Kurt Latte
Encyclopedia
Kurt Latte was a German philologist and classical scholar known for his work on ancient Roman religion
Religion in ancient Rome
Religion in ancient Rome encompassed the religious beliefs and cult practices regarded by the Romans as indigenous and central to their identity as a people, as well as the various and many cults imported from other peoples brought under Roman rule. Romans thus offered cult to innumerable deities...

.

His major work is Römische Religionsgeschichte (Munich, 1960), which was intended to replace the work of Georg Wissowa
Georg Wissowa
Georg Otto August Wissowa was a German classical philologist who was born in Neudorf, near Breslau.Wissowa studied at the University of Breslau, and in 1886 became a professor at the University of Marburg, and in 1895 a professor at the University of Halle.Wissowa was a specialist in the study of...

 that by then was nearly 60 years old. Although widely referenced, Latte's work has not escaped criticism. Latte attempted to be systematic and historical at the same time, melding Wissowa's Varro
Varro
Varro was a Roman cognomen carried by:*Marcus Terentius Varro, sometimes known as Varro Reatinus, the scholar*Publius Terentius Varro or Varro Atacinus, the poet*Gaius Terentius Varro, the consul defeated at the battle of Cannae...

-based systematic description with the historical approach of Franz Altheim
Franz Altheim
Franz Altheim was a German historian, best known for his trip with Erika Trautmann funded by the Ahnenerbe and Hermann Göring.-Early life:...

; the resulting structure can seem haphazard. In the opinion of Stefan Weinstock, Latte's understanding of linguistics
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....

 was superior to that of Wissowa.

Latte rejected animism
Animism
Animism refers to the belief that non-human entities are spiritual beings, or at least embody some kind of life-principle....

 as having explanatory value for the study of Roman religion, but made some use of the concept of sympathetic magic
Sympathetic magic
Sympathetic magic, also known as imitative magic, is a type of magic based on imitation or correspondence.-Similarity and contagion:The theory of sympathetic magic was first developed by Sir James George Frazer in The Golden Bough...

, an approach criticized as inconsistent. His discussion of Roman priesthoods is considered "vital."

Latte viewed Roman religious traditions as in decline in the late Republic, and subject to political abuse. He felt, however, that the importance of Imperial cult
Imperial cult (ancient Rome)
The Imperial cult of ancient Rome identified emperors and some members of their families with the divinely sanctioned authority of the Roman State...

 had been exaggerated, and that "emperor worship" was a minor and perhaps not really a religious phenomenon at all. His is a counterweight to the predominant scholarly view that Imperial cult became increasingly central to Roman religion.

Latte's monumental edition of Hesychius of Alexandria
Hesychius of Alexandria
Hesychius of Alexandria , a grammarian who flourished probably in the 5th century CE, compiled the richest lexicon of unusual and obscure Greek words that has survived...

 was left unfinished at the time of his death (vol. 1 published in 1953, vol. 2 posthumously in 1966); the work was completed by Peter Allan Hansen and Ian C. Cunningham (vols. 3-4, 2005-2009).

Further reading

  • Cornelia Wegeler, "… wir sagen der internationalen Gelehrtenrepublik" Altertumswissenschaft und Nationalsozialismus Das Göttinger Institut für Altertumskunde 1921–1962 (Vienna/Cologne/Weimar, 1996), containing "honest, thorough descriptions of the careers" of several German classical scholars of the period, including Eduard Fraenkel
    Eduard Fraenkel
    Eduard David Mortier Fraenkel was a German-English philologist.-Background and early life:Eduard Fraenkel was born to Jewish parents in Berlin. His father was a wine dealer, and his mother the daughter of an important publishing family...

    , Hermann Fränkel
    Hermann Fränkel
    Hermann Ferdinand Fränkel was a German American classical scholar. He served as professor of Ancient Greek philology at Stanford University until 1953....

    , and Latte.
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