Les gloses étrusques

 

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We can find in Greek and Roman literature about sixty Etruscan glosses, i.e. translation of Etruscan words in Greek or Latin, which complete the knowleddge of Etruscan language we can get from epigraphical data. Unfortunately the help that these glosses can provide is of limited value. Most are of late period, even medieval times like the names of the Etruscan months, from the liber Glossarum (8th century), and regard particular fields of terminology, which are not the most important ones, like the numerous indications on plants provided by Dioscorides and others. Several indications have to be rejected : some Latin words are given as Etruscan, as a result of confusions which could happen in a late period in which specific nature of Etruscan language was no longer perceived. Glosses provided by earlier authors are generally more reliable ; but their scope was never to give an information about Etruscan language as such, but to explain the origin of Latin words held as Etruscan loan-words.

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