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Keywords: Georgian manuscripts, palimpsests, khanmeti, haemeti, sannarevi, Shatberdi collection, radiocarbon analysis, 14C analysis
Abstract: The present article summarises the results of the first radiocarbon (or 14C) analysis of Old Georgian manuscripts, undertaken in 2024–2025 on behalf of the DeLiCaTe project (“The Development of Literacy in the Caucasian Territories”) at the Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich, with support by Graz University Library and the Korneli Kekelidze Georgian National Centre of Manuscripts, Tbilisi. Samples from a total of 20 manuscripts of their collections, mostly of palimpsests and other undated manuscripts from the first millennium of our era, have yielded decisive insights into the early centuries of Georgian literacy, especially with respect to the distinction of khanmeti and haemeti layers: the analyses clearly show that this distinction was not chronologically determined but must have been regional or dialectal, thus supporting the view first expressed by Akaki Shanidze in 1923. Other important insights concern the transition period between khanmetoba and haemetoba on the one hand and the emergence of sannarevi forms; this can now be safely assigned to the 8th century. For the collective volume of Shatberdi, MS S-1141 of the National Centre of Manuscripts, the analyses have proven that a time span of more than 100 years must have passed between its two units (one in asomtavruli majuscules and one in nuskhuri minuscules).
Keywords: Georgian manuscripts, Graz collection, Leipzig collection; ink analysis, XRF imaging, Raman spectroscopy, UV/VIS/NIR microscopy
Abstract: This article presents the results of an ink analysis conducted on the collections of Georgian manuscripts preserved at the Universities of Graz (Austria) and Leipzig (Germany). Notably, this study represents the first systematic ink analysis ever carried out on Georgian manuscripts. It focuses on identifying the composition of red and black inks using a range of analytical methods, including X-ray fluorescence (XRF), Raman spectroscopy, ultraviolet (UV), visible (VIS), and near-infrared (NIR) microscopy. The research was carried out within the framework of the project “The Development of Literacy in the Caucasian Territories” (“DeLiCaTe”) by the laboratory of the Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures (CSMC) at the University of Hamburg. The primary aim of the study is to analyze inks from as many manuscripts as possible in order to establish a unified database identifying metals characteristic of specific regions and periods over time. Manuscripts whose date and place of origin are securely identified through colophons play a crucial role in building this database. Identifying inks of the same composition in manuscripts lacking such historical information can provide valuable evidence for determining their origin and, potentially, their date of production.
Keywords: Armenian manuscripts, Georgian manuscripts, palimpsests, Graz, Sinai, Tbilisi, Yerevan, 14C/Radiocarbon analysis
Abstract: The literary heritage of the first millennium produced by Armenians and Georgians offers clear evidence of interactions between two nations that developed in constant contact with one another. While research on Armeno-Georgian palimpsests is still ongoing, current available data show that there are more Georgian manuscripts with Armenian lower texts than contrarywise. The chronological distribution of these palimpsests suggests that Armenian reused Georgian manuscripts only in modern times (16th/17th centuries), while Georgian palimpsestation of Armenian manuscripts took place already from the 9th century through the 14th century. In order to answer key questions such as the whereabouts, motivations, and circumstances of palimpsestation of Armenian or Georgian manuscripts further research based on 14C analysis in combination with parchment and ink analysis will be necessary to ascertain both the chronology and the geographical origin of the lower layers of the manuscripts under examination.
Keywords: Computed Tomography, Bookbinding, Georgian manuscripts, Graz collection, Digital humanities, ENCI
Abstract: This study demonstrates a non-destructive approach to investigating the structure of bookbindings in historical manuscripts using high-resolution X-ray computed tomography (CT). We applied the portable CT scanner ENCI to a Georgian codex from the Graz University Library, MS 2058/1, the famous Sinai Lectionary. Three-dimensional reconstructions reveal the complex arrangement of the spine, cords, threads, and gatherings of folios. Individual characters written in vermilion and iron gall ink can be digitally segmented and distinguished. These results highlight the potential of X-ray tomography as a powerful, non-invasive tool for the structural and textual analysis of delicate manuscripts, offering new opportunities to study fragile or partially damaged books while preserving their physical integrity.
Keywords: Wood as a writing material, Svan historical documents, Churches of Svaneti
Abstract: Wood was not used as a writing material in Georgia in general. It appears only in Svaneti, specifically within the Kala community. The documents of this community are written exclusively on wood cut into three-, four-, five-, or seven-sided pieces; they date back to the 14th–15th centuries and contain community decrees and resolutions, as well as agreements concluded between communities and private individuals. The documents on wood are distinguished by specific peculiarities, conditioned primarily by the writing material and its form.
This paper discusses two such documents preserved at the National Centre of Manuscripts. Their codicological characteristics are presented, with a focus on their form, the number of faces, and the organization of the text. Wood, as a rare writing material in the 14th–15th centuries in Georgia, specifically in Svaneti, one of the most high-altitude historical-geographic regions, is discussed within the unified historical context of the medieval Georgian manuscript tradition.
Keywords: Old Georgian Psalter; psalm titles; MS Sin. georg. 98; MS Saint Petersburg, National Library of Russia, Georgian N.S. 10; MS Cambridge, University Library, Tailor-Schechter AS 124.1; MS Yerevan, Matenadaran, Georgian fragment 37.
