Hermann Güntert (5 November 1886 – 23 April 1948) was a German linguist who specialized in Germanic and

Indo-European linguistics Indo-European studies () is a field of linguistics and an interdisciplinary field of study dealing with Indo-European languages, both current and extinct. The goal of those engaged in these studies is to amass information about the hypothetical p ...

Biography

Hermann Güntert was born in

Worms, Germany Worms (; ) is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, situated on the Upper Rhine about south-southwest of Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main. It had about 84,646 inhabitants . A pre-Roman foundation, Worms is one of the oldest cities in northern ...

on 5 November 1886. His father was a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

merchant, and his mother was a

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

. Güntert became fluent in

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

and

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

as a high school student, graduating at the top of his class in 1905. Güntert subsequently studied

classical philology Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek and Roman literature and their original languages, ...

and

German philology German studies is an academic field that researches, documents and disseminates German language, German literature, literature, and culture in its historic and present forms. Academic departments of German studies therefore often focus on Culture ...

at the

University of Heidelberg Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (; ), is a public university, public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is List ...

. He studied

comparative linguistics Comparative linguistics is a branch of historical linguistics that is concerned with comparing languages to establish their historical relatedness. Genetic relatedness implies a common origin or proto-language and comparative linguistics aim ...

under

Hermann Osthoff Hermann Osthoff (18 April 1847 – 7 May 1909) was a German linguist. He was involved in Indo-European studies and the Neogrammarian school. He is known for formulating Osthoff's law and published widely on Indo-European word-formation and m ...

Indo-Iranian languages The Indo-Iranian languages (also known as Indo-Iranic languages or collectively the Aryan languages) constitute the largest branch of the Indo-European language family. They include over 300 languages, spoken by around 1.7 billion speakers ...

under

Christian Bartholomae Friedrich Christian Leonhard Bartholomae (21 January 1855 9 August 1925) was a German linguist, philologist, and scholar of the Iranian languages. He is best known as the namesake of Bartholomae's law, a sound law affecting the Indo-Iranian lan ...

, and

religious studies Religious studies, also known as religiology or the study of religion, is the study of religion from a historical or scientific perspective. There is no consensus on what qualifies as ''religion'' and definition of religion, its definition is h ...

under

Albrecht Dieterich Albrecht Dieterich (2 May 1866 – 6 May 1908) was a German classical philologist and scholar of religion born in Hersfeld. Academic background He studied at the Universities of Leipzig and Bonn. At Leipzig he studied with professors Georg ...

and Franz Boll. He received his

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

with the dissertation ''Zur Geschichte der griechischen Gradationsbildungen'', which was about the

Greek language Greek (, ; , ) is an Indo-European languages, Indo-European language, constituting an independent Hellenic languages, Hellenic branch within the Indo-European language family. It is native to Greece, Cyprus, Italy (in Calabria and Salento), south ...

. It was published in ''

Indogermanische Forschungen (English: ''Indo-European Researches''; subtitled ''/Journal of Indo-European Studies and Historical Linguistics'') is an annual peer-reviewed academic journal of linguistics. It focuses primarily on Indo-European studies, but also publishes contr ...

'' in 1909. Güntert subsequently studied for one semester at the

University of Leipzig Leipzig University (), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December 1409 by Frederick I, Electo ...

. In 1909, Güntert passed the

staatsexamen The ("state examination" or "exam by state"; pl.: ''Staatsexamina'') is a German government licensing examination that future physicians, dentists, physical therapists, teachers, research librarians, archivists, pharmacists, food chemists, psyc ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, Greek and

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

, and subsequently worked as a gymnasium teacher in

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...

from 1909 to 1921. He completed his

habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in Germany, France, Italy, Poland and some other European and non-English-speaking countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excelle ...

in 1912/1913 in

and

classics Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

with the thesis ''Reimwortbildung im Arischen und Altgriechischen'', which examined rhymes in Indo-Iranian and

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

. He was appointed Associate Professor at the University of Heidelberg in 1918. In 1921, Güntert succeeded as Professor of Comparative Linguistics at the

University of Rostock The University of Rostock () is a public university located in Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Founded in 1419, it is the third-oldest university in Germany. It is the oldest university in continental northern Europe and the Baltic Se ...

. In 1926, he succeeded Bartholomae as Professor at the University of Heidelberg. He was elected Member of the

Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities The Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities (German: ''Heidelberger Akademie der Wissenschaften''), established in 1909 in Heidelberg, Germany, is an assembly of scholars and scientists in the German state of Baden-Wuerttemberg. The acade ...

in 1931. From 1933, Güntert was also a lecturer 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 ...

. Since 1938, he was the editor of '' Wörter und Sachen''. Since the spring of 1938, Güntert suffered from declining health, which forced him to reduce his activity at the University. He retired in December 1945, and died in Heidelberg on 23 April 1948.

