KHORONYM AND HIERONYM KARTLI MYTHOLOGEMES RELATED TO ROOTS QRT, K’RT, K’RT’, K’RD, KHRT, GRD IN THE ANCIENT LANGUAGES

Abstract

In this paper, we explore the arguments concerning the similarity of mythologemes related to roots qrt, k’rt, k’rt’, k’rd, khrt, grd (qrT, krT, krt, krd, xrT, grd) in the Kartvelian and ancient languages. Taking into consideration the linguistical and archeological data this was caused by the diversity of immigration waves in the ancient world, the fast-spreading and flexible nature of words, and of course by the fact that the history of the modern world is the history of natives, immigrants, international geopolitical wars diffused in the language features.

The choronym Kartli, that originates from the name of ethnarch Kartlos, a word that was considered Indo-European with a Greek suffix (ος), does not mean just hedged place but also has multi-semantic function, and it is well evidenced in the ancient and modern languages. The word Kartli in various languages means mountain, the top of the mountain, head, mind, door, hero, halo, shrine and temple, creator, founder, builder, height, center, heart, walled, protected, priest.

The odyssey of the root qrt begins from Akkadians, who played a main role in the history beginning the second half of the third Millennia. The Ugaritic epic poem of Keret dates to the Late Bronze Age, circa 1500 – 1200 BC.

The khrt/qrt root is evidenced in "the Egyptian Book of the Dead” dated to 1700-1600BC, which is a later version of the Pyramid (-XXIV-XXII) and Coffin (-XXI-XVIII) Texts. The syntax pair Khart Nitr that is evidenced in the book means the sky of gods.

The time when Georgian ethnarch Kartlos settled in the mountains and named the mountain, city, and the country Qartli by the end of the third Millennia, chronologically coincides the time of the creation of Babylon, residents of which, famous with their wisdom called their state  Karduniaš.

Although the meaning of the choronym Qartli became vague and lost its context, it was still reflected in the Georgian (Meskhetian) folklore and kept its content simply because of the inspirational power of the word. From folklore, it transferred to the poetry of G. Orbeliani “hand-strong qartlian, strong as a fortress”. The word fortress was solely paired with and equaled to the concept of being native of Qartli and not of the other regions of Georgia.

In the paper the authors try to elaborate the oronym and hieronym of eastern Georgia Karate by using Greek words - κάρᾱ τό, κάρη (ᾰ) gen. κάρητος, καρήατος; dat. κάρητι,  καρήατι.

Apart from the mythologemes, the paper demonstrates the plethora of lexical data regarding the following roots qrt, k’rt, k’rt’, k’rd, khrt, grd  ((qrT, krT, krt, krd, xrT, grd) in the Georgian, Latin, Ancient Greek, Armenian, and Iranian languages (Arsacid Parthia). Some of them were never studied or challenged enough scholarly.