This article contains information aboutIllyrian vocabulary. No Illyrian texts survive, so sources for identifying Illyrian words have been identified by Hans Krahe[1] as being of four kinds: inscriptions, glosses of Illyrian words in classical texts, names—including proper names (mostly inscribed on tombstones), toponyms and river names—and Illyrianloanwords in other languages. The last category has proven particularly contentious. The names occur in sources that range over more than a millennium, includingnumismatic evidence, as well as posited original forms of placenames.[1]Messapic, an ancient language ofApulia which was of Balkan provenance and is grouped in the 'Illyric branch' of the Indo-European family,[2][3] does havean epigraphic corpus, and some words have been recorded by ancient authors. Messapic words and relevant etymologies are listed inMessapic language#Lexicon.
Old Alb.ren, mod. Alb.re, rê "cloud",[8] singularized plural of*ri, which goes back to PAlb*rina, etymologically identical to the Illyrian form; also Alb.rij, rî 'to make humid'.[9] Further connected to Gk. (Lesbian)orínein "to move", Old Ch. Slav.rinǫti "to flow", Skt.riṇá-ti "to pour, let flow".[10]
ζύθον,quod genus est potionis ex frugibus aquaque confectum et vulgo in Dalmatiae Pannoniaeque provinciis gentili barbaroque sermone appellatur sabaium
Eng.sap, Lat.sapere "to taste", Skt.sabar "sap, juice, nectar", Avestanvišāpa "having poisonous juices", Armham, Gk.hapalós "tender, delicate", Old Ch. Slav.sveptŭ "bee's honey"; borrowed into Lat. and from there into Ital.zabaione "frothy drink".[citation needed]
Of Illyrian soldiers;[15] later used inPliny to describe Thracian implements
"curved knife, dagger"
PIE *ḱeh₁kʷeh₂
Alb.thika 'knife',[16] which goes back to PAlb*tsika;[17] Skt.śitá "sharp", Arm.sur "sharp",srem "to sharpen"[17] Illyrian term borrowed into Lat.sica "dagger",[16] the root of Lat.sicarii "assassins", Rus.siečiénije "cut, section; cross-section",siečj, rassiekatj "to whip, flog; to cut, shred, split, sever".
Messapic language is oftentimes regarded as close to Illyrian[18] even though there is still no consensus among scholars regarding their proximity.[19][20] SeeMessapic lemmas for a list of Messapic words.
Name of one of Achilles's horses. Suspected to be of foreign origin (Thracian, Phrygian or Illyrian).[21]Athanassakis supposes a loanword into Latin fromOsco-Umbrian languagebadius/*balius, via an Illyrian source.[22]
Alb.balë 'horse with white spot on forehead', Gk.phaliós 'having a white patch', Lith.balas/baltas 'white', OCSbĕlu 'white'
Tribe which lived in the historical region ofDardania in the central Balkans. Dardania is placed in a transitional onomastic region between southern Illyrian and Dalmatian with regional features.
Connected to Albaniandardhë.[37][38] It appears as a toponym in many Albanian-speaking regions: Dardhishte (Kaçanik),Dardhë (Korçë),Dardhas (Pogradec),Zall i Dardhës (Dibër),Darza (Ulcinj), Dardhatar (Zelenikovo), Dardhës (Molise), Dardhëza (Morea).Kruševo (from Proto-Slavickruša, "pear") and other related toponyms have been proposed as South Slavic translations of Darda- toponyms.[39]
Additionally to the words explicitly mentioned as Illyrian, scholars have extracted a list of non-Illyrian words that may have derived from Illyrian language.
