Gilbert Trathnigg (29 April 1911 – 25 September 1970) was an Austrian archaeologist and philologist who specialized in

Germanic studies Germanic philology is the philological study of the Germanic languages, particularly from a comparative or historical perspective. The beginnings of research into the Germanic languages began in the 16th century, with the discovery of literary te ...

Biography

Gilbert Trathnigg was born in

Wiener Neustadt Wiener Neustadt (; Lower_Austria.html" ;"title=".e. Lower Austria">.e. Lower Austria , ) is a city located south of Vienna, in the state of Lower Austria, in northeast Austria. It is a self-governed city and the seat of the district administr ...

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

on 26 April 1911. His father, Fritz Trathnigg, was a high school teacher and

scholar, and had a strong influence on the scholarly interest of the young Gilbert. Growing up in

Sankt Pölten Sankt Pölten (; Central Bavarian: ''St. Pödn''), mostly abbreviated to the official name St. Pölten, is the capital and largest city of the States of Austria, State of Lower Austria in northeast Austria, with 55,538 inhabitants as of 1 Januar ...

, Trathnigg studied

German philology German studies is an academic field that researches, documents and disseminates German language, German literature, literature, and culture in its historic and present forms. Academic departments of German studies therefore often focus on Culture ...

, prehistory and

folklore Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...

at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

, where he received his Ph.D. in 1934 under the supervision of

Rudolf Much Rudolf Much (7 September 1862 – 8 March 1936) was an Austrian philologist and historian who specialized in Germanic studies. Much was Professor and Chair of Germanic Linguistic History and Germanic Antiquity at the University of Vienna, d ...

. His thesis concerned the names of East Germanic peoples. After gaining his Ph.D., Trathnigg continued his scholarly career at the . He received a scholarship from the

Notgemeinschaft der Deutschen Wissenschaft The ''Notgemeinschaft der Deutschen Wissenschaft'' (Emergency Association of German Science) or NG was founded on 30 October 1920 on the initiative of leading members of the ''Prussian Academy of Sciences, Preußische Akademie der Wissenschaften'' ( ...

in 1935–1936, and worked as a research assistant at the Museum für Vor- und Frühgeschichte from 1936 to 1938. Trathnigg was a member of the SS, and was since 1938 affiliated with the

Ahnenerbe The (, "Ancestral Heritage") was a pseudoscientific organization founded by the ''Schutzstaffel'' in Nazi Germany in 1935. Established by ''Reichsführer-SS'' Heinrich Himmler in July 1, 1935 as an SS appendage devoted to promoting racial the ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Trathnigg served in the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

. After the war, Trathnigg worked as a clerk, archivist, research assistant and museum director in

Vöcklabruck Vöcklabruck () is the administrative center of the Vöcklabruck District, Vöcklabruck district, Austria. It is located in the western part of Upper Austria, close to the A1 Autobahn as well as the B1 highway. Vöcklabruck's name derives from th ...

and

Wels Wels (; Central Bavarian: ''Wös'') is a city in Upper Austria, on the Traun River near Linz. It is the county seat of Wels-Land, and with a population of approximately 60,000, the List of cities and towns in Austria, eighth largest city in Aus ...

. He was an honorary curator of the

Federal Monuments Office The Federal Monuments Office (BDA; ) is a department of the Federal Chancellery of Austria, Federal Chancellery responsible for cultural heritage in Austria. History The BDA was established in 1853 under Emperor Franz Joseph I, as a central co ...

since 1954, and a corresponding member of the in 1961. He carried out archaeological excavations throughout Austria, and published a number of articles in scholarly journals. In 1967 he was made a professor. Trathnigg died in

Ancona Ancona (, also ; ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region of central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona, homonymous province and of the region. The city is located northeast of Ro ...

, Italy on 25 September 1970.

Selected works

* mit Joseph Otto Plassmann (Hrsg.): ''Deutsches Land kehrt heim. Ostmark und Sudetenland als germanischer Volksboden.'' Ahnenerbe-Stiftung Verlag, Berlin 1939. * ''Die Religion der Germanen.'' In: Werner Müller, Gilbert Trathnigg: ''Religionen der Griechen, Römer und Germanen.'' Leitner, Wunsiedel 1954. * mit Kurt Holter: ''Wels von der Urzeit bis zur Gegenwart.'' Friedhuber, Wien 1964. 2. Auflage: Welsermühl, Wels 1985.

Sources

Kurt Holter Kurt is a male given name in Germanic languages. ''Kurt'' or ''Curt'' originated as short forms of the Germanic Konrad/Conrad, depending on geographical usage, with meanings including counselor or advisor. Like Conrad, it can also a surname an ...

: ''Gilbert Trathnigg.'' In: ''Jahrbuch des Musealvereins Wels.'' Band 16, Wels 1969/70, S. 11–16. * Georg Wacha: ''Gilbert Trathnigg.'' In: ''Jahrbuch des Oberösterreichischen Musealvereines.'' Band 116, Linz 1971, S. 9–12
PDF (1,1 MB)
auf '' ZOBODAT'' * Bernd-A. Rusinek: ''"Wald und Baum in der arisch-germanischen Geistes- und Kulturgeschichte" – Ein Forschungsprojekt des "Ahnenerbe" der SS 1937–1945.'' In: Albrecht Lehmann, Klaus Schriewer (Hrsg.): ''Der Wald – Ein deutscher Mythos? Perspektiven eines Kulturthemas.'' Berlin/Hamburg 2000, S. 267–363
Volltext bes. S. 66–68
(PDF; 483 kB). * ''Das Berliner Museum für Vor- und Frühgeschichte. Festschrift zum 175-jährigen Bestehen.'' In: ''Acta praehistorica et archaeologica.'' 36/37, Berlin 2005, S. 564–565. 1911 births 1970 deaths Austrian archaeologists German military personnel of World War II Germanic studies scholars People from Wiener Neustadt University of Vienna alumni Writers on Germanic paganism {{Austria-archaeologist-stub

Biography

See also

Selected works

Sources