Gudmund Schütte (17 January 1872– 12 July 1958) was a Danish philologist, historian and writer who specialized in
Germanic studies
Germanic philology is the philological study of the Germanic languages, particularly from a comparative or historical perspective.
The beginnings of research into the Germanic languages began in the 16th century, with the discovery of literary te ...
.
Biography
Gudmund Schütte was born at
Eskjær,
Salling
Salling is a peninsula located in the north-west of the larger Jutland peninsula in Denmark. The largest city in Salling is Skive, and smaller towns and villages includes Jebjerg, Roslev and Glyngøre.
The Sallingsund Bridge connects the penins ...
, Denmark on 17 January 1872, the son of landowner
Theodor Schütte ((1835–1915)) and Thilia Augusta Marie Cathrine Petersen ((1837–96)). His paternal grandfather, the landowner
August Theodor Schütte, was a
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
immigrant from
Perleberg
Perleberg (; North Margravian: ''Perlberg'') is the capital of the district of Prignitz, located in the northwest of the German state of Brandenburg. The town received city rights in 1239 and today has about 12,000 inhabitants. Located in a mostly ...
, Germany. In addition to Eskjær, his father also owned the
Bygholm estate, and the
Sankt Andrä
) is a town in the district of Wolfsberg in Carinthia in Austria. It is named after Saint Andrew.
Landmarks
The main church is the former Saint Andrew's Cathedral, until 1829 the bishop's seat of the Diocese of Lavant
The Diocese of Lavant(tal) ...
estate in Austria.
Schütte enrolled at
Horsens Statsskole in 1889. While studying
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
at the
University of Copenhagen
The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public research university in Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in Scandinavia after Uppsala Unive ...
, Schütte won a university gold medal for a 1897 dissertation on
Old English
Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th c ...
. The same year, Schütte established the Society for Germanic Philology (Danish: Selskabet for germansk filologi). He earned an
MA in
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
philology in 1898, and a
PhD in 1907 with the dissertation ''Oldsagn om Godtjod''.
From 1909 to 1913, Schütte lectured at universities in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
and at
Aarhus University. In 1915, Schütte inheritated the estate of his father. With his financial independence secured, Schütte was free to pursue his scientific pursuits without being affiliated with any university or spending time on lecturing. In subsequent years, Schütte wrote a number of important works on the early
culture
Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...
and history of the
Germanic peoples
The Germanic peoples were historical groups of people that once occupied Central Europe and Scandinavia during antiquity and into the early Middle Ages. Since the 19th century, they have traditionally been defined by the use of ancient and e ...
. His
magnum opus
A masterpiece, ''magnum opus'' (), or ''chef-d’œuvre'' (; ; ) in modern use is a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or a work of outstanding creativity, ...
, ''The Gothonic Nations'' (1929-1933), was published in
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
in two volumes by
Cambridge University Press
Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press in the world. It is also the King's Printer.
Cambridge University Pre ...
. He also wrote a number of books and articles on Danish history intended for a popular audience.
In addition to his scholarly pursuits, Schütte was an active participant in public debate. He was strongly critical of
Pan-German
Pan-Germanism (german: Pangermanismus or '), also occasionally known as Pan-Germanicism, is a pan-nationalist political idea. Pan-Germanists originally sought to unify all the German-speaking people – and possibly also Germanic-speaking ...
aggression towards
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
, and advocated Danish reclamation of Danish territory annexed by Germany in the
Second Schleswig War
The Second Schleswig War ( da, Krigen i 1864; german: Deutsch-Dänischer Krieg) also sometimes known as the Dano-Prussian War or Prusso-Danish War was the second military conflict over the Schleswig-Holstein Question of the nineteenth century. ...
. Despite opposition from German scholars, Schütte confirmed conclusively that the
Jutlandic dialect is a dialect of
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
. He was forceful advocate not only for the rights of the
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
minority in Germany, but also for several other
ethnic minorities
The term 'minority group' has different usages depending on the context. According to its common usage, a minority group can simply be understood in terms of demographic sizes within a population: i.e. a group in society with the least number o ...
and
stateless nations in Europe.
Schütte was made a Knight of the
Order of the Dannebrog in 1928, and received
Dannebrogsmændenes Hæderstegn in 1942.
Schütte died in
Grinderslev, Denmark on 12 July 1958.
Personal life
Schütte married Elsa Margrethe Sidonie Magdalene Johanna Pichler (1880-1953), in
Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...
on 21 January 1909. She was
Bohemian, the daughter of architect Hans P. Pichler (1830-1908) and Sidonia Moritsch (1854-1936). The two were introduced to each other in Prague while Schütte was visiting the
Czech
Czech may refer to:
* Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe
** Czech language
** Czechs, the people of the area
** Czech culture
** Czech cuisine
* One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus'
Places
* Czech, ...
Germanist Arnošt Kraus. Gudmund and Johanna had a close relationship, and her death in 1953 was a heavy blow.
Selected
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
See also
*
Birger Nerman
Birger Nerman (6 October 188822 August 1971) was a Swedish archaeologist, historian and philologist who specialized in the history and culture of Iron Age Sweden.
Nerman was educated at Uppsala University, where he began his career as a lectur ...
*
Sophus Bugge
Elseus Sophus Bugge (5 January 1833 – 8 July 1907) was a Norwegian philologist and linguist. His scholarly work was directed to the study of runic inscriptions and Norse philology. Bugge is best known for his theories and his work on the runic ...
*
Magnus Olsen
*
Jan de Vries (philologist)
Jan Pieter Marie Laurens de Vries (11 February 1890 – 23 July 1964) was a Dutch philologist, linguist, religious studies scholar, folklorist, educator, writer, editor and public official who specialized in Germanic studies.
A polyglot, de Vr ...
*
Rudolf Much
Rudolf Much (7 September 1862 – 8 March 1936) was an Austrian philologist and historian who specialized in Germanic studies. Much was Professor and Chair of Germanic Linguistic History and Germanic Antiquity at the University of Vienna, dur ...
*
Hector Munro Chadwick
*
Vilhelm Grønbech
Vilhelm Peter Grønbech (14 June 1873 – 21 April 1948) was a Denmark, Danish cultural historian. He was professor of the history of religion at the University of Copenhagen and also had a great influence on Danish intellectual life, especial ...
References
Sources
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Further reading
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External links
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1872 births
1958 deaths
Aarhus University faculty
20th-century Danish historians
Danish people of German descent
20th-century Danish philologists
Danish writers
Germanic studies scholars
Knights of the Order of the Dannebrog
Old Norse studies scholars
People from Skive Municipality
Writers on Germanic paganism
University of Copenhagen alumni
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