Bičiktu-Boom I (A-13)

Description

The inscription was found by K. Sejdakmatov in 1964 with the help of the teacher from the village Bičiktu-Boom T. I. Sabaeva. The inscription consists of 7 characters and one word-divider. At present the inscription is lost. It is known as “the left inscription” according to Sejdakmatoiv. It has Number А 8а according to DTS.

Reading of K. Sejdakmatov

Transliteration: СьҢРь:КЙ?Ы

Translation: … mountain slope. Sadness.

(Sejdakmatov 1964: 95)

Comments

The sign that K. Sejdakmatov did not unterstand was b²,this makes the proposed reading impossible.

Reading of Ė. R. Tenišev

Transcription: Säŋir. qaja äbi

Translation: Mountain slope, a house in the rock.

(Tenišev 1966: 264)

Comments

In principle, one can agree with the reading of Ė. R. Tenišev. However, the translation is doubtful. If the word kaya is an attribute, we could translate it as ‘a house on a rock’. We do not see why he translated this phrase as a house in the rock. The word house has a possessive affix of 3^rd person, which was left non-translated.

Reading of L.N.Tybykova,

I.A. Nevskaya and M. Erdal

Runic transliteration

Transliteration: s² ŋ² r² : k¹ y¹ b² I

Transcription: s(ä)ŋ(i)r : k(a)y(a) (ä)vi

Translation: ‘This protruding rock is his house.’

Comments

The inscription is written in a classic orthography which is not characteristic for Altai Runic inscriptions. However, the final vowel I the word k(a)y(a) is not expressed which is a violation of the laws of the classic runic orthography.  The sign b² can be read as b and as v. Between vowels this character denoted a spirant consonant. The sign b² is interesting by itself, because it has a typical Orkhon form of the sign.