[ Search ] [ Legislation ]
[ Home ] [ Back ] [ Bottom ]
91_HR0724
LRB9113725CBcbA
1 HOUSE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, The members of the House of Representatives were
3 saddened to learn of the death of Hans Gustav Guterbock, one
4 of the world's foremost scholars on the ancient Near East, on
5 Wednesday, March 29, 2000; and
6 WHEREAS, Mr. Guterbock was the University of Chicago's
7 Tiffany and Margaret Blake distinguished service professor
8 emeritus in the Oriental Institute and the departments of
9 Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations and Linguistics; he
10 was co-editor of the Chicago Hittite Dictionary, the capstone
11 of Mr. Guterbock's lifelong study of Hittite culture; and
12 WHEREAS, Hans Guterbock was a giant in the development of
13 the discipline of Hittitology, a discipline that he shaped
14 and nurtured for more than fifty years; his interest and
15 expertise in Hittitology were exemplified by his research and
16 writings concerning the archeology, philology, and art
17 history of the Hittites; and
18 WHEREAS, A published author of many books, Mr. Guterbock
19 received the American Oriental Society Medal of Merit in
20 recognition of his lifetime contributions to the field of
21 Hittitology; and
22 WHEREAS, Mr. Guterbock was born in Berlin on May 27,
23 1908; his father was the secretary of a noted German
24 archeological society and his mother was a novelist; and
25 WHEREAS, He served on the staff of the Berlin Museum from
26 1933 to 1935, during which time he participated in
27 archaeological expeditions to Boghazkoy, Turkey; he received
28 his Ph.D. from Leipzig University in 1934 but left Germany
29 because he could not find work under the Nazis; and
30 WHEREAS, He was a member of the faculty of Ankara
31 University in Turkey from 1936 until 1948; he spent the
-2- LRB9113725CBcbA
1 1948-49 academic year as a guest lecturer at Sweden's Uppsala
2 University; and
3 WHEREAS, Mr. Guterbock joined the University of Chicago's
4 Oriental Institute in 1949 and was named the Tiffany and
5 Margaret Blake Distinguished Service Professor in 1959; he
6 served as president of the American Oriental Society in 1962
7 and the American Research Institute in Turkey from 1968 until
8 1977; and
9 WHEREAS, Mr. Guterbock's honors include elected
10 membership to several learned societies worldwide, including
11 the British Academy, the American Academy of Arts and
12 Sciences, and the American Philosophical Society; and
13 WHEREAS, Mr. Guterbock's passing will be deeply felt by
14 his colleagues, his friends, and his family, especially his
15 wife of sixty years, Frances; his sons, Thomas and Walter;
16 his five grandchildren; and his great-granddaughter;
17 therefore, be it
18 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
19 NINETY-FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
20 we note with sorrow and regret the death of Hans Gustav
21 Guterbock and extend our sincere condolences to his
22 colleagues, friends, and family; and be it further
23 RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
24 presented to the family of Hans Gustav Guterbock.