Albert Socin - Taeschler Taeschler (18 btv1b84499195 (cropped)

Albert Socin (13 October 1844 in

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (B ...

– 24 June 1899 in

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

) was a Swiss orientalist, who specialized in the research of

Neo-Aramaic The Neo-Aramaic or Modern Aramaic languages are varieties of Aramaic that evolved during the late medieval and early modern periods, and continue to the present day as vernacular (spoken) languages of modern Aramaic-speaking communities. Withi ...

, Kurdish and contemporary

Arabic dialects The varieties (or dialects or vernacular languages) of Arabic, a Semitic language within the Afroasiatic family originating in the Arabian Peninsula, are the linguistic systems that Arabic speakers speak natively. There are considerable varia ...

. He also made contributions to the geography, archaeology, religion, art and literature of the Middle East.Prof. Dr. phil. Albert Socin
Professorenkatalog der Universität Leipzig He studied

philology Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources; it is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics (with especially strong ties to etymology). Philology is also defined as ...

at the

University of Basel The University of Basel (Latin: ''Universitas Basiliensis'', German: ''Universität Basel'') is a university in Basel, Switzerland. Founded on 4 April 1460, it is Switzerland's oldest university and among the world's oldest surviving universiti ...

and Oriental studies at the universities of

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the capital of the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, the population was 118,911. General information The ori ...

and

,Socin, Albert
Historischen Lexikon der Schweiz receiving his

habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including ...

for Oriental languages in 1871 at Basel. In 1873 he became an associate professor, then from 1876 to 1890 served as a full professor of

Semitic languages The Semitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are spoken by more than 330 million people across much of West Asia, the Horn of Africa, and latterly North Africa, Malta, West Africa, Chad, and in large immigrant ...

at the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (german: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen; la, Universitas Eberhardina Carolina), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-W� ...

. From 1890 up until his death in 1899, he was a professor of Oriental languages at the

University of Leipzig Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December ...

. In 1868–70, with

Eugen Prym Eugen Prym (15 December 1843 in Düren – 6 May 1913 in Bonn) was a German orientalist, who specialized in Semitic languages, especially Arabic and Aramaic. He was the brother of mathematician Friedrich Prym (1841–1915), and is the grea ...

, he carried out language research in the

Levant The Levant () is an approximate historical geographical term referring to a large area in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Western Asia. In its narrowest sense, which is in use today in archaeology and other cultural contexts, it is ...

and

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

, then in 1873 returned to the Middle East on behalf of the Baedeker publishing firm. He was a founding member of the ''Deutschen Vereins zur Erforschung Palästinas'' ("German Society for the Exploration of Palestine").

Selected works

* * * ''Kurdische sammlungen'' (2 volumes 1887–90, with Eugen Prym) – Kurdish collections. * ''Die Genesis : mit äusserer Unterscheidung der Quellenschriften'' (with Emil Friedrich Kautzsch), 1891 – The

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

: with external distinction of documentary sources. * ''Arabische Grammatik : Paradigmen, Literatur, Übungsstücke und Glossar'' (3rd edition, 1894) –

Arabic grammar Arabic grammar or Arabic language sciences ( ar, النحو العربي ' or ar, عُلُوم اللغَة العَرَبِيَّة ') is the grammar of the Arabic language. Arabic is a Semitic language and its grammar has many similarities wi ...

: paradigms, literature, studies and glossary. * ''Diwan aus Centralarabien'', 1900–01 – Diwan of central Arabia (collected, translated and explained by Socin, edited by Hans Stumme).
''Palestine and Syria with the chief routes through Mesopotamia and Babylonia; handbook for travellers''
by

Karl Baedeker Karl Ludwig Johannes Baedeker ( , ; 3 November 1801 – 4 October 1859) was a German publisher whose company, Baedeker, set the standard for authoritative guidebooks for tourists. Karl Baedeker was descended from a long line of printers, book ...

. With 20 maps, 52 plans, and a panorama of Jerusalem (authors Albert Socin, John P. Peters, Immanuel Benzinger. First edition by Socin in 1875; the fourth English edition (1906) is based on the sixth German edition). * Socin, Albert and Carl Brokelmann. ''Arabische Grammatik: Paradigmen, Literatur, Übungsstücke Und Glossar''. Berlin: Reuther & Reichard, 1909. * * ''Neuaramäische Märchen und andere Texte aus Malula in deutscher Übersetzung, hauptsächlich aus der Sammlung E. Prym's und A. Socin's'', 1915 (with Eugen Prym, pub.

Gotthelf Bergsträsser Gotthelf Bergsträsser (5 April 1886, in Oberlosa, Plauen – 16 August 1933, near Berchtesgaden) was a German linguist specializing in Semitic studies, generally considered to be one of the greatest of the twentieth century. Bergsträsser was ...

) – Western Neo-Aramaic tales and other texts from

Ma'lula Maaloula or Maʿlūlā ( arc, ܡܥܠܘܠܐ in Eastern Aramaic Syriac script, ' in Western Aramaic Maalouli script; ar, مَعلُولَا) is a town in the Rif Dimashq Governorate in Syria. The town is located 56 km to the northeast of D ...

.HathiTrust Digital Library
published works

Maps from "Palestine and Syria with the chief routes through Mesopotamia and Babylonia".

File:Palestine and Syria - with the chief routes through Mesopotamia and Babylonia - handbook for travellers (1906) (14586885740).jpg, Northern Palestine File:Palestine and Syria - with the chief routes through Mesopotamia and Babylonia - handbook for travellers (1906) (14586894238).jpg, Ancient Jerusalem File:Palestine and Syria with the chief routes through Mesopotamia and Babylonia; handbook for travellers; (1906) (14597934380).jpg, Northern Lebanon File:Palestine and Syria with the chief routes through Mesopotamia and Babylonia; handbook for travellers; (1906) (14761609446).jpg, Highland of Judea

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Socin, Albert 1844 births 1899 deaths People from Basel-Stadt Academic staff of Leipzig University Academic staff of the University of Tübingen Academic staff of the University of Basel Swiss orientalists Swiss Arabists