Georgios Hatzidakis

Georgios Nikolaou Chatzidakis (Greek Γεώργιος Νικολάου Χατζιδάκις, also in the transcription Hatzidakis; * November 11, 1848 or November 23, 1848 in Myrthios, Crete, † 28 June 1941 in Athens ) was a Greek linguist and Neogräzist. He is considered the founder of modern linguistic research into the Greek language throughout its historical development from 1890 to 1923 and was the first professor of linguistics and Indology (Sanskrit ) at the University of Athens.

Life

In the family we traditionally participated in the surveys on the island of Crete against the Ottoman rule. His grandfather Kyriakos had participated as a captain in the uprising of 1821, Georgios himself took, after attending school in Rethymno, at the age of 18 years at his father's side in the rebellion of 1866 in part. After another three years of school in Athens itself Chatzidakis enrolled at the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Athens of Classical Philology. In 1877 he won in a university competition in linguistics a scholarship for further study of linguistics in Germany, which he then at the Universities of Leipzig, Georg Curtius and Karl Brugmann, Jena with Eduard Sievers and Berthold Delbrück and Berlin in John Schmidt, so in some neogrammarians perceived. Since then Chatzidakis was in contact with German researchers, such as with the more than 15 years younger than Albert Thumb, whose obituary he wrote, and also published in German language, especially the still often -cited introduction to the modern Greek grammar. After his return to Greece, he was first school teacher in Athens and received his doctorate with a dissertation Συμβολή εις την Ιστορίαν της Ελληνικής Γλώσσης ( " contribution to the history of the Greek language " ) at the university the following year. In the same year he was appointed as Assistant Professor, in 1885 Associate Professor, 1890, he was appointed Professor of Linguistics and Indology (Sanskrit ), a position he held until 1923. In 1897 he rest his teaching position to fight on the side of his Cretan compatriots for the island's independence. In 1906 he became the Prytanes ( " Rector " ) selected the University of Athens in 1926 as a member and Vice President of the newly founded Academy of Athens, which he was president in the next academic year 1927/28. As vice-rector he beats 1907 the poet Georgios Souris ( Γεώργιος Σουρής, 1853-1919 ) for the Nobel Prize in Literature before. At the same time Chatzidakis was the first president of the University of Thessaloniki, formed in 1925. He was also a member of numerous scientific societies (1900 corresponding member of the Prussian Academy of Sciences).

Services

Among the linguistic basic views Chatzidakis ' part of the view that language is not a Fabricated product, but a with the needs of the people through the generations evolving system. In the Greek language based, does that mean for Chatzidakis that the Greek language in its development of Homeric period is one to the present day. Therefore, he opposed the view that there is a diglossia in Greece, but claimed that the spoken language rather a-row in the historical development of a Greek language, and showed that the katharevousa have evolved from the Alexandrian Κοινή as well as virtually all modern Greek dialects ( Chatzidakis also published for Tsakonischen, the only dialect that is not due to the Koine, but to its ancient Doric precursor). In the Greek language question Chatzidakis followed against Ioannis Psycharis, an advocate of the vernacular, the middle of Adamantios Korai, referring position in favor of Katharevousa as a state language.

Consequently, proposed Chatzidiakis the Greek government in 1908 under the title Ιστορικόν Λεξικόν της Ελληνικής Γλώσσης ( " Historical Dictionary of the Greek Language" ), the project of a lexicon ολοκλήρου της Ελληνικής γλώσσης από της πρώτης εμφανίσεώς της μέχρι σήμερον ( " the entire Greek language from its first appearance to in the present " ) before, which should represent the development of the Greek vocabulary, including etymology, phonetics, syntax and semasiology detailed and authoritative. For this purpose, was founded ( "for the creation of the Historical Dictionary of the Greek Language Centre") with support in particular the government of Eleftherios Venizelos, a Κέντρον Συντάξεως του Ιστορικού Λεξικού της Ελληνικής Γλώσσης. The original goal was to start for the hundredth anniversary of the liberation in 1921 with the publication, but was the target for various reasons, not least because of the gigantic scale is also not be realized. Later, in the meantime, run by the Academy of Athens center was renamed under considerable reduction of the program in Κέντρον Συντάξεως του Ιστορικού Λεξικού της Νέας Ελληνικής Γλώσσης ( " center for the creation of the Historical Dictionary of the Modern Greek Language" ), again in 2003 in Κέντρον Ερεύνης των Νεοελληνικών Διαλέκτων και Ιδιωμάτων - Ι.Λ.Ν.Ε. ( = Ιστορικόν Λεξικόν της Νέας Ελληνικής, της τε κοινώς ομιλουμένης και των ιδιωμάτων ''; " Research Center for Modern Greek Dialects and Idioms - Historical Dictionary of Modern Greek language, generally spoken and idioms ").

In addition Chatzidakis belonged to the established 1909 Επιτροπή τοπωνυμιών ( place names Committee), which in the new Greek nation-state, particularly in multi-ethnic Northern Greece (Macedonia, Western Thrace ) the Ministry of Interior made ​​reasonable proposals to Hellenizing renaming of place names.

Awards

• Αργυρός Σταυρός του Τάγματος του Σωτήρος ( "Silver Cross of the Order of the Saviour " )
• Χρυσός Σταυρός του Τάγματος του Σωτήρος ( "Golden Cross of the Order of the Saviour " )
• Σταυρός των Ανώτερων Ταξιαρχιών του Τάγματος του Φοίνικα ( "Cross of the Great Commanders of the Order of the Phoenix " )
• Άρχων Μέγιστος Διδάσκαλος του Γένους ( " supreme teacher of the people", title awarded by the Ecumenical Patriarchate)

Writings (selection )

• Συμβολή εις την Ιστορίαν της Ελληνικής Γλώσσης ( " contribution to the history of the Greek language "). Diss Athens.
• Introduction to Modern Greek grammar. Leipzig 1892, reprint: Hildesheim / Wiesbaden, 1977 ( Library of Indo-European grammars, 5), online ( PDF).
• At the origin of the ancient Macedonians. Athens 1897.
• Και πάλιν περί της Ελληνικότητος των Αρχαίων Μακεδόνων. ( "Once the Hellenism of the ancient Macedonians "). Reprints: Περί του Ελληνισμού των Αρχαίων Μακεδόνων. In 1992.
• The language question in Greece. Athens 1905 online ( PDF).
• Μεσαιωνικά και Νέα Ελληνικά. 2 vols, Athens 1905. ( "Studies on Byzantine and Modern Greek ").
• Σύντομος ιστορία της νεοελληνικης γλώσσης. Athens 1915. ( " Concise History of Modern Greek Language ").
• Albert Thumb. In: Indo-European Yearbook 4, 1916, 235-241.
• Περί της διαιρέσεως της ιστορίας της ελληνικής γλώσσης εις διαφόρους περιόδους, in: Επετηρίς Εταιρείας Βυζαντινών Σπουδών 7, 1930, 227-230. ( "On the division of the history of the Greek language in different periods ").