Luwian Studies
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Luwian Studies is an independent, private, non-profit foundation based in
Zürich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...
,
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
. Its sole purpose is to promote the study of cultures of the
second millennium BC File:2nd millennium BC montage.jpg, 400x400px, From top left clockwise: Hammurabi, Babylonian king, best known for his code of laws; The gold funerary mask of Tutankhamun has become a symbol of ancient Egyptian civilization and its enduring lega ...
in western
Asia Minor Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...
. The foundation encourages and supports archaeological, linguistic and natural scientific investigations to complete the understanding of
Middle Middle or The Middle may refer to: * Centre (geometry), the point equally distant from the outer limits. Places * Middle (sheading), a subdivision of the Isle of Man * Middle Bay (disambiguation) * Middle Brook (disambiguation) * Middle Creek ...
and
Late Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...
Mediterranean culture The history of the Mediterranean region and of the cultures and people of the Mediterranean Basin is important for understanding the origin and development of the Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Canaanite, Phoenician, Hebrew, Carthaginian, Minoan, Gr ...
s. Western Anatolia was, at that point in time, home to groups of people who spoke
Luwian Luwian (), sometimes known as Luvian or Luish, is an ancient language, or group of languages, within the Anatolian branch of the Indo-European language family. The ethnonym Luwian comes from ''Luwiya'' (also spelled ''Luwia'' or ''Luvia'') – ...
, an
Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the northern Indian subcontinent, most of Europe, and the Iranian plateau with additional native branches found in regions such as Sri Lanka, the Maldives, parts of Central Asia (e. ...
language.


Board

The Foundation is governed by its Board, which currently includes Matthias Örtle,
Ivo Hajnal Ivo Hajnal (born 1961 in Zürich) is a Swiss–Austrian philologist and linguist, specialized in Indo-European studies and Mycenaean Greek. Hajnal studied Indo-European languages, Indo-European linguistics and philology at the University of Zur ...
,
Jorrit Kelder Jorrit Kelder (Hoorn, 1980) is a Dutch archaeologist and ancient historian. He is known especially for his work on Mycenaean political structures, and in particular his argument (first proposed in 2005 and elaborated on in a 2010 monograph) that ...

Jeffrey Spier
and Eberhard Zangger. It is registered with the Handelsregisterambt of the Canton Zürich, under entry number CHE-364.060.070.


