Pomeralia and Prussia, near the Vistula, about A. D. 80, and in the time of the Antonines, A.D. 180. The Vandals and Burgundians are considered as belonging to this race. After conquering different smaller nations in the east of Germany and the present Poland, the Goths, sword in hand, opened themselves a way to the Lower Danube. They took possession of all the northern coasts of the Black Sea, and made inroads into the neighbouring countries, particularly into Dacia, where they settled, and divided themselves into the East and West Goths.* The Visi-Gothi, Visigoths, or, as Jornandes calls them, Vesegothæ, and others Wisigothi or West-Goths, had their name from their western situation. For the same reason the East-Goths were denominated Ostro, or Austro-Gothi. 3. The Goths having conquered and occupied the country on the north of the Black Sea, where, according to Herodotus, the Scythians had dwelt, were often called Scythians by Greek and Roman writers, to the great confusion of history. 4. The West-Goths must have been numerous on the west of the Black Sea, and have made inroads into the Roman empire, as we find them so powerful in Thracia in the time of Decius, A.D. 250, that they took and sacked Philippolis.† Even before this period, about A. D. 180, these Goths had so far increased as to occupy Dacia, the present Transilvania, Moldavia, Wallachia, and Bessarabia. 5. The Getæ, a Thracian race, who had previously inhabited Dacia, were, with the Romans still remaining in the country, amalgamised with their conquerors, the West-Goths. As the East-Goths had been confounded with the Scythians, their predecessors, so there are some who suppose that the West-Goths and the Geta were the same nation, because they found these Goths occupying the same territory, formerly inhabited by the Geta. Jornandes, by birth a Goth, probably with the view of exalting his nation by attributing to them all that was done by the Getæ, makes the Goths and the Geta to be the same people. Had he only been guided by the languages of these nations, he would have seen that the Getæ must have a different origin to the Goths. 6. When the West-Goths settled in Dacia, they not only found remnants of Roman civilisation, but Christianity established.§ The mild but powerful influence of the christian religion soon prevailed over their cruel heathen rites; for as early as the Council of Nice, in A. D. 325, the Zahn's Ulphilas, p. 2; Adelung's Elteste Geschichete der Deutschen, p. 202. Herodotus, Strabo, and Menander who was a Getian by birth, and many others, declare that the Geta were of Thracian origin. Stephanus of Byzantium says expressly "Teria, χωρα τῶν Γετών. Εστι δε Θρακικον εθνος Gelia, the country of the Geta. It is a Thracian nation. Sub voce TETIA, p. 207; Virg. Æn. iii. 35; Ovid. Trist. v. 7; Epist. Pont. lib. iv. Ep. xiii. 17. Strabo declares that the Getæ and Thracians spoke the same language, and that the Thracian and the Gothic or Old-German are quite distinct languages. See Zahn, p. 4, note a. In Adelung's Geschichte der Deutschen there is a long list of Thracian words, not one of which has the least resemblance to German, p. 284-290. christian Goths had their bishop, Theophilus, whose signature appears in the records of this celebrated council. The Ostro or Eastern Goths, having no such advantages, remained for a long time heathens. In the latter part of the 4th century, the whole of the Goths were governed by Ermanneric, one of their greatest conquerors, who subdued the western nations, and extended his empire from the river Don, through Sarmatia to the Vistula, and even to the Baltic. 7. The Visigoths or West-Goths being greatly oppressed by the Huns from the north of China or Tartary, induced Ulphilas,* their bishop, to implore the protection of the Roman emperor, Valens, in A.D. 376. He pleaded their cause successfully, and the province of Moesia was assigned to them; their innumerable tribes were then permitted to pass over the Danube.