Rudolf Simek

Rudolf Simek (2012)

Rudolf Simek (born February 21, 1954 in Eisenstadt ) is an Austrian philologist , Scandinavian and Germanic Medievalist .

Life and career

From 1972 to 1976 Simek studied German , philosophy and Catholic theology . In 1976 he worked for a short time as a teacher at a secondary school before he took up his first teaching post at a university at the University of Edinburgh , which he carried out until 1979. After completing his doctorate in 1980 and his master's degree in theology in Vienna in 1981 , where he completed his habilitation in 1990 , Simek headed the specialist library of the German Institute there until 1995 and worked as a lecturer from 1981 to 1989 . He held the position of lecturer until 1995. From 1990 to 1995 Simek also held a professorship for German studies at the Catholic University of Heiligenkreuz .

Since 1995 he has been a professor and chair holder for older German studies including Nordic at the University of Bonn . In 1999 he received a professorship in comparative religion at the University of Tromsø , and in 2000 at the University of Sydney for Old Norse Studies. In addition to these full professorships, there are numerous visiting professorships and teaching positions at European and non-European universities. He had long research stays at the universities of Reykjavík , Copenhagen , London , Oxford and Sydney. From 2000 to 2003, Simek was chairman of the International Saga Society.

In his capacity as a specialist, in particular on the topics of Vikings , Germanic mythology , Scandinavian studies and the Middle Ages, Simek took part in various TV documentaries, including a. for arte , WDR and in the Terra X series ( ZDF ). Most recently in 2016 he led the multi-part series Our Alps on ServusTV , in which the history of the people in the Alps is viewed from a historical and cultural-historical perspective.

Simek is the direct template for the character of "Professor Weissinger" in Tommy Krappweis ' romantic trilogy Mara and the Fire Bringer , for which he also acted as a scientific advisor and wrote the accompanying glossary. In addition, he played the role of teacher Haase in the 2015 film adaptation of the same name . The lecture program Fantasy & Wissenschaft developed from the long-term collaboration with Krappweis , with which Krappweis and Simek appear at conventions and literary events and talk about their collaboration, Nordic mythology and fantasy .

Scientific contribution

Simek researches and teaches Germanic mythology and religions , the medieval languages ​​and cultures of Scandinavia , the Renaissance of the 12th century and its literature, the religious, mystical and visionary texts of the High Middle Ages , the vernacular scientific texts of the Middle Ages with a special focus on the natural sciences , to late medieval travel and autobiographical literature as well as to literature in the geographical fringes of the (today's) German-speaking area. Simek has made numerous contributions to the Real Lexicon of Germanic Archeology and the Lexicon of the Middle Ages . He is the editor of the Medieval series Studia Medievalia Septentrionalia .

Simek also dealt with cultural studies research on late medieval astronomy, especially Johannes von Gmunden , at the time of the Vikings and the medieval depiction of monsters and demons.

In 2013 Simek received an honorary doctorate from the University of Rzeszów .

Fonts (selection)

• The ship names, ship designations and ship identification in Old Norse. Halosar, Vienna 1982, ISBN 3-900269-13-0 ( Viennese works on Germanic antiquity and philology. Volume 14, dissertation, University of Vienna, 1980).
• Lexicon of Germanic Mythology. Kröner, Stuttgart 1984, ISBN 3-520-36801-3 ( Kröner's pocket edition. Volume 368, reading sample ; PDF; 65 kB).
• with Hermann Pálsson : Lexicon of Old Norse Literature. Kröner, Stuttgart 1987, ISBN 3-520-49001-3 ( Kröner's pocket edition. Volume 490).
• Old Norse cosmography. Studies and sources on the worldview and description of the world in Norway and Iceland from the 12th to the 14th century. De Gruyter, Berlin / New York 1990, ISBN 3-11-012181-6 ( Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde . Supplementary volumes, Volume 4).
• Earth and Cosmos in the Middle Ages: The worldview before Columbus. CH Beck, Munich 1992, ISBN 3-406-35863-2 .
• with Stanislav Mikulásek: Small encyclopedia of Czech family names in Austria. Pedagogical Publishing House, Vienna 1995, ISBN 3-215-11649-9 .
• The Vikings. CH Beck, Munich 1998 ISBN 3-406-41881-3 ( CH Beck knowledge ).
• Germanic religion and mythology. Theiss, Stuttgart 2003, ISBN 3-8062-1821-8 .
• Gods and cults of the Teutons. CH Beck, Munich 2004, ISBN 3-406-50835-9 ( CH Beck knowledge ).
• Middle earth. Tolkien and Germanic Mythology. CH Beck, Munich 2005, ISBN 3-406-52837-6 .
• The belief of the Germanic peoples. Lahn-Verlag, Limburg / Kevelaer 2005, ISBN 3-7867-8495-7 ( basic knowledge of religion ).
• The Germans. Reclam, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 3-15-017051-6 ( Reclam's Universal Library . No. 17051).
• The Edda. CH Beck, Munich 2007, ISBN 978-3-406-56084-2 ( CH Beck knowledge ).
• Eternal places. Relics and holy places in Vienna. Metro, Vienna 2007, ISBN 978-3-902517-64-7 .
• Arthurian Lexicon. Myth and history, works and characters of European Arthurian poetry. Reclam, Stuttgart 2012, ISBN 978-3-15-010858-1 .
• The ships of the Vikings. Reclam, Stuttgart 2014, ISBN 978-3-15-010999-1 .
• Monsters in the Middle Ages. The fantastic world of wonderful people and mythical creatures . Böhlau, Cologne, Weimar, Vienna 2015. ISBN 978-3-412-21111-0 .
• Vinland! How the Vikings discovered America . CH Beck, Munich 2016, ISBN 978-3-406-69720-3 .
• Trolls. Your story from mythology to the internet. Böhlau, Cologne / Weimar / Vienna 2018, ISBN 978-3-412-50743-5 .
• The history of the Normans. From Viking chiefs to kings of Sicily. Reclam, Ditzingen 2018, ISBN 978-3-15-011174-1 .

Web links

Commons : Rudolf Simek  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Literature by and about Rudolf Simek in the catalog of the German National Library
• Rudolf Simek's page at the Scandinavian Studies at the University of Bonn on germanistik.uni-bonn.de
• Publications by Rudolf Simek on germanistik.uni-bonn.de
• Writings by Rudolf Simek on worldcat.org

Individual evidence

1. ^ Rudolf Simek: Publications: Scientific contributions to film and television programs. University of Bonn. Scandinavian Languages ​​and Literatures Department, accessed February 11, 2019 . 
2. ^ Website for the film
3. ↑ Fantasy & Science. BuchmesseCon, 2017, accessed on March 3, 2019 . 
4. ^ Studia Medievalia Septentrionalia. on germanistik.uni-bonn.de