A Precious Heritage. The Contribution of Hans Rothe to Slavic Studies

Abstract

The authors present some of the most important writings of the well-known professor emeritus of Bonn University, Hans Rothe (1928-2021), offering an overview of the main ideas he developed and the methods he applied in his research. Due attention is given to his indefatigable activity as an editor of important, mostly unduly forgotten medieval and early modern texts. His commentary to the first translations of the Bible for many Slavic peoples remains a milestone of Slavic studies. He was a pioneer in fostering research about Slavo-Byzantine liturgical and religious texts, devotional songs, and baroque literature in Russia and Ukraine. No less remarkable are his articles about the Enlightenment and such giants of literature as Lesja Ukrajinka, Deržavin, Puškin and Tolstoj.