Did the Legendary Homer Read Texts of Linear A from Crete?

НАУКА, ТЕХНОЛОГИИ, ИННОВАЦИИ В ЭПОХУ ГЛОБАЛЬНЫХ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИЙ DID THE LEGENDARY HOMER READ TEXTS OF LINEAR A FROM CRETE? Rjabchikov Sergei Victorovich General director The non-profit organisation «The Sergei Rjabchikov of Ancient Civilisations and Cultures» Abstract: in this work Sergei V. Rjabchikov has studied several texts of Linear A attracting some fragments of the Odyssey and the Iliad by Homer as quasibilingual sources. As a result, a number of Minoan words have been interpreted. The economy and mythology of the inhabitants of the Minoan Crete are now clearer. The author used the methods of structural and contrastive linguistics. Key words: Linear A, Linear B, Crete, Minoan, Mycenaean Greek, Homer, the Odyssey, the Iliad, history, economy, linguistics. ЛЕГЕНДАРНЫЙ ГОМЕР ЧИТАЛ ТЕКСТЫ ЛИНЕЙНОГО ПИСЬМА А С КРИТА? Рябчиков Сергей Викторович Аннотация: в данной работе автор исследовал несколько текстов линейного письма А, привлекая некоторые отрывки из «Одиссея» и «Илиады» Гомера в качестве квазибилингвы. Как результат, был истолкован ряд минойских слов. Экономика и мифология жителей минойского Крита стали теперь более понятными. Автор применил методы структурной и контрастивной лингвистики. Ключевые слова: линейное письмо А, линейное письмо Б, Крит, минойский, микенский древнегреческий, Гомер, Одиссея, Илиада, история, экономика, лингвистика. Introduction On the basis of the structural linguistics, several Minoan words in the records of Linear A were successfully interpreted [2, 3; 4; 5; 6; 7; 8; 9; 10; 11; 12; 13, 14]. We continue these attempts. МЦНП «НОВАЯ НАУКА» 250 НАУКА, ТЕХНОЛОГИИ, ИННОВАЦИИ В ЭПОХУ ГЛОБАЛЬНЫХ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИЙ The Research Consider the record on the clay tablet (HT 91) from Haghia Triada, Crete, see fig. 1. 1: I ka • GRAIN • WHEAT (X) 2: BARLEY pa • OLIVE OIL ki pa OLIVE OIL u 3: pa OLIVE OIL mi pa OLIVES pa FIGS pa 4: WINEa pa e 5 5: te ri • OLIVE OIL mi pa e 3[ This text can be translated as follows: Let us transport here the grain, the wheat (a certain measure) (and) the barley which are guarded (kept), the fragrant olive oil which is guarded (kept), the shining olive oil which is guarded (kept), the ordinary (fluid) olive oil which is guarded (kept), the olives which are guarded (kept), the figs which are guarded (kept), the good wine which is guarded (kept) (a certain measure) as a divine drink, the good ordinary (fluid) olive oil which is guarded (kept) (a certain measure). Fig. 1 Vocabulary I ‘to go; to come.’ Cf. Hittite iya- ‘to go,’ Luwian i- ‘to go,’ Old Indian i ‘to come; to go; to run; to go quickly; to arrive; to return.’ Ka ‘here.’ Cf. Hittite kā- ‘here.’ МЦНП «НОВАЯ НАУКА» 251 НАУКА, ТЕХНОЛОГИИ, ИННОВАЦИИ В ЭПОХУ ГЛОБАЛЬНЫХ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИЙ Pa ‘to protect; to guard; protected; guarded; kept.’ Cf. Hittite paḫšanu- ‘to protect,’ Old Indian pa ‘protecting; guarding,’ Armenian paštpanel ‘to protect.’ Ki- (the abbreviation) = kid-, kud- ‘fragrant.’ Cf. Armenian hot ‘smell.’ The name of the Cretan town of Ku-do-ni-ja ‘the town of Chania’ (Linear B) means ‘The fragrant (wares) are being transported’ in the Minoan language. Consider the record on both sides of the nodule (KH Wa 1001, 1002) from Chania: BRONZE Ki-da ro ‘The bronze was received in Chania.’ Ro ‘to put; to lay.’ Cf. Greek λεχος ‘bed,’ λεσχη ‘grave,’ Latin lectus ‘bed.’ U ‘radiant (visible).’ Cf. Hittite uh-, au- ‘to see.’ Mi (mu), mii ‘fluid; liquid’ [11, p. 10]. E (je) ‘handsome; beautiful; fine; smart; good.’ Cf. Old Indian aṇu ‘fine,’ Greek εανος ‘fine,’ Hittite anku (< *an-) ‘fully.’ Te (de) ‘deity; divine.’ Cf. Old Indian deva ‘god,’ Greek θεος ‘god,’ θεα, δεα ‘goddess’ < *deu- ‘deity.’ Ri (re?) ‘drink.’ Cf. Luwian elḫai- ‘to pour’ (< *e-lḫai-), Hittite laḫu- ‘to pour,’ Armenian lvanal ‘to wash,’ Old Indian raya, retas, rīti ‘stream,’ Greek λειβω ‘to pour,’ Latin libare ‘to pour; to make libation,’ Russian lit’ ‘to pour.’ A passage from Homer is the real key to this text containing uncertain names of three types of olive oil and one uncertain name of wine. One day Telemachus went to the warehouse of his father where gold and bronze were kept, in addition, the vessels with fragrant olive oil and with wine, old and sweet, as a divine drink were stored. A woman guarded all these stocks every day and night (Od. II: 337-347). Relying on this text, Minoan expressions OLIVE OIL ki ‘fragrant olive oil’ and te ri ‘divine drink (or: pottery)’ have been interpreted successfully. The pleasant and untouched wine (Od. IX: 204) corresponds to WINEa pa e ‘wine protected (and) good’ from the same inscription. The fluid olive oil (Od. VI: 79) corresponds to OLIVE OIL mi ‘fluid olive oil’ from the same inscription. The radiant olive oil (Od. III: 466) corresponds to OLIVE OIL u ‘radiant (visible) olive oil’ from the same inscription. Interestingly, the honey-sweet red wine is mentioned in Homer’s poetry (Od. IX: 208). Consider the record on the reverse of the clay tablet (HT 27) from Haghia Triada: Mi-da • WINEa wa… The honey (with) the red wine… 252 МЦНП «НОВАЯ НАУКА» НАУКА, ТЕХНОЛОГИИ, ИННОВАЦИИ В ЭПОХУ ГЛОБАЛЬНЫХ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИЙ Consider the record on the clay tablet (HT 2) from the same town. OLIVE OIL a The old olive oil. Consider the record on the clay tablet (HT 14) from the same town. OLIVE OIL Di The olive oil of (the principal god) Di (Ti). In Linear B, there is an obscure inscription associated with olive oil: e-ti-we [15, p. 477]. It can be read as the Minoan-Mycenaean Greek record, e Ti-we (Di-we) ‘good (olive oil) of (the principal god) Diw- (Zeus).’ Consider the record on the clay tablet (HT 121) from Haghia Triada. OLIVE OIL qe Di (It is necessary to receive) more olive oil for (the god) Di (Ti). Consider the record on the clay tablet (HT 21) from the same town. OLIVE OIL e The good olive oil. Consider the record on the clay tablet (HT 23) from the same town. There are such segments: OLIVE OIL ne. The new olive oil. OLIVE OIL tu. The olive oil from the first pressing. OLIVE OIL ri. The olive oil for libations. Consider the record on the clay tablet (HT 30) from the same town. OLIVE OIL ta. (It is necessary to receive) more olive oil. Consider the record on the obverse of the clay tablet (HT 44) from the same town. OLIVE OIL ra. The separated olive oil (it is from the second pressing). Consider the record on the obverse of the clay tablet (TY 3) from Tylissos, Crete. … OLIVE OIL ki Me 1 … Pa OLIVE OIL mi[ ]220[ The fragrant olive oil (is necessary to get) for (the goddess) Me (Ma). … Guard the ordinary olive oil (a certain measure). Vocabulary Mid- ‘honey’ [7, p. 4]. 253 МЦНП «НОВАЯ НАУКА» НАУКА, ТЕХНОЛОГИИ, ИННОВАЦИИ В ЭПОХУ ГЛОБАЛЬНЫХ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИЙ Wa- (the abbreviation) ‘red; fire.’ Cf. Hittite war- ‘to burn.’ (Or it is the abbreviation of the word ‘water.’) A- ‘old.’ Cf. Hittite annalli- ‘old’ (as mother, mature etc.). Ne- (the abbreviation) ‘new.’ Cf. Hittite newa- ‘new.’ Tu (du) ‘first; one.’ Cf. Luwian ḫanti- ‘first,’ Old Indian ādya, ādima ‘first.’ Cf. also Etruscan θu ‘one’ and Russian odin ‘one.’ Ta ‘and.’ Hittite ta ‘and.’ Ra ‘separated; separately; other.’ Cf. Hittite lā- ‘to detach,’ Old Indian rah ‘to separate.’ Consider the clay tablet (ZA 5) from Zakros, Crete. WINEa su ki-ni-ma 7 The good wine in the opened pottery (a certain measure). Consider the clay tablet (ZA 15) from the same town. Me WINEa mi za-se 3 The wine (mixed with the water?) (is the property of the goddess) Me (Ma) (a certain quantity). Vocabulary Kin- ‘to open.’Cf. Hittite kinu- ‘to open’ as well as the suffix -ima-. Zas- ‘goblet; pot.’ Cf. Old Indian cáṣakas ‘goblet,’ Armenian čašak ‘mug.’ Consider the record on a jug (THE Zb 6) from Thera, Crete, see fig. 2. Fig. 2 A-ta-na je ‘The beautiful (good) Atana (Greek Athena).’ It is said in the Greek poetry (Od . XIII: 287-289) that once the goddess Athena took upon her the form of a beautiful woman. In the Greek poetry (Od. III: 292), the Cretan river Iardan- is mentioned. It is another variant of the name of Ariadne. The name of that personage had two components, Ara (Jara etc.) and Tana (or Atana). Consider the fresco which decorated the Knossian Palace, Knossos, Crete, see fig. 3. МЦНП «НОВАЯ НАУКА» 254 НАУКА, ТЕХНОЛОГИИ, ИННОВАЦИИ В ЭПОХУ ГЛОБАЛЬНЫХ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИЙ Here the priestess (acrobat) in the form of the goddess Ariadne is represented. Fig. 3 In the Greek poetry (Il. XVIII: 590-599), we know of the dances of young men and maidens including Ariadne (all they were connected with the divine cattle) in Knossos under the patronage of the ancient architect Daedalus. All the youths wore garments soaked in olive oil (perhaps in the shining olive oil = OLIVE OIL u). Certainly, such meetings took place in the Knossian Palace and are depicted in some of its murals. Consider the record on the libation table (PK Za 11) from Palaikastro, Crete. …Te 1 [A-]re 1 pi-te-ri 1 a-ko a-ne 1 … …The goddess (in real the priestess) Ara dances (and) perishes during the religious task… Vocabulary Pi ‘to; toward; into; in.’ Cf. Hittite piya- ‘to send,’ Old Indian pi ‘to go,’ Etruscan pi ‘to; toward; into.’ Teri ‘to move; to dance.’ Cf. Hittite tarwai- ‘to dance.’ A-ko ‘to die.’ Cf. Hittite ak- ‘to die.’ A-ne ‘religious task.’ Cf. Hittite aniur- ‘religious task.’ Consider the plaque from Knossos [1, p. 937, fig. 907], see fig. 4. МЦНП «НОВАЯ НАУКА» 255 НАУКА, ТЕХНОЛОГИИ, ИННОВАЦИИ В ЭПОХУ ГЛОБАЛЬНЫХ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИЙ Fig. 4. After [1] Here the goddess Ariadne (Ara, Jara, Tana, Atana) holding the sword in her right hand is depicted. This personage is united with the snake. It is said in the Greek poetry (Il. V: 741-742) that the armors of Athena were decorated with the head of Gorgon. Consider the obverse of the clay tablet (HT 49) from Hagia Triada, see fig. 5. The beginning of the text contains the words sa-ra2 du ‘the first woman.’ Then we read the names of the goddess Tana (the Greek goddess Athena) and the god Ti (Di) (the Greek god Zeus). Two rows of signs above the horizontal line read as follows: A-ru 1 BRONZE 1 SWORD 1 ku-pa nu 1 tu su-pu2 1 ki 1 It is necessary (to get) the weapon, the bronze sword, and the pot (supu) with the fragrant olive oil of the first pressing for (the goddess) Ara. МЦНП «НОВАЯ НАУКА» 256 НАУКА, ТЕХНОЛОГИИ, ИННОВАЦИИ В ЭПОХУ ГЛОБАЛЬНЫХ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИЙ Fig. 5 The utmost goddess Ma as the summer solar being could take the form of the young solar goddess of the spring-time under the name Ara (Jara, Are, Jare, Qara, Qare). Her epithet was Tana or Atana ‘(Producing) the Threads,’ cf. Old Indian tāna ‘fibre,’ tānnā ‘to pull,’ Greek τεινω ‘to pull on; to stretch,’ τονος ‘rope,’ Russian tyanut’ ‘to pull.’ Was Homer familiar with inscriptions of Linear A? Of course not. However, the Mycenaean Greek culture grew under the strong influence of the Minoan culture and absorbed many of its characteristic features. The Mycenaean economy was not created from scratch; it took all the best from the previous civilisation. A similar thing happened in the religious sphere. Therefore we have the opportunity to use Homer’s poetry as an important clue for the decipherment of the Minoan language. Conclusions In this work the writer has studied several texts of Linear A attracting some fragments of the Odyssey and the Iliad by Homer as quasi-bilingual sources. As a result, a number of Minoan words have been interpreted. The economy and mythology of the inhabitants of the Minoan Crete are now clearer. The author used the methods of structural and contrastive linguistics. МЦНП «НОВАЯ НАУКА» 257 НАУКА, ТЕХНОЛОГИИ, ИННОВАЦИИ В ЭПОХУ ГЛОБАЛЬНЫХ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИЙ References 1. Evans, A. (1935). The palace of Minos. A comparative account of the successive stages of the early Cretan civilization as illustrated by the discoveries at Knossos. Vol. 4, pt. 2. London: Macmillan. 2. Rjabchikov S.V. (2004). 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