ON bIdgẄčIr IN THE 3RD LINE OF THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE ŠINE-USU INSCRIPTION

Özet

The Šine-Usu Inscription is the most voluminous one with 50 lines among theUyghur inscriptions. Like Tes (750) and Tariat (752-753) inscriptions, the Šine-UsuInscription also was erected in 759 in honor of Moyun Čor, the second qaghan of theUyghur Qaghanate (r. 747-759). It is still on the spot in two pieces.Most parts of the Šine-Usu Inscription are now well understood. However, thesouth and west sides are heavily damaged and there are many illegible and/orincomprehensible words and sentences in these sides. One of them is the letter groupricwgdib bIdgẄčIr in the 3rd line on the south side. The sentences containing thisletter group have been differently interpreted by the researchers. All of the readingshitherto are problematic.The author would like to regard the letter group ricwgdib bIdgẄčIr asa spelling error for ricwgidb bdIgẄčIr and suggests to read it as äbdigüči är'soldier who recruits/drafts soldier' (< äbdi- 'to gather, to pick up' + -güči 'participlesuffix'). There are at least three examples of spelling error related to the position of the letter i I in the inscriptions. The sentences in question can be now read as beš yegirmikä …… tayγan költä teriltim. äbdigüči är anta ï<d>t[ïm. är k]älti "On the 15th (of the month) …… we (lit. I) gathered at the Lake of Tayγan. I sent the recruiting soldiers from there. [The soldiers] came".