Abstract: The article provides an edition of five pages of the Old Georgian Psalter on papyrus (MSS Sinai, St Catherine’s Monastery, Georgian 98 and Saint Petersburg, National Library of Russia, Georgian N.S. 10), comprising Psalms 64:11 – 65:11, 111:1 – 112:6 and 118:68–81, and of two palimpsests containing other passages of the translation of the psalms (MSS Cambridge, University Library, Tailor-Schechter AS 124.1 with Psalms 3:4–8 and 4:3–6, transcribed from ultraviolet images, and Yerevan, Matenadaran, Georgian fragment 37 with Psalms 43:6 – 44:10, transcribed from multispectral images by Sandro Tskhvedadze). Variants important for the history of the Georgian translation are indicated throughout by reference to the major Psalter versions as edited by Mzekala Shanidze. Keywords: Old Georgian Psalter; psalm titles; MS Sin. georg. 98; MS Saint Petersburg, National Library of Russia, Georgian N.S. 10; MS Cambridge, University Library, Tailor-Schechter AS 124.1; MS Yerevan, Matenadaran, Georgian fragment 37.
Keywords: Byzantine–Georgian literary relations; Gregory of Nazianzus; interpretive translation; theological terminology
Abstract: In the intellectual tradition of the Middle Ages, translation was often conceived as an exegetical process rather than a purely linguistic operation. This article examines such an interpretive approach through the Georgian translations of Gregory the Theologian produced by the 11th-century Georgian translator Davit Tbeli. Although Davit does not provide explicit commentaries, his translations reveal a consistent interpretive stance expressed through additions, omissions, paraphrases, and lexical choices. These interventions reflect his understanding of the theological content of the source texts and their intended reception by a Georgian audience.
The study reconstructs Davit Tbeli’s activity on the basis of manuscript evidence and situates his work within the broader context of Georgian translation practices, particularly in relation to Euthymius the Hagiorite. While sharing the general aim of making complex texts accessible, Davit adopts a more restrained method, remaining closer to the Greek original. His consistent handling of theological terminology and biblical quotations positions him as a transitional figure between the Athonite and later Hellenophile translation traditions, and as an important stage in the development of Georgian theological-philosophical vocabulary.
Keywords: Basilius Minimus’ Commentaries, Gregory the Theologian, Georgian manuscripts, Georgian translations, Euthymios the Hagiorite, Ephrem Mtsire.
Abstract: The article examines how the Commentaries of the 10th-century Byzantine scholar Basilius Minimus on the sermons of Gregory the Theologian influenced the medieval Georgian translations of Gregory’s sermons produced in the 10th–11th centuries. A comparative analysis of the Georgian translations and Basilius Minimus’ Commentaries demonstrates that, although the famous Georgian translator Euthymios the Hagiorite did not translate Basilius’ work, he was familiar with it and drew upon it when rendering Gregory’s sermons into Georgian. Euthymios’ use of the Commentaries served the purpose of making Gregory’s complex theological and stylistically sophisticated passages more understandable and accessible to Georgian readers with limited experience. Gregory’s texts contain intricate artistic devices – allegories, euphemisms, analogies, metaphors, etc., the meanings of which are clarified in Basilius’ Commentaries. In Euthymios’ translations, these artistic features are not reproduced literally but conveyed semantically, in accordance with Basilius’ explanations. Ephrem Mtsire, the Hellenophile translator of Basilius Minimus’ Commentaries, attached particular importance to reproducing Gregory the Theologian’s literary style in his Georgian translations. He characterized Gregory’s style as “laconic, deep and shrouded”. In preserving these stylistic qualities, Ephrem relied extensively on those sections of Basilius’ Commentaries that explicitly discuss the nature of Gregory’s style. As a result, in Ephrem’s highly literal translations, the nuances of tone and rhythm characteristic of Gregory are rendered with remarkable precision, thanks to the guidance provided by Basilius Minimus.
Keywords: Functional Grammar; corpus linguistics; computational tools; Georgian language; Java
Abstract: This paper explores the role and function of Georgian function words from a corpuslinguistic perspective, focusing on their morphosyntactic as well as syntactic and typological qualities. Particular attention is paid to the formal and functional properties of prepositions, postpositions, particles, conjunctions, and other elements and their usage in both the nominal and verbal domain. The study is grounded on evidence from a representative Georgian corpus, the GNC, which facilitates the empirical investigation of syntactic environments and distributional patterns. In addressing the challenge of function word classification in a morphologically complex language such as Georgian, the study confronts several theoretical models of classification of synsemantics and autosemantics. To support this analysis and enable further empirical exploration, a lightweight Java tool has been developed as part of the study. The tool allows users to supply a predefined list of Georgian function words and analyse their occurrence within any given input text. It automatically identifies which function words are present, counts their frequency, and optionally visualises the results. This practical component demonstrates how computational methods can complement theoretical linguistic investigation and highlights the importance of corpus-based, toolsupported methodologies in advancing our understanding of function word systems in typologically complex languages such as Georgian.
Keywords: Abkhaz, Georgian, Greek, Latin, Bible, New Testament, Vulgate, Tyndale, Institute for Bible Translation, Patriarchate; St Paul, Epistle, St Luke, Gospel, Parable; Gulia, Khiba, Lasuria, Ashuba
Abstract: In my contribution to Digital Kartvelology 3, I took the well-known chapter 13 of St. Paul’s First Epistle to the Corinthians and compared the Georgian renditions with the sole existing version in Abkhaz, included in the late Mushni Lasuria’s privately published New Testament (2004). Since the Institute for Bible Translation published in 2023 four parables from the Gospel of St. Luke by Arda Ashuba (unnamed in the booklet itself), I have here repeated the exercise by comparing the Georgian versions of the Parable of the Prodigal Son with the four Abkhaz translations, comparing, as in the previous article, all renderings with the Greek original.