Domator, personal name; cf. Old Ir.damnaid "he binds, breaks a horse",dam "ox", Eng.tame, dialectal Germ.zamer "ox not under the yoke", Alb.dem "young bull", Lat.domāre "to tame",domitor "tamer", Gk.dámnēmi "to break in",dámalos "calf", Skt.dāmyáti "he is tame; he tames", Rus.odomashnivat' "to tame"
Loúgeon:Strabo in hisGeography mentions "a marsh called Lougeon" (which has been identified asLake Cerknica inSlovenia) by the locals (Illyrian and Celtic tribes),Lougeon being Strabo's rendition of the local toponym into Greek. cf. Alb.lag "to wet, soak, bathe, wash",lëgatë "pool",lug "trough, water-channel, spillway", Lith.liűgas "pool", Old Ch. Slav. & Rus.luža "pool", Rus.loža, lože, lógovo "rest place, lounge place, bed, den", Rus.ležátj "to lie, rest, lounge" andložitj "to lay, put", Thrac.Lýginos, river name[78]
stagnus Morsianus "marshlands in Pannonia": IE *merĝ; cf. Middle High Germ.murc "rotten, withered, boggy", Old Ir.meirc "rust", Alb.marth "to shiver, shudder", Lith.markýti "to rust"
Oseriates "lakes": IE *h1eĝʰero;[77] cf. Serb-Croat.jȅzero, Rus.ózero, Lith.éžeras, Latvianȩzȩrs, Gk.Achérōn "river in the underworld"
Pelso (Latin authors referred to modernLake Balaton as "lacus Pelso",Pelso being a hydronym from the local inhabitants),Pelso apparently meant "deep" or "shallow": IE*pels-; cf. Rus.ples (deep place in lake or river), North Alb.fellë (fromfell "deep"), Czechpleso "deep place in a river, lake", Welshbwlch "crack", Arm.pelem "to dig"
Volcos, river name in Pannonia; cf. Old Ir.folc "heavy rain, wet weather", Welshgolchi "to wash", obsolete Eng.welkin "cloud", Old High Germ.welk "moist", GermanWolke "cloud", Old Ch. Slav. and Rus.vlaga "moisture, plant juice",Volga, river name in Russia, ?vŭlgŭkŭ "wet", Latv.val̃gums "wetness", Alb.ulmej "to dampen, wet"
Greek inscription with Illyrian onomastics (name and patronymic) on a funerary stele, 2nd century BC, Apollonia, Albania.[79]
The followinganthroponyms derive from Illyrian or are not yet connected with another language unless noted, such as the Delmatae names ofLiburnian origin. Alföldy identified five principal onomastic provinces within the Illyrian area:[dubious –discuss] 1) the "real" Illyrians south of the riverNeretva inDalmatia and extending south toEpirus; 2) theDelmatae, who occupied the middle Adriatic coast between the "real Illyrians" to the south and theLiburni to the north; 3) theLiburni, a branch ofVenetic in the northeast Adriatic; 4) theIapodes, who dwelt north of the Delmatae and behind (inland from) the coastal Liburnians; 5) thePannonians in the northern lands, and in Bosnia, northern Montenegro and Western Serbia.[citation needed]Katičić does not recognize a separate Pannonian onomastic area, and includes the Pannoni with the Delmatae.[80] Below, names from four of Alföldy's five onomastic areas are listed,Liburnian excluded, having been identified as being akin toVenetic. ADardanian area is also detailed.[81][82][83]
Delmatae names in common with thePannoni (some also occur among the south Illyrians):
Bardurius.
Bato
Carius
Dasantilla
Dasas, Dazas
Dasto
Plator, Platino
Scenobarbus, Scenobardos (?)
Verzo
Verzulus
Some Delmatae names probably originate from theLiburnians. This conclusion is based on the Liburniansuffixes: -icus, -ica, -ocus, -ico; and from the distribution of the names among the Liburni/Veneti, and from their absence or scarcity in other onomastic areas:
Acenica
Clevata
Darmocus
Germanicus (the native Delmatae stem Germanus, Germus, with the Venetic/Liburnian-icus suffix)
Labrico
Lunnicus
Melandrica
Turus
From the southern Illyrians, the names Boria, Epicadus, Laedicalius, Loiscus, Pinnes and Tato and some others are present. From the Iapodes, Diteio and Ve(n)do, and a few names ofCeltic origin (not shown here).
