Originally posted by Amphipolis
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Readers should be warned that this is the work of an "alternative" author called Edo Nyland, not a scientist.
Here's something enlightening from a review of one of Nyland's book: Odysseus and the Sea Peoples: A Bronze Age History of Scotland
“...until I hold my breath.
A century ago Samuel Butler built a case that "The Odyssey" was written by a woman in Sicily. George Bernard Shaw listened to one of Butler's lectures and became convinced. Robert Graves, author of "I, Claudius" was sufficiently intrigued that he later wrote a novel with Butler's claims as the basis. Whether true or not, it's generally agreed that "The Iliad" had a different, earlier author.
However, the gyst of this book is that the story of Odysseus was borrowed by the Greeks from the British Isles, and that when restored to what is in Nyland's opinion their correct context, 1000 years is added to Scottish and Irish history. In a way, Nyland follows a number of others before him, such as whoever claimed that someone named Brutus fled Troy and founded Britain, or Vergil who composed "The Aeneid" to create a mythic past for Rome, or even those who sinisterly claim that somehow the Europeans are the real Jews and the modern Jews imposters, or Martin Bernal who claims all kinds of things.
Following an historian named Edward Furlong, Nyland finds the supposed British roots to placenames and other words in the Odyssey. He also links the ancient Ogam inscriptions of the Celts (a writing system that is quite pre-Roman, not "early Christian" as Nyland states, and found throughout western Europe at the very least) with Basque. He assures us that the tale has been "dreadfully distorted and added to", which is something I'd apply to Nyland's book.
It's still worth reading, because of the actual historical details he includes, and entertaining because of his unsubstantiated leaps. Go ahead, give it a try.
Nyland used to have a website only. The website was still up last I checked, complete with the warning that he isn't "Dr. Edo Nyland, professor emeritus of geo-physics at the University of Alberta".”
Here's something enlightening from a review of one of Nyland's book: Odysseus and the Sea Peoples: A Bronze Age History of Scotland
“...until I hold my breath.
A century ago Samuel Butler built a case that "The Odyssey" was written by a woman in Sicily. George Bernard Shaw listened to one of Butler's lectures and became convinced. Robert Graves, author of "I, Claudius" was sufficiently intrigued that he later wrote a novel with Butler's claims as the basis. Whether true or not, it's generally agreed that "The Iliad" had a different, earlier author.
However, the gyst of this book is that the story of Odysseus was borrowed by the Greeks from the British Isles, and that when restored to what is in Nyland's opinion their correct context, 1000 years is added to Scottish and Irish history. In a way, Nyland follows a number of others before him, such as whoever claimed that someone named Brutus fled Troy and founded Britain, or Vergil who composed "The Aeneid" to create a mythic past for Rome, or even those who sinisterly claim that somehow the Europeans are the real Jews and the modern Jews imposters, or Martin Bernal who claims all kinds of things.
Following an historian named Edward Furlong, Nyland finds the supposed British roots to placenames and other words in the Odyssey. He also links the ancient Ogam inscriptions of the Celts (a writing system that is quite pre-Roman, not "early Christian" as Nyland states, and found throughout western Europe at the very least) with Basque. He assures us that the tale has been "dreadfully distorted and added to", which is something I'd apply to Nyland's book.
It's still worth reading, because of the actual historical details he includes, and entertaining because of his unsubstantiated leaps. Go ahead, give it a try.
Nyland used to have a website only. The website was still up last I checked, complete with the warning that he isn't "Dr. Edo Nyland, professor emeritus of geo-physics at the University of Alberta".”
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