heritage Five words inscribed in “vascon” were found on a bronze hand dating to the 1st century BC. J-C
Archaeologists have been working on an area now occupied by a campsite in Kembs. (illustration) — JamesDeMers /Pixabay
The oldest known text in Old Basque. this day has been discovered in the Spanish region of Navarre (north of the country), inscribed on a bronze hand over 2,000 years old, announced Monday the regional authorities and a company scientific. Five words are inscribed in “Vascon” that time and ancestor of current Basque, on this hand from the 1st century BC. J-C. She had been found in June 2021 under the ruins of a castle in Irulegui, southeast of Pamplona. It was hung on doors to protect houses from misfortune.
The first word was identified like “sorioneku”, which looks like “ “zorioneko” in current Basque, a word meaning “of good fortune, of good omen”. The translation of this first word is “a historical step of the first importance” both archaeologically and linguistically, explained the regional president of Navarre, María Chivite.
Further words to tell; identify
“This is the oldest and also the longest document written in the Vascone language” for the time, affirmed the company Aranzadi in a statement, adding that this discovery “confirms the use of writing by the ancient inhabitants of this region, who would be the Vasquons”, explained the company Aranzadi in a press release.
In addition, experts point out, this « certifies the use of the Vascone language in the geographical area where; she was discovered at the beginning of the 1st century BC” The five words on the hand have been written in a Vascone variation of the Iberian script, a system used in before the Latin alphabet became the dominant writing system. The meaning of the other four words (“tenekebeekiratere”, “oTirtan”, “eseakari” and “”eraukon”) is not yet known.