The following names of gods (theonyms)[86] derive from possibly several languages (Liburnian, Illyrian, etc.) and are names of gods worshipped by theIllyrians. However, they are known throughInterpretatio romana and their names may have been corrupted.[87]
TheAncient Greek language would have become an important external influence on Illyrian-speakers who occupied lands adjacent to ancientGreek colonies, mainly on the Adriatic coast.[92] TheTaulantii aroundEpidamnos and theBylliones experienced a certain degree of bilingualism.[93] InvadingCelts who settled on lands occupied by Illyrians brought the Illyrians into contact with theCeltic languages and some tribes wereCelticized especially those inDalmatia[94][95] and thePannoni.[96] Intensive contact may have happened in what is nowBosnia,Croatia, andSerbia. Due to this intensive contact, and because of conflicting classical sources, it is unclear whether some ancient tribes were Illyrian orCeltic (ex:Scordisci)[97] or mixed in varying degree.Thracians andPaeonians also occupied lands populated by Illyrians, bringing Illyrians into contact with theThracian language andPaeonian language. Certainly, no serious linguistic study of Illyrian language could be made without the inclusion of Latin, in addition to ancient Greek, Thracian and Celtic languages, as the peoples that spoke those languages were recorded by both ancient and modern historians to have lived in lands inhabited by Illyrians at one period of time in history or another. Last, but certainly not least, any comprehensive study of Illyrian language must take into account the Indo-European glossary.[98]
Ardiaioi, the ancient Greek name forArdiaei (ardis, 'head of the arrow, sting'). One challenge to this theory is that the suggested root-wordardis does not necessarily form 'Ardiaioi', by the rules of Greek language
Ardiaei, (ardea, 'heron'). However, the problem with the theory supporting the Latin etymology for the Ardiaei is that Ardiaioi, a Greek form of Ardiaei is found in several pre-Roman sources, and it turns that it precedes the Roman/Latin Influence, as it precedes the Vardaei, another form of this name. Greek historian Strabo says in paragraph 6 (Book 7, chapter 5) of his Geographica: “The Ardiaei were called by the men of later times "Vardiaei".[98]
^Matzinger 2015, p. 62: "Finché non sono risolti in maniera soddisfacente i vari e difficili problemi della fonologia storica dell’illirico vero e proprio è, al momento attuale, impossibile se non inutile effettuare una comparazione linguistica tra il messapico e l’illirico.";De Simone 2017, pp. 1842–1843: "At the present time, realistically speaking, it is not possible to situate Messapic within the framework of the Indo-European language family (...). The question of whether Messapic is a dialect of “Illyrian”, (...) much less the Illyrian language, is in my view an issue belonging to the history of scholarship and is no longer current."
^Athanassakis, Apostolos N. “Akhilleus’s Horse Balios: Old and New Etymologies”. In:Glotta 78, no. 1/4 (2002): 1–2.http://www.jstor.org/stable/40267134.
^Athanassakis, Apostolos N. “Akhilleus’s Horse Balios: Old and New Etymologies”. In:Glotta 78, no. 1/4 (2002): 7.http://www.jstor.org/stable/40267134.
^Lafe, Genc (2022). "I rapporti tra toponimi e voci ereditate dell'albanese sulla base dell'analisi della loro evoluzione fonetica". In Shaban Sinani; Francesco Altimari; Matteo Mandalà (eds.).Albanologu i arvanitëve "Atje kam u shpirtin tim...".Academy of Sciences of Albania. pp. 355–370.ISBN978-9928-339-74-4. p. 363.
^Witczak, Krzysztof Tomasz (2011). "The Albanian name for badger".Zeitschrift für Balkanologie.47 (2):241–248. p. 244.
^Borel, Francesco Rubat (2005). "Lingue e scritture delle Alpi occidentali prima della romanizzazione. Stato della questione e nuove ricerche".Bulletin d'Études Préhistoriques et Archéologiques Alpines.XVI. Société Valdôtaine de Préhistoire et d’Archéologie:9–50. p. 32.
^Eichner, Heiner (2004).Illyrisch – die unbekannte Sprache. Museum für Urgeschichte Asparn an der Zaya: Die Illyrer. Archäologische Funde des 1. Vorchristlichen Jahrtausends aus Albanien (in German). pp. 107–108.ISBN3-85460-215-4.
^Hamp, Eric B. (1966). "The Position of Albanian". In Birnbaum, Henrik; Puhvel, Jaan (eds.).Ancient Indo-European Dialects. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. p. 108.
