From Hittite to Homer: the Anatolian background of ancient Greek epic
This book provides a groundbreaking reassessment of the prehistory of Homeric epic. It argues that in the Early Iron Age bilingual poets transmitted to the Greeks a set of narrative traditions closely related to the one found at Bronze-Age Hattusa, the Hittite capital. Key drivers for Near Eastern i...
| Résumé: | This book provides a groundbreaking reassessment of the prehistory of Homeric epic. It argues that in the Early Iron Age bilingual poets transmitted to the Greeks a set of narrative traditions closely related to the one found at Bronze-Age Hattusa, the Hittite capital. Key drivers for Near Eastern influence on the developing Homeric tradition were the shared practices of supralocal festivals and venerating divinized ancestors, and a shared interest in creating narratives about a legendary past using a few specific storylines: theogonies, genealogies connecting local polities, long-distance travel, destruction of a famous city because it refuses to release captives, and trying to overcome death when confronted with the loss of a dear companion. Professor Bachvarova concludes by providing a fresh explanation of the origins and significance of the Greco-Anatolian legend of Troy, thereby offering a new solution to the long-debated question of the historicity of the Trojan War. Introduction -- Hurro-Hittite narrative song at Hattusa -- Gilgamesh at Hattusa: written texts and oral traditions -- The Hurro-Hittite ritual context of Gilgamesh at Hattusa -- The plot of the Song of release -- The place of the Song of release in its eastern Mediterranean context -- The function and prehistory of the Song of release -- Sargon the Great: from history to myth -- Long-distance interactions: theory, practice, and myth -- Festivals: a milieu for cultural contact -- The context of epic in Late Bronze and Early Iron Age Greece -- Cyprus as a source of Syro-Anatolian epic in the Early Iron Age -- Cultural contact in Late Bronze Age western Anatolia -- Continuity of memory at Troy and in Anatolia -- The history of the Homeric tradition -- The layers of Anatolian influence in the Iliad |
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| Description: | Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 08 Sep 2016) |
| ISBN: | 1139048732 |
| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1017/CBO9781139048736 |