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The Funeral Sermon and Prayer (Hungarian: Halotti beszéd és könyörgés) is the oldest known and surviving contiguous Hungarian text, written by one scribal hand in the Latin script and dating to 1192–1195. It is found on f.154a of the Codex Pray.
Contents
Importance
The utmost importance of the Funeral Sermon comes from it being the oldest surviving Hungarian, and such also oldest Uralic, text — although individual words and even short partial sentences appear in charters, such as the founding charter of the Veszprém valley nunnery (997–1018/1109) or the founding charter of the abbey of Tihany (1055)).
Structure
The whole monument has two parts: the sermon's text (26 lines and 227 words) and the prayer (6 lines and 47 words). Not counting repeated words, there are 190 individual terms in the text. The work was written after a Latin version, which has been identified and can be found in the very codex. However, the Funeral Sermon and Prayer is a new composition merely based on it, rather than a mere translation). Since 1813, the manuscript has been kept in Budapest, Hungary, and is currently in the National Széchényi Library.
Note on transcription
The text is written in Carolingian minuscule. This script uses ſ as the sole form for s, even at the end of words. Likewise, for z the historical ʒ form is used by the scribe. In this transcription we follow Hungarian editing tradition, where the ſ is retained, but ʒ is replaced by its modern equivalent.
Diacritics on vowels and y (dots, acutes) have been omitted.
The funeral sermon
Sermo ſup ſepulchrum. Latiatuc feleym zumtuchelmic vogmuc. yſa pur eſ chomuv uogmuc. Menyi miloſtbenterumteve eleve miv iſemucut adamut. eſ odutta vola nekiparadiſumut hazoa. Eſ mend paradiſumben uolov gimilcictulmunda neki elnie. Heon tilutoa wt ig fa gimilce tvl. Gemundoa neki meret nu[m] eneyc. yſa ki nopun emdul oz gimilſtwl. halalnec halalaal holz. Hadlaua choltat terumteve iſtentul. ge feledeve. Engede urdung intetvinec. eſ evec oz tiluvtgimilſtwl. es oz gimilſben halalut evec. Eſ oz gimilſnek vvlkeſeruv uola vize. hug turchucat mige zocoztia vola.Num heon muga nec. ge mend w foianec halalut evec.Horogu vec iſten. eſ veteve wt ez muncaſ vilagbele. eſ levnhalalnec eſ poculnec feze. eſ mend w nemenec. Kic ozvc.miv vogmuc. Hog eſ tiv latiatuv ſzumtuchel. iſa eſ numigg ember mulchotia ez vermut. yſa mend ozchuz iarovvogmuc. Wimagguc uromv iſten kegilmet ez lelic ert. hugiorgoſſun w neki. eſ kegiggen, eſ bulſassa mend w bunet.Eſ vimagguc ſzen achſcin mariat. eſ bovdug michael archangelt.eſ mend angelcut. hug uimaggonoc erette. Eſ uimaggucſzent peter urot. kinec odut hotolm ovdonia. eſ ketnie.hug ovga mend w bunet. Eſ vimagguc mend ſzentucut.hug legenec neki ſeged uromc ſcine eleut. hug iſten iv ui-madſagucmia bulſaſſa w bunet. Eſ zoboducha wt urdungildetuitvl. eſ pucul kinzotviatwl. eſ vezeſſe wt paradiſu[m]nugulmabeli. eſ oggun neki munhi uruzagbele utot. eſmend iovben rezet. Eſ keaſſatuc uromchuz charmul. Kir[ie e]l[eison].The prayer
Scerelmes bratym uimagg(om)uc ez ſcegin ember lilki ert.kit vr ez nopun ez homuſ világ timnucebelevl mente.kinec ez nopun teſtet tumetivc. hug ur uvt kegilmehelabraam. yſaac. iacob. kebeleben belhezie: hug birſagnopivtva mend vv ſcentii ef unuttei cuzicun iovfelevl iochtotnia ilezie vvt. Eſ tivbennetuc. clamate iii. k[yrie eleison].Translation
An English translation of the Funeral Sermon and Prayer can be found there: http://1moment.hu/halotti_beszed.pdf
Reproduction
A high quality photographic reproduction can be found at the Hungarian National Széchényi Library.