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Document Details : Title: Pre-Christian History in the Georgian Shatberdi Codex Subtitle: A Translation of the Initial Texts of Mok'c'evay K'art'lisay Author(s): RAPP, St.H. Jr. Journal: Le Muséon Volume: 112 Issue: 1-2 Date: 1999 Pages: 79-128 DOI: 10.2143/MUS.112.1.519492 Abstract : Origins tales, in all of their colorful guises, at once fascinate and bewilder. Consider, for example, the Judeo-Christian tradition that the peoples of Afro-Eurasia are ultimately descended from Noah and his progeny, the only humans to have survived the catastrophic flood. Although the authenticity of the flood account may be called into question, the story nevertheless demonstrates that some ancient peoples traced their origins to a definite point in the remote past. Indeed, the historical record is replete with ethnic “Big Bangs.” Yet the historical dynamics of ethnogenesis often have been obscured beyond recognition or are entirely absent. Linguistic data might surrender valuable clues, but tangible contemporary evidence is largely insufficient. |
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