Franz Felix Adalbert Kuhn
Encyclopedia
Franz Felix Adalbert Kuhn (November 19, 1812 – May 5, 1881) was a German philologist and folklorist.
Kuhn was born in Königsberg
in Brandenburg
's Neumark
region. From 1841 he was connected with the Köllnisches Gymnasium at Berlin
, of which he was appointed director in 1870. Kuhn was the founder of a new school of comparative mythology, based upon comparative philology. Inspired by Jakob Grimm's Deutsche Mythologie
, he first devoted himself to German stories and legends, and published Märkische Sagen und Märchen (1842), Norddeutsche Sagen, Märchen und Gebräuche (1848), and Sagen, Gebräuche und Märchen aus Westfalen (1859).
But it is on Kuhn's researches into the language and history of the Indo-Germanic
peoples as a whole that his reputation is founded. His chief works in this connection are Zur ältesten Geschichte der Indogermanischen Völker (1845), in which he endeavoured to give an account of the earliest civilization of the Indo-Germanic peoples before their separation into different families, by comparing and analysing the original meaning of the words and stems common to the different languages; Die Herabkunft des Feuers und des Göttertranks (1859; new ed. by E Kuhn, under title of Mythologische Studien, 1886); and Über Entwicklungsstufen der Mythenbildung (1873), in which he maintained that the origin of myths was to be looked for in the domain of language, and that their most essential factors were polysemy
and homonymy. Kuhn was also the Editor of the Zeitschrift für vergleichende Sprachforschung auf dem Gebiete der Indogermanischen Sprachen
, which was at his time the standard periodical on the subject.
Kuhn died in Berlin. See obituary notice by C.F.H. Bruchmann in Bursian
's Biographisches Jahrbuch (1881) and J. Schmidt in the above Zeitschrift, xxvi. n.s. 6.
Kuhn was born in Königsberg
Chojna
Chojna is a small town in western Poland in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship. It lies approximately 60 km south of Szczecin and participates in the Douzelage....
in Brandenburg
Brandenburg
Brandenburg is one of the sixteen federal-states of Germany. It lies in the east of the country and is one of the new federal states that were re-created in 1990 upon the reunification of the former West Germany and East Germany. The capital is Potsdam...
's Neumark
Neumark
Neumark comprised a region of the Prussian province of Brandenburg, Germany.Neumark may also refer to:* Neumark, Thuringia* Neumark, Saxony* Neumark * Nowe Miasto Lubawskie or Neumark, a town in Poland, situated at river Drwęca...
region. From 1841 he was connected with the Köllnisches Gymnasium at Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, of which he was appointed director in 1870. Kuhn was the founder of a new school of comparative mythology, based upon comparative philology. Inspired by Jakob Grimm's Deutsche Mythologie
Deutsche Mythologie
Deutsche Mythologie is a seminal treatise on Germanic mythology by Jacob Grimm. First published in Germany in 1835, the work is an exhaustive treatment of the subject, tracing the mythology and beliefs of the Ancient Germanic peoples from their earliest attestations to their survivals in modern...
, he first devoted himself to German stories and legends, and published Märkische Sagen und Märchen (1842), Norddeutsche Sagen, Märchen und Gebräuche (1848), and Sagen, Gebräuche und Märchen aus Westfalen (1859).
But it is on Kuhn's researches into the language and history of the Indo-Germanic
Proto-Indo-Europeans
The Proto-Indo-Europeans were the speakers of the Proto-Indo-European language , a reconstructed prehistoric language of Eurasia.Knowledge of them comes chiefly from the linguistic reconstruction, along with material evidence from archaeology and archaeogenetics...
peoples as a whole that his reputation is founded. His chief works in this connection are Zur ältesten Geschichte der Indogermanischen Völker (1845), in which he endeavoured to give an account of the earliest civilization of the Indo-Germanic peoples before their separation into different families, by comparing and analysing the original meaning of the words and stems common to the different languages; Die Herabkunft des Feuers und des Göttertranks (1859; new ed. by E Kuhn, under title of Mythologische Studien, 1886); and Über Entwicklungsstufen der Mythenbildung (1873), in which he maintained that the origin of myths was to be looked for in the domain of language, and that their most essential factors were polysemy
Polysemy
Polysemy is the capacity for a sign or signs to have multiple meanings , i.e., a large semantic field.Charles Fillmore and Beryl Atkins’ definition stipulates three elements: the various senses of a polysemous word have a central origin, the links between these senses form a network, and ...
and homonymy. Kuhn was also the Editor of the Zeitschrift für vergleichende Sprachforschung auf dem Gebiete der Indogermanischen Sprachen
Historische Sprachforschung
Historische Sprachforschung is an annual peer-reviewed academic journal covering Indo-European historical linguistics. It was established by Adalbert Kuhn in 1852 as the Zeitschrift für vergleichende Sprachforschung and obtained its present title in 1988...
, which was at his time the standard periodical on the subject.
Kuhn died in Berlin. See obituary notice by C.F.H. Bruchmann in Bursian
Conrad Bursian
Conrad Bursian was a German philologist and archaeologist.He was born at Mutzschen in Saxony. When his parents moved to Leipzig, he received his early education at Thomasschule zu Leipzig, and entered the university in 1847...
's Biographisches Jahrbuch (1881) and J. Schmidt in the above Zeitschrift, xxvi. n.s. 6.