Research Topic

The term ''Luwian'' denotes a
language Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed language, signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing syste ...
and a hieroglyphic script which were commonly used in much of Asia Minor throughout the entire 2nd millennium BC. In the context of Luwian Studies, ''Luwian'', however, is a
toponym Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''wikt:toponym, toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage, and types. ''Toponym'' is the general term for ...
encompassing peoples of different ethnicity and languages. It is thus an abstract
umbrella term Hypernymy and hyponymy are the wikt:Wiktionary:Semantic relations, semantic relations between a generic term (''hypernym'') and a more specific term (''hyponym''). The hypernym is also called a ''supertype'', ''umbrella term'', or ''blanket term ...
for the states and petty kingdoms in western Asia Minor who for most of the time can neither be attributed to the adjacent Hittite civilization in the east, nor to the
Mycenae Mycenae ( ; ; or , ''Mykē̂nai'' or ''Mykḗnē'') is an archaeological site near Mykines, Greece, Mykines in Argolis, north-eastern Peloponnese, Greece. It is located about south-west of Athens; north of Argos, Peloponnese, Argos; and sou ...
an culture in the west. The most prominent political states in the region were
Arzawa Arzawa was a region and political entity in Western Anatolia during the Late Bronze Age. In Hittite texts, the term is used to refer both to a particular kingdom and to a loose confederation of states. The chief Arzawan state, whose capital wa ...
/
Mira Mira (), designation Omicron Ceti (ο Ceti, abbreviated Omicron Cet, ο Cet), is a red-giant star estimated to be 200–300 light-years from the Sun in the constellation Cetus. ο Ceti is a binary stellar system, consisting of a vari ...
,
Masa ''Masa'' or ''masa de maíz'' (; ) is a dough made from ground nixtamalized maize. It is used for making corn tortillas, '' gorditas'', '' tamales'', '' pupusas'', and many other Latin American dishes. It is dried and powdered into a flour f ...
, Seha,
Hapalla Hapalla ( Hittite: 𒄩𒁄𒆷 ''Hapalla'' or ''Haballa''), was a Late Bronze Age petty kingdom in central-western Anatolia. As one of the Arzawa states, it was a sometime vassal and sometime enemy of the Hittite Empire. History All we know ...
,
Wilusa Wilusa () or Wilusiya was a Late Bronze Age city in western Anatolia (modern-day Turkey) known from references in fragmentary Hittites, Hittite records. The city is notable for its identification with the archaeological site of Troy, and thus its ...
,
Lukka The Lukka lands (sometimes Luqqa lands), were an ancient region of Anatolia. They are known from Hittite and Egyptian texts, which viewed them as hostile. It is commonly accepted that the Bronze Age toponym Lukka is cognate with the Lycia of cl ...
etc. The names of these states frequently occur in documents found at
Hattusa Hattusa, also Hattuşa, Ḫattuša, Hattusas, or Hattusha, was the capital of the Hittites, Hittite Empire in the late Bronze Age during two distinct periods. Its ruins lie near modern Boğazkale, Turkey (originally Boğazköy) within the great ...
, when Hittite kings referred to their neighbours in the west. The idea that a civilization in its own right may have existed during the 2nd millennium BC in western Asia Minor goes back one hundred years. In 1920, the
Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...
Assyriologist Assyriology (from Ancient Greek, Greek , ''Assyriā''; and , ''-logy, -logia''), also known as Cuneiform studies or Ancient Near East studies, is the archaeological, anthropological, historical, and linguistic study of the cultures that used cune ...
Emil Forrer Emil Orgetorix Gustav Forrer (also Emilio O. Forrer; ; 19 February 1894 – 10 January 1986) was a Swiss Assyriologist and pioneering Hittitologist. He was the first to point out the relevance of references to Wilusa in Hittite inscriptions to the ...
recognized the Luwian language in the documents found during the first years of excavation at Hattusa. He concluded that “the Luwians were a far greater people than the Hittites”. Similar ideas sprung up in the writing of
Helmuth Theodor Bossert Helmuth Theodor Bossert (11 September 1889 – 5 February 1961) was a German and Turkish history of art, art historian, philology, philologist and archaeology, archaeologist. He is best known for his excavations of the Hittite fortress city at K ...
, another pioneer of ancient Anatolian studies, who considered the Luwians to have been a great power. The almost complete decipherment of Luwian hieroglyphic led to a string of scholarly investigations. Several monographs on Arzawa, the Luwians, and Luwian hieroglyphic inscriptions are available. Two scholars focus in their work almost entirely on Luwian hieroglyphic:
Frederik Christiaan Woudhuizen Frederik Christiaan Woudhuizen (Zutphen, 13 February 1959 – Heiloo, 28 September 2021) was a Dutch independent scholar who studied ancient Indo-European languages, hieroglyphic Luvian/Luwian, and Mediterranean protohistory. He was the former ed ...
and
John David Hawkins John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Ep ...
. Thus far, however, little is known
archaeologically Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscapes. Archaeology ...
about western Asia Minor during the Middle and Late Bronze Age. Only two large-scale
excavations In archaeology, excavation is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological remains. An excavation site or "dig" is the area being studied. These locations range from one to several areas at a time during a project and can be condu ...
have been conducted by European scholars and published in a western language (
Troy Troy (/; ; ) or Ilion (; ) was an ancient city located in present-day Hisarlik, Turkey. It is best known as the setting for the Greek mythology, Greek myth of the Trojan War. The archaeological site is open to the public as a tourist destina ...
and
Beycesultan Beycesultan () is an archaeological site in western Anatolia (Asia Minor), located about southwest of the modern-day city of Çivril in the Denizli Province of Turkey. It lies in a bend of an old tributary of Büyük Menderes River (Maeander River ...
). About thirty additional excavations were conducted under Turkish direction and published in Turkish. Luwian Studies is aiming to help fill this significant research gap.


