The Afterlife of Avestan Manuscripts

This study investigates the role of paratext in Zoroastrian scribal tradition, with a focus on the Avesta manuscripts. It examines how paratexts, such as colophons and marginal notes, contribute to organizing and interpreting the content of these manuscripts. These elements not only structure the knowledge but also reflect the roles and activities of individuals involved in the manuscript's lifecycle, from creation to reception. Additionally, the study explores how paratexts facilitate access to the main text, acting as a bridge that documents the history of each manuscript, its actors, and interaction with society. The analysis includes a diverse range of colophons and marginal notes, examining their structure, content, and relationship to their respective manuscripts

Shervin Farridnejad. Die Sprache der Bilder: Eine Studie zur ikonographischen Exegese der anthropomorphen Götterbilder im Zoroastrismus

With the exception of a few works, the iconography of Zoroastrianism has received little serious scholarly attention before 2014. Research on the subject has so far been mostly restricted to Sasanian art and the iconography of Anāhitā, cf. e.g. the works by Dorothy G. Shepherd (“The Iconography of Anāhitā: Part I.” In: Berytus Archeological Studies XXVIII: 47–86, 1980) and Lars-Ivar Ringbom (“Zur Ikonographie der Göttin Ardvi Sura Anahita.” In: Acta Academiae Aboensis. Humaniora: humanistiska..

Remnants of Zoroastrian Dari in the Colophons and Sālmargs of Iranian Avestan Manuscripts

Zoroastrian Dari, also known as Behdini or Gavruni, is an endangered Iranian language spoken by the Zoroastrian minority who mostly live in Yazd and the surrounding areas as well as in Kerman and Tehran. Zoroastrian Dari is a unique Iranian language on account of its historical background and large number of subdialects. This language is only a spoken language and not a written one, but it seems that remnants of this language are attested in the Avestan manuscripts, particularly in the colophons. This paper provides a study of the existence of Zoroastrian Dari in the personal names in the colophons and Sālmargs of the Avestan manuscripts.</jats:p

On the terminology designating the Zoroastrians of Iran and their language

AbstractThis paper* examines how Zoroastrians designate themselves (internal/self-designations), and how they are designated by others (external designations). Focusing on the termGabr/Gavras the external denotation for Zoroastrians and the termGabrī/Gavrūnīas the designation for their language, it argues that these terms, once common in Western scholarship as well as among non-Zoroastrian Iranians, have become obsolete due to their pejorative undertones. However, they have recently been revived by some scholars, who justify such use with reference to the alleged etymology ofGabras meaning “man” and by the fact that even some Zoroastrians useGavr/GavrūnandGavrī/Gavrūnīas an internal designation for themselves and their language. This paper critically examines these views and argues that neither the etymology nor the internal self-designation justifies the use of these terms and proposes the termZoroastrian Darīas the more appropriate designation of the language of the Zoroastrians of Iran.</jats:p

Judeo-Hamadani: The Language of Jews in Hamadan and Its Origins

The study of the language of religious minorities in Iran is particularly important for understanding the historical development and typology of Iranian languages. Historical and linguistic evidence substantiates the idea that Zoroastrians and Jews in cities in central and western Iran preserved their former vernacular language, whereas the majority of the population replaced it with Persian in the New Iranian period. This paper focuses on the language of Jews in Hamadan and has two main objectives: first, it examines numerous distinctive features of Judeo-Hamadani; second, it reviews and updates recent research to clarify the language origins, using data from new materials recorded during fieldwork in Hamadan from October 2018 to August 2019, and in Yazd in 2017.</jats:p

Die ausgewählte Besonderheiten der Baktrischen Grammatik

Bei dieser Dissertation handelt es sich um die erste umfassende Studie zur baktrischen Grammatik seit dem Auffinden und Erscheinen des größten Teils des baktrischen Sprachmaterials, herausgegeben in zwei Bänden, Bactrian Documents I und II (2000 und 2007), von Sims-Williams. Die Verfasserin untersucht erstmals Phänomene der baktrischen Grammatik an ausgewählten Beispielen. Sie konzentriert sich auf solche Phänomene der baktrischen Sprache, die bisher unbeschrieben sind und solche, die von besonderem Interesse auch für die Allgemeine Sprachwissenschaft sind. Im Fokus stehen hierbei historische Lautlehre und Syntax, wobei auch Fragen der Morphologie berührt werden