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BABesch 79 (2004) Etruscan origins Language and archaeology L.B. van der Meer Abstract The recently regenerated, vexed question of Etruscan origins should be related to the fact that the Etruscan, Raetic and Lemnian languages have strong resemblances. According to M. Pallottino the languages originally belonged to a Mediterranean, non-Indo-European language dating back to the time of the Eneolithic Rinaldone- culture, which is partially of East-European origin. ‘Orientalists’ suppose that Tyrsenians (Etruscans) emigrated from (North) Western Asia Minor, or the North Aegean area, to Italy around the turn of the 12th century BC. C. de Simone (1996) reasons that Etruscans from southern Etruria settled on Lemnos before or around 700 BC. However, the differences between Etruscan, Raetic and Lemnian show that these languages evolved during some time on their own spot. The question is: did they have a common ancestor, and if so, where and when? What are the implications for the question of the origins? Can archaeologists solve the problem? Which sources are most reliable: linguistic, archaeological or philological-historical evidence? The linguistic evidence is strongly in favour of the orientalist theory. The question of Etruscan origins is extremely dif- around 600 BC.2 As a result the Etruscan language ficult because there is no linguistic evidence earlier may, in principle, have been spoken in Etruria and than from around 700 BC. Etruscan inscriptions in the Po valley at least from the beginning of the Etruria date after 700 BC, in the Raetic area around Villanova-period (Iron Age) from around 900 BC 500 BC (written in the oldest Venetic alphabet), and onward. Since there is no cultural break between on Lemnos to the second half of the 6th century Protovillanova culture (PVN = Final Bronze Age, BC. The question of Etruscan origins originated c. 1100-900 BC),3 and the Villanova culture, the already in antiquity. Herodotus (1.94) tells that language may have been spoken already from Tyrsenians came from Lydia to the country of the 1100 BC onward. Umbrians (after the Fall of Troy, c. 1200 BC). In As there was only a tiny Protovillanovan pres- the same book (1.57) he situates Tyrsenians in ence near Frattesina but a large Villanova culture northern Greece to the south of the Pelasgans of in the Po-area near Bologna, it can be assumed the Hellespont area. In a long discourse Dionysius that the Raetic language has developed from Etrus- of Halicarnassus (1.26.29-30) refutes the old opin- can between c. 900 and c. 600 BC or maybe even ions that the Etruscans were Tyrsenians or Pelas- earlier. Livy writes that the Raeti were of Etruscan gans or Lydians. His conclusion can be summarised origin, that they had preserved the sonum linguae, in that the Etruscans were autochthonous. How- nec eum incorruptum (‘the sound of the language but ever, literary sources are not completely reliable not incorrupted’).4 The Raeti were isolated from because they are not contemporaneous and they the Etruscan area since around 600 BC, probably may be biased.1 We know for example that the by the invading Celts. Later on, around 500 BC, origin of the Romans from Troy as described in they used the old-fashioned Venetic alphabet.5 literary sources from the 5th century BC onwards, Since there already is a difference between active is a myth. past tense ending on -ce/-ke and a passive on -e Let us first cast an eye on the question of the in 7th century BC Etruscan inscriptions and not in relationship between Etruscan and Raetic. Raetic where both forms are active, the splitting of the languages must be dated before 700 BC. ETUSCAN AND RAETIC The same holds true for male Raetic gentilicia ending on -nu, and female ones ending on -na, It is now generally accepted that the Villanovans while in Etruria the male endings are on -na(s), were proto-Etruscans and spoke Etruscan, for an and the female on -nai. Consequently, somewhere Etruscan inscription with local names occurs on between 900 and 700 BC Etruscan and Raetic must a Villanova amphoriskos at Bologna dating from have split, maintaining however many structural 51 resemblances. Most probably Raetic has to be con- sidered as having originated and split from Etruscan in northern Italy in the prehistoric phase. I do not agree with H. Rix and M. Pallottino that Etruscan, Raetic and Lemnian all belong to a Proto- Tyrsenian, pre-non-Indoeuropean language. Next the relationship between Etruscan and Lemnian should be considered. THE WEST-EAST MIGRATION (DE SIMONE’S THEORY) Since 1996 De Simone has repeatedly put forward the theory that Etruscans from Southern Etruria (Caere region) have occupied Lemnos from around 700 BC or maybe even earlier. The Lemnian lan- guage is evident by inscriptions on the famous Stele of Kaminia and some