent-Miklós inscription in Greek letters". Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae. 42: 221–234.
  • Erdal, Marcel (2007). "The Khazar language". In Golden, Peter B.; Ben-Shammai, Haggai; Róna-Tas, András (eds.). The World of the Khazars. pp. 75–108.
  • Fiedler, Uwe (2008). "Bulgars in the Lower Danube region. A survey of the archaeological evidence and of the state of current research.". In Curta, Florin; Kovalev, Roman (eds.). The other Europe in the Middle Ages: Avars, Bulgars, Khazars, and Cumans. pp. 151–236.
  • Göbl, Robert; Róna-Tas, András (1995). Die Inschriften des Schatzes von Nagy-Szentmiklós: Eine paläographische Dokumentation.
  • Helimski, Eugene A. (2000). "On probable Tungus-Manchurian origin of the Buyla inscription from Nagy-Szentmiklós". Компаративистика, уралистика: Лекции и статьи. pp. 268–277.
  • Hampel, József (1885). Der Goldfund von Nagy-Szent-Miklós, sogenannter "Schatz des Attila". F. Kilian.
  • Paroń, Aleksander (2021). The Pechenegs: Nomads in the Political and Cultural Landscape of Medieval Europe. Brill. ISBN 9789004441095.
  • Petrounias, Evangelos V. (2007). "Development in pronunciation during the Hellenistic period". In Christidis, Anastassios Fivos (ed.). A History of Ancient Greek: From the Beginnings to Late Antiquity. pp. 599–609.
  • Pohl, Walter (1988). Die Awaren. Ein Steppenvolk in Mitteleuropa, 567-822 n. Chr.
  • Róna-Tas, András (1999). Hungarians and Europe in the early Middle Ages.
  • Thomsen, Vilhelm (1918). Une inscription de la trouvaille d'or de Nagy-Szent-Miklós (Hongrie).
  • Wroth, Warwick (1908). Catalogue of the Imperial Byzantine Coins in the British Museum. Vol. 2.
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