The main object of this Gothic Grammar is to render service to academic instruction, as a basis for lectures and Gothic exercises; it is intended, at the same time, to afford the student sufficient aid in acquiring a practical knowledge of the Gothic language and thus enable him to follow more advantageously the lectures on historical and comparativ grammar. For this purpose the Gothic Fonology and Inflection ar, as far as possibl, set forth by themselves, without resorting to Comparativ Grammar for an explanation of the facts. Occasionally another Germanic dialect, as the Old High German, has rather been referd to. The linguistic elucidation is left to the lectures. To him, however, who lerns Gothic from this book, without any possibility of hearing lectures, wishing at the same time to gain profounder knowledge, there may be especially recommended the following helps:K. Brugmann's'Grundriss der vergleichenden grammatik' andFr. Kluge's'Vorgeschichte der altgermanischen dialekte' (inPaul's'Grundriss der germ. philologie', I, 300-406).
The references to literary works containd in the Grammar itself ar not intended to act as linguistic explanations, but refer to works and treatises which present much of profit concerning the establishment and conception of facts from a purely Gothic point of view; several references toBrugmann's'Grundriss' ar perhaps the only exceptions.
The Reading Exercises ar intended to offer sufficient material for Gothic exercises; they giv students working independently of a teacher an opportunity to apply what they hav lernd from the Grammar. The beginner may beadvized at first simply to read over the chapters on Fonology, but to giv more attention to those on Inflection (for the beginning without the notes) and then to commence reading a text. This exercise ought to be accumpanied by a more extended lerning of the Grammar, just as a thuro analysis of the text wil require a constant reference to the Grammar.
The Glossary contains not only the vocabulary of the Reading Exercises, but also all words occurring in the Grammar. The citations from the Inflection hav been givn in ful, those from the Fonology in every case where a word is not givn merely as an arbitrary chozen exampl. Thus the Glossary may at the same time serv as an Index to the Grammar.
Sinse its first appearance in 1880, this book has not undergone essential changes; the success seemd to me to garantee the appropriateness of the plan, so that also in the present edition I hav not complied with several wishes for a farther scope. I stil hold that an admixture of elements from Comparativ Filology would be opposed to the object of the book. The question could rather arize as to whether there ought not to be added any chapters on Word-Formation and Syntax as main parts to the Fonology and Inflection. However this also has been disregarded. Such points of word-formation as may promote the practical study of the Gothic language, wil be found interwoven in the Inflection; a systematic presentation of the Gothic alone does not seem to me to prove very beneficial, but only in connection with the other Germanic, resp. Indo-Germanic, languages. And particularly with respect to this, excellent assistance is afforded the student byKluge's 'Nominale stammbildungslehre der altgermanischen dialekte' (cp.§ 223) which has been amply referd to under Inflection, and which is easily accessibl as a supplementary number to the 'Sammlung kurzer grammatiken germanischer dialekte'. The addition of a syntax in harmony with the rest of the grammar would likely hav increast the book to dubl its size, which, as regards its sale, seemd to me a point wurthy of consideration. There are, moreover, easily attainabl summaries of the Gothic language. Therefore I hav for the present contented myself with annexing a list of grammatical and lexical helps (§ 224), which may serv as a guide to the inquirer.
For this edition I hav again receivd kind informations from sum that uze the book. Beside the correction of misprints, the contents of the book has been favorably influenced by notes receivd from Mssrs. G. H. Balg, R. Bethge, J. Franck, and M. H. Jellinek. I herewith express my sincerest thanks to all. Mr. Roediger's review has also been thankfully uzed. For assistance renderd me in correcting the proof-sheets, I ow many thanks to my friend E. Sievers.
Heidelberg, May 1st, 1895.W. BRAUNE.