Results

Under the auspices of Luwian Studies information about altogether 486 substantial settlements sites of the 2nd millennium BC has been gathered (based on information that is already available in the academic and predominantly Turkish literature) and for the most part made public online on the foundation's website. A book summarizes the main arguments put forward and is available for free download in English, German and Turkish. The research that is supported by Luwian Studies intends to shed new light on the collapse at the Late Bronze Age in the Eastern Mediterranean. In December 2017, the so-called "Beyköy 2" inscription was published – this is a drawing of a Luwian hieroglyphic inscription that was first shown by the
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
hittitologist Hittitology is the study of the Hittites, an ancient Anatolian people that established an empire around Hattusa in the 2nd millennium BCE. It combines aspects of the archaeology, history, philology, and art history of the Hittite civilisation. Ther ...
Oliver Robert Gurney at the Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale in
Ghent Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...
in July 1989. This inscription is widely suspected of having been forged by
James Mellaart James Mellaart FBA (14 November 1925 – 29 July 2012) was a British and Dutch archaeologist and author who is noted for his discovery of the Neolithic settlement of Çatalhöyük in Turkey. He was expelled from Turkey when he was suspected o ...
. In December 2021, Woudhuizen and Zangger published their controversial reading of the contents of the
Cypro-Minoan The Cypro-Minoan syllabary (CM), more commonly called the Cypro-Minoan Script, is an undeciphered syllabary used on the island of Cyprus and at its trading partners during the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age (c. 1550–1050 BC). The term "Cy ...
(Linear D) document
Enkomi Enkomi (; ) is a village near Famagusta in Cyprus. It is a short distance from a prominent 2nd millennium BC archaeological site also named Enkomi. Enkomi is under the ''de facto'' control of Northern Cyprus. In 1974, Enkomi had about 800 Gree ...
1687 was made public. In their interpretation, it is a call for help written from the Southwest Anatolian port of
Limyra Limyra () ( was a small city in ancient Lycia on the southern coast of Asia Minor, on the Limyrus River (). History Already flourishing in the second millennium BCE, the city was one of the oldest and most prosperous in Lycia; it gradually ...
by a Cypriot nauarch who had encountered an attacking fleet led by the Trojan aristocrat Akamas.


Supported Projects

Luwian Studies has supported various recent fieldwork projects in
Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
, including The Konya Regional Archaeological Survey Project and the Hacıkebir Höyük Intensive Survey, as well as various academic studies on topics such as scribal and writing traditions in western Anatolia during the Late Bronze Age. Excerpt of supported projects: * ''Archaeological Landscapes of the Luwian Kingdoms of Tarhuntašša and Tabal on the Konya Plain'' directed by Christoph Bachhuber and Michele Massa * ''An Important Bronze Age Settlement in Inland Western Anatolia: Intensive Survey Project of Tavşanlı Höyük and its Surroundings'' directed by Erkan Fidan and Murat Türktek * ''In Search of the Missing Link: Writing in Western Anatolia during the Bronze Age'' by
Willemijn Waal Willemijn J.I. Waal (b. 1975 to :nl:Cees_Waal, Cornelis Jan Dirk Waal and Iris Schuddebeurs) is a Dutch Hittitologist and Classicist. She is known especially for her work on Hittite administrative practice and the development of early scripts, incl ...
* ''The Relationship between Hieroglyphic and Cuneiform Luwian: Reflections on the Origins of Anatolian Hieroglyphs'' by Francis Breyer * ''East Aegean/western Anatolia and the Role of Aššuwa and Arzawa in Late Bronze Age Cultural Interaction'' by Antonis Kourkoulakos The foundation's founder and chair of the board, Eberhard Zangger, at the same time, has recently published a number of papers on the role of astronomical knowledge in Late Bronze Age Anatolia, focusing on the Hittite sanctuary at Yazilikaya.{{Cite web, url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg24232353-600-yazilikaya-a-3000-year-old-hittite-mystery-may-finally-be-solved/, title=Yazılıkaya: A 3000-year-old Hittite mystery may finally be solved, first=Colin, last=Barras, website=New Scientist


References

Foundations based in Switzerland Organisations based in Zurich Luwians Archaeology of Turkey History organisations based in Switzerland Ancient Near East organizations