1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9911041728003321

Titolo

Indo-European afterlives : interdisciplinary perspectives on life beyond death

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Stockholm, Sweden : , : Stockholm University Press, , 2025

ISBN

91-7635-283-8

9789176352830

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (212 p.)

Collana

Stockholm Studies in Indo-European Language and Culture ; v.3

Disciplina

305.809

Soggetti

Indo-Europeans - Funeral customs and rites

Funeral rites and ceremonies, Ancient - Europe

Mythology, Indo-European

Death - Europe - Religious aspects - History

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Exploring the afterlife in Indo-European traditions-- Dwellings undwindling: Towards an Indo-European poetics of perlocutionary sites-- Initials for initiates: Phonic mystagogy, “audiovisuality” and the eschatology of the Gathas-- Orpheus and the R̥bhus: Fashioning drinks for the afterlife-- Indo-European motifs in the Greek underworlds-- The god of the night sky as a guide to the afterlife-- The love life of the dead: Norse Valkyries from an Indo-European perspective-- Tied to the underworld-- Indo-European cremations and cosmic fires: A comparative analysis of the funeral and fire rites of Bronze Age Håga, Sweden-- Mourning among the speakers of Proto-Indo-European: *k̑eh₂d- ‘to fall’ and ‘to mourn’-- Biographies

Sommario/riassunto

This volume brings together scholars from archaeology, historical linguistics and comparative mythology to explore how early Indo-European communities imagined death and what lies beyond. From poetic visions of the afterlife to the ritual logic of cremation and the etymology of mourning, Indo-European Afterlives examines how the transition from life to death was conceptualized and ritualized across the Indo-European world. Topics include the eschatological power of poetry, the symbolic role of fire in funerary rites, linguistic



reconstructions of underworld deities and rituals and the significance of mythic figures such as the Valkyries, the Rbhus and Orpheus in navigating the boundary between life and the afterlife. By interweaving philological analysis, archaeological evidence and mythological narratives, the volume offers new perspectives on how notions of death and the beyond were embedded in early Indo-European belief systems. Interdisciplinary in scope, Indo-European Afterlives will appeal to scholars and curious readers alike.