† It was from the residence which Valens gave them in Moesia, now Servia and Bulgaria, south of the Danube, that the Visigoths obtained the name of Moeso-Goths. Considering themselves oppressed in Moesia, the Goths revolted, gained several victories over the Romans, and at last under Alaric desolated the Illyrian provinces, and in A.D. 409 took and pillaged Rome. In 412 they established themselves in the south of France, and crossing the Pyrenees, fixed the seat of their empire in Spain, where they reigned nearly three hundred years. They were first weakened by the Francs, and finally subdued by the Saracens. 8. The Ostro or East-Goths, though they applied to Valens, were not permitted to enter Moesia, and were therefore subjugated by the Huns; but after liberating themselves, they embraced Christianity, and were received into Pannonia in A.D. 456, following the Visi or West-Goths into Moesia. The emperor Theodoric the Great, the hero of this nation, conquered Italy, and in a. D. 493 became the founder of a new monarchy at Ravenna. The Gothic government continued in Italy till the year 554, when it was terminated by Belisarius and Narsus under Justinian, emperor of the east. Cassiodorus,‡ the minister of Theodoric, wrote a history of the Goths, which was abridged by his secretary Jornandes. This name has great variety in its orthography: we find Ulphilas, Urphilas, Urphilus, Gilfulas, Gudillas, Galfilas, Gulfilas, Ulphias, Ulpias, Gulfias, Hulfias, Wulfila, &c. שלטי הגבורים Aulpilas by R. Abraham in his work entitled אולפילאס It is written It is inflected nom. Ulphilas; g. Ulphilæ, exactly as Æneas, Æneæ, &c. after the Greek form Ovλpixas (Socrates' Hist. Eccles. 11.41; IV. 33; Theodoret. IV.33; Epist. 104; Philost. II. 5; Sozomen Hist. Eccles. VI. 37.) Some of the most eminent German scholars have recently adopted a new orthography, or as they affirm, reverted to the old Teutonic spelling, and write it Ulfila from Wulfila a little wolf, formed from Moes. wulfs a wolf, (Mt. vii. 15,) in the same manner as magula puerulus, (Jn. vi. 9,) from magus puer, and the diminutive fiskila pisciculus, from the root fisk piscis. (Grimm's Deut. Gramm. vol. iii. p. 666). This, according to the Moeso-Gothic idiom, appears quite correct as it regards the termination; but if a close adherence to the Moeso-Gothic word be followed, it ought to be as precise in the commencement as in the termination, and to be written Wulfila, not Ulfila. Rather than adopt the new mode, which appears incorrect in this particular, the old spelling is here retained, and the word is written Ulphilas Ovλpidas, as received from the Greek ecclesiastical historians. Canzler, in his Deutsche Vor und Zunnamen, thinks that Ulfila, Hulfias, &c. has some affinity with 4.-S. ulph: Plat. hülp: Dut. hulp: Ger. hülfe: Old-Ger. hilfa: Dan. hjælp: Swed. hjelp: Icel. hiálp-all denoting help, aid, assistance. Then, with the addition of the diminutive ila, we have Hulpila, or Ulfila a little help, infantine aid. † Jornandes, 25, 26. See § 2, note (‡). * 9. Ulphilas, born of Cappadocian parents,† was made bishop of the West or Moeso-Goths about A.D. 360. He was so eminent in his talents, learning, and prudence, that he had the greatest influence amongst the Goths, and thence originated the proverb "Whatever is done by Ulphilas is well done." They received with implicit confidence the doctrines of the gospel which he enforced by a blameless life. That he might lead them to the fountain of his doctrine, he translated the Bible from the Greek into the language of the Moeso-Goths, between A.D. 360 and 380. Those who are best acquainted with the subject ‡ declare that the language of this ancient translation ought not to be called Moeso-Gothic, as this name leads to the erroneous supposition that this dialect was formed in Moesia. The language of Ulphilas's version is, in fact, the pure German of the period in which it was written, and which the West-Goths brought with them into Moesia. The term Moeso-Gothic is stili retained in this work, as it at once shows that the words to which Moes. or Moeso-Gothic is applied are taken from the version of Ulphilas, while however the MoesoGothic is considered as the earliest German dialect now in existence. 10. Several fragments of Ulphilas's celebrated translation have been discovered. The most famous is The Codex Argenteus, or Silver Book, so called from being transmitted to us in letters of a silver hue. The words appear to be formed on vellum by metallic characters heated, and then impressed on silver foil, which is attached to the vellum by some glutinous substance, somewhat in the manner that bookbinders now letter and ornament the backs of books.