^Ceka, Neritan (2005).Apollonia: History and Monuments. Migjeni. p. 19.ISBN9789994367252. "In the third-second centuries BC, a number of Illyrians, including Abrus, Bato, and Epicardus, rose to the highest position in the city administration, that of prytanis. Other Illyrians such as Niken, son of Agron, Tritus, son of Plator, or Genthius, are found on graves belonging to ordinary families (fig.7)."
^Wilkes 1995, p. 72: "Thus it seems generally agreed that the name of the Illyrian queenTeuta of the third century BC derives fromteutana, which means 'queen'."
^Wilkes 1995, p. 71: "The names Daza, Dasius and Dazomenus have been connected with Dasmenus in Pannonia and Dazos in southern Italy. The meaning of these plausible correspondences is hard to determine: neither the internal links between the three principal Illyrian onomastic provinces nor those between them and other areas indicate more than that the languages spoken by peoples in the Illyrian territories were somehow related if not altogether common."
^Wilkes 1995, p. 186: "The fourth of the Venetic-speaking peoples around the head of the Adriatic were the Liburni, who occupied the coast and islands between Istria and the river Titus (Krka) and had been known to the Greeks since at least the eighth century BC."
^Wilkes 1995, p. 73: "The common name Bato may derive from the same root as the Latin battuere meaning `to strike', or is just as likely to derive from the root*bha 'say' or 'tell', the Latinfari."
^Williams 2004, p. 182: "1 Dasius: The Latin form of a Messapic name from southern Italy..."
^Murgia, Emanuela (2022)."Culti romani e non romani nella regione istriana".Revue belge de philologie et d'histoire (Antiquité-Oudheid) (in Italian).100 (1): 111-142 [111n3].doi:10.3406/rbph.2022.9729.Si tratta diIca/Ika,Boria,(H)Eia,Melisocus/Melesocus/Melosocus,Nebres,Trita,Seixomnia Leucitica,Sentona,Amitica (?),Iria Venus,Iutossica.
^Wilkes 1995, p. 245: "Illyrian deities are named on monuments of the Roman era, some in equation with gods of the classical pantheon. ... Thus several deities occur only in Istria, including Eia, Malesocus, Boria and Iria. Anzotica was the Liburnian Venus and appears in the traditional image of the classical goddess. Other local deities were Latra, Sentona and the nymph Ica, worshipped in eastern Istria at a spring still known by praying in relief sculpture, Knez 1974 (ritual vessel), Baçe 1984 (temple architecture in Illyrian Albania)."
^Wilkes 1995, p. 247: "Sometimes the name of a local deity is recorded only in the Latin form, for example, Armatus at Delminium (Duvno) who was evidently a war god of the Delmatae, and the Latin Liber who appears with the attributes of Silvanus and Terminus..."
^Wilkes 1995, p. 200: "Continuity in a local tradition of engraved ornament is to be seen on other monuments of the Roman period, including altars dedicated by chiefs of the Japodes at the shrine of Bindus Neptunus at a spring near Bihac (see figure 30)."
^Wilkes 1995, p. 247: "The Illyrian town Rhizon (Risinium) on the Gulf of Kotor had its protective deity Medaurus..."
^abWilkes 1995, pp. 246–247: "North of the Japodes, the altars to Vidasus and Thana dedicated at the hot springs of Topuško..."
^Lewis & Boardman 1994, "The Illyrians c. 540-360 B.C.", p. 423: "Through contact with their Greek neighbors some Illyrian tribe became bilingual (Strabo VII.7.8diglottoi): in particular the Bylliones and the Taulantian tribes close to Epidamnus."
Katičić, Radoslav (1965). "Zur Frage der keltischen und pannonischen Namengebiete im römischen Dalmatien".Godisnjak (Annuaire).3. Sarajevo: Centar za balkanološke studije:53–76.
Savić, Danilo; Ligorio, Orsat (2022)."Illyrian and Slavic".Lucida Intervalla.51. Beograd: Filozofski fakultet Univerziteta u Beogradu:3–41.ISSN1450-6645.
