A Gothic Grammar with Selections for Reading and a Glossary

by Wilhelm Braune, K. Eugene Carlson (Editor), Gerhard Balg (Translator)

Wilhelm Braune's 1895 "A Gothic Grammar with Selections for Reading and a Glossary" fits well within the tradition of primers and student grammars both in spirit and in attention to detail. Braune does not assume any knowledge of the language, making this volume a fine choice for beginners. He also does not hesitate to point readers to his contemporaries with contrasting ideas, and this fair-mindedness enhances the text considerably. The reading selections are well-chosen and thoroughly annotated; the notes are those of the original. Although some background in a Classical language (not to mention a familiarity with a Germanic language other than English) would facilitate the use of the grammar section, it is not a prerequisite by any means. The glossary contains interesting information on the development of Germanic roots as well as the definitions of the words found in the text and selections.

This digital edition has been altered to reflect ordinary American spelling conventions; the original translation uses a distracting 'reformed' orthography. Printing and other errors have also been amended as possible. Though some of the terminology is non-current (e.g. “Indo-Germanic” for Indo-European), it is perfectly comprehensible; linguistic terms have been left unchanged as often as possible to respect the intent of the author. The table of contents is active, and includes a link to every initial letter in the glossary for ease of navigation. In light of this necessary editing process, Braune’s work with Balg’s translation is well-suited for studying Gothic ab inito.

Reading selections include excerpts from the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, the Second Epistle to the Corinthians, and the Skeireins (a Gothic Biblical annotation).

(From Note on the Digital Edition)

Genres: Linguistics, Gothic

148 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1895

Reviews

[André · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good description of the Gothic language, I think. There isn't much to miss. It's a little chaotic, sometimes, but then again, this book is nearly a century old.