§ This document, containing fragments of the four gospels, is supposed to be of the 5th century, and made in Italy. It was preserved for many centuries, in the monastery of Werden on the river Rhur, in Westphalia. In the 17th century it was transmitted for safety to Prague; but Count Konigsmark, taking this city, the Codex Argenteus came into the possession of the Swedes, who deposited it in the library at Stockholm. Vossius, in 1655, when visiting Sweden, became possessed of it, and brought it to Holland; but Puffendorf, as he travelled through Holland in 1662, found it in the custody of Vossius, and purchased it for Count de la Gardie, who, after having it bound in silver, presented it to the Royal Library at Upsal, where it is still preserved. 11. This mutilated copy of the Four Gospels was first published with a Glossary by Junius and Marshall, in 2 vols. 4to. at Dort, 1665, from a beautiful facsimile manuscript made by Derrer, but now lost. There are two columns in each page, Gothic on the left column, and Anglo-Saxon on the right, both in their original characters, the types for which were cast at Dort. The same book, apparently * See § 7, note (*). Theodoret, iv. 37; Sozomen, vi. 37; Socrates, iv. 33. See Grimm's Deutsche Grammatik, 1st edit. 1819, pref. xlv. xlvi. § Ihre's Ulphilas Illustratus, edited by Büsching, Berlin, 1773; Meerman's Origines Typographicæ, Hag. Comit. 2 vols. 4to. 1765, vol. i. p. 2, cap. 2. In Italia scriptus fuit-Ulphilæ partium ineditarum in Ambrosianis Palimpsestis ab Angelo published with new titles, and a reprint of the first sheet in Vol. II. or Glossary, appeared again at Amsterdam in 1684. Stiernhelm sent forth an edition in Gothic, Icelandic, Swedish, German, and Latin, 4to. Stockholm, 1671. A new one was prepared by Dr. Eric Benzelius, and published by Lye, 4to. Oxford, 1750, with a Latin translation, and notes below the Gothic: a short Gothic Grammar is prefixed by Lye. A learned Swede, Ihre, a native of Upsal, and afterward Professor, in 1753 favoured the literati with his remarks upon the editions of Junius, Stiernhelm, and Lye. He had constant access to the Codex, and his criticisms and remarks upon the editors' deviations from it are very valuable. All Professor Ihre's treatises on the Gothic version, and other tracts connected with the subject, were published under the following title: -J. ab Ihre scripta versionem Ulphilanam et linguam MoesoGothicam illustrantia, edita ab Anton. Frid. Büsching, Berolini, 4to. 1773. The Codex was again prepared and printed in Roman characters, after the corrected text of Ihre, with a literal interlineal Latin translation, and a more free Latin version in the margin, with a Grammar and Glossary by F. K. Fulda. The Glossary revised and the text corrected by W. F. H. Reinwald, published by J. C. Zahn, Weissenfels and Leipzig, 4to. 1805. One short specimen will be sufficient. THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER. Mx. iv. 3, 4.-Hauseith. sai. urrann sa saiands du saian fraiwa seinamma. 4. Jah warth miththan ei saiso. sum raihtis gadraus faur wig. jah quemun fuglos, jah fretun thata.-Zahn's Edition, p. 45. Title-deed at Naples. 12. This document was discovered in modern times, and is now preserved in the archives of the church of St. Annunciata at Naples. It is defective, and written in very corrupt Latin, bearing no date, but appearing to have been written in the beginning of the 6th century, soon after the arrival of the Goths in Italy. According to this title-deed, the clergymen of the church St. Anastasia, sell some land, and ratify the sale in several Latin attestations, with four in Gothic. These four subscriptions are, as regards the language, of no importance, for they contain no new Gothic words; but they are highly valuable as affording an incontestible proof that the language and writing of the Codex Argenteus are genuine Gothic. Some have questioned whether this Codex be Gothic, but it is in the same language and the same character as these attestations, and they are written, at the period of Gothic influence in Italy, in the Gothic language and character by Gothic priests, having Gothic names; therefore the Codex Argenteus must also be Gothic. The title-deed preserved at Naples was minutely copied by Professor Massmann. As all the published copies are very defective, he has promised shortly to give to the world a faithful facsimile.