graffiti from Hephaistia and Chloe, all dating from the second half of the 6th century BC, before Athens conquered the island around 500 BC. De Simone’s arguments are based upon the structural resemblances between both languages. The onomastic formula Aker Tavarsio Vanalasial (name, patronymicum [gentilicium?] and matronymicum) and the formula indicating the period of a magistrate in the pertinentive case, as visible in the words Holaiesi Fokiasiale seronaiθ (‘during the time that Holaie the Phokaian was magistrate’ or ‘during the magistrature of Holaie the Phokaian’), would only be explainable from the Etruscan-Italic perspective.6 Both formulas could not have been used on Lemnos without influence of the onomastic system and the pertinentive for- mula in Etruscan. However, both suppositions are wrong. a) In the Etruscan of the 7th and 6th centuries BC the ending -iu of a patronymicum (comparable with Lemnian Tavars-io) does not occur, whereas it occurs only much later. In archaic Etruscan the name would have been Tavarsie- s (cf. Lemnian Holaie-s). b) There is no proof whatsoever that serona (seronai would be a supposed locative) is a substantive and serona-i-θ a double locative. Seronai is more likely to be a verb in the past tense like sivai, arai and aomai. The comparison with the Etruscan A formula zilci : vel[u]si : hulxniesi (4th century 1 holaie·:s ·: naθσ. siasi : BC) is not convincing because it does not explain 2 maras ·: mav σ the the ending -θ in Lemnian serona-i-θ. 3 ialxvei:s ·: avi:s 4 eviσθ ·: seronaiθ Moreover, De Simone does not pay attention to 5 sivai the differences between Lemnian and Etruscan, 6 aker : tavarsio e.g., the gen. -il in morina-il. 7 vanalaσial ·: seronai ·: morinail Fig. 1. Stele of Lemnos. Athens, National Museum. B 1 holaiesi ·: okiasiale : seronaiθ : eviσθ ·: toverona[i? 2?]rom : haralio : sivai : eptesio : arai : tis : oke : Fig. 2. Stele of Lemnos, inscription and transcription. 3 sivai : avis : sialxvis : marasm : avis : aomai : 52 On top of that even more objections to De Dionysos, dealing with Tyrsenian pirates, un- Simone’s theory can be made. If the Etruscans fortunately, cannot be dated. It may date from the would have occupied Lemnos around 700 BC, the Hellenistic period. M. Gras suggests that the pres- Lemnian language would have shown the past ence of Villanova-material in continental Greece tense endings on -ce or -ke, which is not the case: (e.g. helmets in Olympia) in the 8th century BC may it has -ai. In 7th century BC Etruscan inscriptions show the presence of Etruscan pirates in the the -ce/-ke ending is abundantly present; there Aegean area but it is unlikely that pirates dedicated are only two or three possible verb endings on -ai, precious objects to Greek gods. Moreover, there are which can be dated between c. 650 and 600 BC.7 no traces of VN- or Etruscan artefacts on Lemnos. Moreover, Lemnian would have shown the female Italian fibulae (not VN-fibulae) of the 8th century genitive on -as (cf. 7th century BC Etruscan Velelias, BC on Lemnos may have arrived there by com- genitive of Velelia) instead of -al (Vanalasial), and mercial traffic. The material culture of Lemnos does the patronymicum tavarsie-s (cf. Holaie-s) instead not show any trace of VN- or Etruscan culture. of tavarsio (Etruscan patronymica or gentilicia on Gras states: ‘aucun tesson retrouvé dans l’île n’est -iu are late). The encliticum -m occurs in Etruscan étrusque’; possible similarities between VN-materal later than in Lemnian. It may be of Lydian origin. and material on Lemnos are vague.10 Nevertheless Moreover, the enclitica -c and -a may be of Gras does not exclude the arrival of Etruscan Anatolian origin too.8 Lemnian has avi:s and avis pirates on Lemnos: ‘ces pirates dont parle Strabo (probably genitive: ‘of the year’) while Etruscan 6.2.2 d’après Ephore, qui fréquentent le Détroit de has avil (nominative) and avils (genitive). This Messina au milieu du VIIIe siècle et gênent l’instal- difference can be explained when these forms lation des Grecs en Sicile sont, pour ainsi dire, les originate from a common proto-language, which mêmes qui vont jusqu’à Athènes et Lemnos.’11 had the root av(i)-. In Etruscan avil probably orig- L. Beschi states that the Tyrsenian culture on inated like words as vacil, acil from the roots vac- Lemnos is homogeneous from around 800 BC until and ac-. With respect to numerals on -alv- (si- around 500 BC.12 This would fit perfectly with the alve(i)s: of sixty (sa = six)) I agree with Rix that date of Homer’s life in the 9th century BC as sug- the difference between Lemnian sialveis or gested by Ruijgh.13 Beschi supposes that the sialvis and Etruscan sealls is due to a late devel- Tyrsenians migrated from the North Aegean area opment of double genitive (-ls) in Etruscan itself.
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