Research

Güntert's research centered on Indo-Iranian, Ancient Greek and Germanic. He was critical of the

North European hypothesis The North European hypothesis is a linguistic and archaeological theory that tries to explain the spread of the Indo-European languages in Europe and parts of Asia by locating the original homeland (Urheimat) in southern Scandinavia or in the No ...

of Gustav Kossinna. Instead he supported the steppe hypothesis of Otto Schrader and Guntërt's Heidelberg colleague Ernst Wahle. In his ''Der Ursprung der Germanen'' (1934), Güntert suggested that the

Germanic peoples The Germanic peoples were tribal groups who lived in Northern Europe in Classical antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. In modern scholarship, they typically include not only the Roman-era ''Germani'' who lived in both ''Germania'' and parts of ...

emerged through the conquest of the

Funnelbeaker culture The Funnel(-neck-)beaker culture, in short TRB or TBK (, ; ; ), was an archaeological culture in north-central Europe. It developed as a technological merger of local neolithic and mesolithic techno-complexes between the lower Elbe and middle V ...

by Indo-European invaders of the

Corded Ware culture The Corded Ware culture comprises a broad archaeological horizon of Europe between – 2350 BC, thus from the Late Neolithic, through the Copper Age, and ending in the early Bronze Age. Corded Ware culture encompassed a vast area, from t ...

. Güntert has been referred to as one of the most influential

mythographer Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...

s of his era. His ''Der arische Weltkönig und Heiland'' (1923) is widely regarded as the finest work ever published on

Indo-European religion Proto-Indo-European mythology is the body of myths and deities associated with the Proto-Indo-Europeans, speakers of the hypothesized Proto-Indo-European language. Although the mythological motifs are not directly attested – since Proto-Ind ...

.. "Güntert’s masterpiece, which treats the imagery of bonds and bondage (social, religious, legal, cosmic and existential), also the promise of liberation from them.8 Vast in its scope, exquisite in its philological detail, and awesome for its nuanced readings of sources, it is widely – and rightly – regarded as the finest book ever devoted to the religion of the Indo-European-speaking peoples." Güntert's research on Indo-European religion has had a strong influence on the later work of

Georges Dumézil Georges Edmond Raoul Dumézil (4 March 189811 October 1986) was a French Philology, philologist, Linguistics, linguist, and religious studies scholar who specialized in comparative linguistics and comparative mythology, mythology. He was a prof ...

Mircea Eliade Mircea Eliade (; – April 22, 1986) was a Romanian History of religion, historian of religion, fiction writer, philosopher, and professor at the University of Chicago. One of the most influential scholars of religion of the 20th century and in ...

Herman Lommel Herman Lommel (7 July 1885 – 5 October 1968), born Hermann Lommel, was a German Indologist and Iranologist who was Chair of Indo-European Studies at the Goethe University Frankfurt from 1917 to 1950. Biography Herman Lommel was born in Erlangen ...

and other scholars.

Personal life

Güntert married Gisela Wachenfeld in 1923.

Selected works

*''Zur Geschichte der griechischen Gradationsbildungen'', 1909 *''Über Reimwortbildungen im Arischen und Altgriechischen'', 1914 *''Indogermanische Ablautprobleme. Untersuchungen über Schwa secundum, einen zweiten indogermanischen Murmelvokal'', 1916 *''Kalypso. Bedeutungsgeschichtliche Untersuchungen auf dem Gebiet der indogermanischen Sprachen'', 1919 *''Von der Sprache der Götter und Geister. Bedeutungsgeschichtliche Untersuchungen zur homerischen und eddischen Göttersprache'', 1921 *''Der arische Weltkönig und Heiland. Bedeutungsgeschichtliche Untersuchungen zur indo-iranischen Religionsgeschichte und Altertumskunde'', 1923 *''Grundfragen der Sprachwissenschaft'', 1925 *''Zur Frage nach der Urheimat der Indogermanen'', 1930 *''Labyrinth. Eine sprachwissenschaftliche Untersuchung'', 1932 *''Am Nornenquell (Gedichte)'', 1933 *''Der Ursprung der Germanen'', 1934 *''Das faustische Wesen des germanischen Menschen'', 1934 *''Das germanische Erbe in der deutschen Seele'', 1934 * ''Runen, Runenbrauch und Runeninschriften der Germanen'', 1934 *''Altgermanischer Glaube nach Wesen und Grundlage'', 1937 * ''Geschichte der germanischen Völkerschaften'', 1943

References

Sources

* Wolf H. Goegginger: ''Hermann Güntert als Religionsforscher''. ''

Numen Numen (plural numina) is a Latin term for "divinity", "divine presence", or "divine will". The Latin authors defined it as follows:For a more extensive account, refer to Cicero writes of a "divine mind" (), a god "whose numen everything obeys", ...

'' 1967, pp. 150–158. * *

Manfred Mayrhofer Manfred Mayrhofer (26 September 1926 – 31 October 2011) was an Austrian Indo-Europeanist who specialized in Indo-Iranian languages. Mayrhofer served as professor emeritus at the University of Vienna. He is noted for his etymological dictionary ...

(ed.): ''Antiquitates Indogermanicae. Studien zur indogermanischen Altertumskunde und zur Sprach- und Kulturgeschichte der indogermanischen Völker. Gedenkschrift für Hermann Güntert zur 25. Wiederkehr seines Todestages am 23. April 1973'', Innsbruck 1974 (pp. 523–528). {{DEFAULTSORT:Guntert, Hermann 1886 births 1948 deaths Academic staff of the University of Rostock Etymologists German non-fiction writers German people of French descent Germanic studies scholars German Germanists Heidelberg University alumni Indo-Europeanists Academic staff of Heidelberg University Linguists of Germanic languages Linguists of Indo-European languages Linguists of Indo-Aryan languages Linguists of Iranian languages 20th-century German linguists People from Worms, Germany Writers on Germanic paganism 20th-century non-fiction writers 20th-century German philologists

Biography

Research

Personal life

See also

Selected works

References

Sources