* One attestation will be a sufficient specimen of the language. Ik winjaifrithas diakon handu meinai ufmelida jah (andnemum) skilliggans. I. Ego Winefridus Diaconus manu mea subscripsi et accepimus solidos 60 • See Zahn's Gothic Gospels, p. 77; Massmann's St. John, pref. p. ix.: a facsimile is given by Sierakowsky, 1810, also in Marini's tab. 118. nostro et con jah faurthis thairh kawtsjon mith diakon(a) (ala) myda unsaramma jah mithet antea per cautionem cum Diacono . gahlaibaim unsaraim andnemum skilliggans. RK. wairth thize saiwe. ministris nostris accepimus solidos 120 pretium horum paludum. Title-deed at Arezzo. 13. This is a contract written on Egyptian papyrus. A deacon, Gottlieb sells to another deacon, Alamud, an estate with some buildings. This document is written in barbarous Latin, and only contains one Gothic attestation. It is contemporary with the Neapolitan document, and of equal importance: the original MS. is unfortunately lost, but the following is copied from Zahn.* Ik guthilub dkn tho frabauhta boka fram mis gawaurhta Ego Gottlieb Diaconus hæc vendidi librum a me feci alamoda fidwor unkjana hugsis kaballarja jah killiggans RLGs Alamod quatuor uncias fundi Caballaria et solidos 133 ufmelida. subscripsi. thus dkn tibi Diacone andnahm jah accepi et 14. Knittel, Archdeacon of Wolfenbuttel, in the Dutchy of Brunswick, found a palimpsest † manuscript of the 8th century, containing part of the 11th and following chapters, as far as the 13th verse of the xvth chapter of St. Paul's Epistle to the Romans, in Gothic and Latin. This document is denominated Codex Carolinus, from Charles, Duke of Brunswick, who enabled Knittel to give his work to the world. He published it in twelve plates, 4to. 1761. Republished by Ihre in Roman characters, with Latin version, notes, index, &c. pp. 90, Upsal, 1763. Again, by Manning, in the Appendix to his edition of Lye's Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, 2 vols. folio, 1772. And by Büsching, Berlin, 4to. 1773. 15. Angelo Mai, while keeper of the Ambrosian Library at Milan, discovered some fragments of Gothic in palimpsest manuscripts, and, with Count Castiglione, published the following extracts: Esdras ii. 28-42: Nehem. v. 13—18; vi. 14—19; vii. 1-3: Mt. xxv. 38-46; xxvi. 1-3; 65–75; xxvii. 1: Philip. ii. 22-30; iii.. 1-16: Titus i. 1—16; ii. 1: • A more circumstantial description of both these documents is given in Zahn's preface, p. 77, 78, and in the following works:-Versuch einer Erläuterung der Gothischen Sprachuberreste in Neapel und Arezo als eine Einladungsschrift und Beilage zum Ulphilas, von J. C. Zahn, Braunschweig, 1804. Antonius Franciscus Gorius was the first who, in the year 1731, published the document of Arezzo in the following work: J. B. Doni Inscriptiones antiquæ nunc primum editæ notisque illustratæ, &c. ab A. F. Gorio, Florent. 1731, folio. Professor H. F. Massman observes, that, notwithstanding the most minute investigation, he has not been able to discover the Gothic document of Arezo. (Preface to the Gothic Commentary on St. John, p. x.) It is, however, copied in No. 117 of Gaetano Marini's Papiri Diplomatici, &c. Romæ, 1805, folio, from the original attributed to A.D. 551, and again published in Codice diplomatico Toscano dal antiquario Brunetti, 11, p. 209-213, Firenze, 1833, 4to. tRescript, from waλiv again, and aw to wipe or cleanse. For an interesting account of the discoveries made in palimpsest MSS. see a paper by the venerable Archdeacon Nares in the Transactions of the Royal Society of Literature, Vol. I. part i. p. 122. Friedrich Adolph Ebert, late librarian of the King of Saxony, has declared, after having collated it in the most minute manner, that this edition the most correct copy of the MS. For want of sale many copies were used as waste paper, and the copper-plates were sold for old copper: it is therefore become very scarce. See Allgemeines bibliographisches Lexicon |