#13 - The Story of Assyria: Who Owns Assyrian History? The Western Challenge to Continuity скачать в хорошем качестве

#13 - The Story of Assyria: Who Owns Assyrian History? The Western Challenge to Continuity

In Class 13 of The Story of Assyria, Rabi Robert DeKelaita examines how Western scholars have challenged the continuity between the ancient Assyrians and their modern descendants. The lecture asks a fundamental question: who owns Assyrian history, and who has the right to define Assyrian identity? The class opens with Sarah and Pierre reflecting on terms like Assyrian, Syriac, Suraya/Suroyo, and Aturaya, then moves into a detailed critique of modern scholarship. Figures such as John Joseph, Adam Becker, Aaron Butts, Wolfhart Heinrichs, and David Wilmshurst are discussed, especially where they deny continuity or portray modern Assyrians as a “constructed” ethnicity. Rabi Robert contrasts this with linguistic evidence (Syria = Assyria), inscriptions like Çineköy, Syriac sources that explicitly mention “Assyrians,” and enduring practices such as the Rogation of the Ninevites. Throughout the lecture, the focus is on continuity of language, geography, memory, and religious life in the Assyrian heartland—arguing that modern Assyrians are not inventing an identity from nothing, but reclaiming a historical name and heritage that survived under layers of conquest and suppression. 0:00 Who owns Assyrian history? Introducing tonight’s topic 0:40 Sarah on growing up with Assyrian, Syriac, Suraya, and Syrian 2:10 Diaspora football rivalry in Sweden & identity conflict 4:30 Pierre on “Suraya / Suroyo” as a shared self-designation 7:50 Is “Suraya” derived from “Assyrian”? Linguistic arguments 10:50 Western scholars who deny Assyrian continuity 13:30 Comparing Assyrians with Copts, Jews, Armenians, Kurds, Greeks, Iranians 16:40 Introducing Aaron Butts and the continuity vs. construct debate 20:40 Self-designation, “Syrian” vs “Assyrian,” and the problem of terminology 25:30 Historical memory, geography, and survival under empires 29:30 Missionaries, nationalism, and Assyrian identity: catalyst or cause? 33:10 Ignored evidence: Simo Parpola, oral traditions, Ninevite fast, and more 36:10 Syriac sources that explicitly mention “Assyrians” 39:10 The Ashurbanipal statue in San Francisco & naming controversy 40:40 Rolinger, Herodotus, and why Syria = Assyria 44:10 The Çineköy inscription and the shift from Assur to Sur 48:00 Wolfhart Heinrichs on modern Assyrianism and the name “Assyrian” 52:00 Assyria under Parthians and Sasanians: Assuristan and regional continuity 55:10 Second temple of Ashur, Aramaic inscriptions, and religious continuity 58:10 Late antique/medieval art, monasteries, and Assyrian lineage of saints 1:01:00 “Atur” as the only real homeland name in our language 1:02:10 Closing reflections on continuity, rupture, and Western narratives