The Child of the Century: Discussing the Ossetic Etymological Dictionary of V.I. Abaev and its Author

Ilya Yakubovich

The recently published index to the "Historical and Etymological Dictionary of the Ossetic Language" (OED) made this masterpiece one of the most useful technical books in Iranian linguistics. At the same time it is one of the most unusual books in the field; every page bears the imprint of the personality of its author. Vasilij Ivanovich Abaev is truly a child of the century: he was born in 1900 and is now the oldest among his colleagues. However, my title has also another meaning: the life and creative activity of V.I. Abaev reflects as in a mirror all the achievements and the blunders of twentieth-century Russian linguistics. V.I. Abaev believes that every language should be studied within its historical context; I posit the same thing for the life of Abaev.

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