Re: Alans etc.

Miziyev writes (of the Zelenchuk inscription): "... In a few words, the inscription tells how a few tribes once gathered and, having called to the god, decided to move to the plain. The inscription points to the disintegration of the tribe union."

This is absurd, and the examples of "Turk words" given by Miziyev just demonstrate that he feels no qualms about manipulating the letters of the inscription as him listeth (noble patriotic motives, no doubt). I have the text at home and will post it later today with the standard interpretation. The Zelenchuk inscription is a typical "in memoriam" text, not a momentous historical document of the kind suggested by Miziyev -- basically a tidily arranged (and therefore easy to interpret) list of first names and patronymics with a few evidently Ossetic connecting words.

I couldn't access Baksan's page for some reason, so it would be very nice of you, Alexander, if you could post his interpretation.

Piotr

----- Original Message -----

From: Alexander Stolbov

To: cybalist@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Tuesday, April 10, 2001 10:04 AM

Subject: Re: Alans (was Re: [tied] Re: Warning to list: Race and anthropology)

I.M. Miziyev (English version): http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Pagoda/7675/chapt6.html D. Baksan (only in Russian and highly not politcorrect, but containing a lot of very interesting ethnographic material): http://balkaria.narod.ru/istoria/dbaksan/glava11.htm Unfortunately, neither Miziyev no Baksan give the complete word by word reading - only the phrase as a whole with some examples of reading single words. (If you need it I could translate for you Baksan's variant of reading the Zelencuk inscription) Alexander > > However some investigators claim that Alans were ancestors of Karachay and > > Balkar volks (I. M. Miziyev ), or even of Chechenians and Ingush (D. > Baksan) > > and successfully (as they say) read the Zelencuk inscription as Old Turkic > > or as Nakh respectively. > > > > Can you give me some references on this, Alexander? > > Thanks > > Ed.