TRANSCRIPTION OF THE LETTER I AND THE CLOSE VOICE Ė IN THE ORKHON INSCRIPTIONS OF EUROPEAN AND RUSSIAN TURKOLOGISTS
Abstract
The Orkhon inscriptions were known through the work of Johann von Strahlenberg, who was captured by the Russians in the early 18th century. However, the first scientific missions for research purposes could only be sent at the end of the 19th century. The first missions were Finnish research missions sent in 1889-1888. On December 15, 1893, at a meeting of the Danish Academy of Sciences, W. Thomsen announced that he had read the "runic" script used in the Orkhon and Yenisei inscriptions. Following the publication of this important work, Turkologists conducted various readings and interpretations of the Orkhon inscriptions. In this article, we will try to focus on how the letter I / ı-i / and the closed / ė / sound in the Orkhon inscriptions were transcribed by European and Russian turkologists.