Even after a century, Buck's Grammar of Oscan and Umbrian is still regarded as the authoritative English treatment of these languages, which were spoken on the Italian peninsula during the Roman Republic (509 B.C. through 31 B.C.). Buck's introduction gives general information on orthography and lists key similarities and differences between these two languages, with comparisons with Latin. The grammar features an extensive 80-page section on phonology, followed by an equally detailed 100 pages on grammatical inflection and syntax. A collection of the most important inscriptions in Oscan and Umbrian follows, with a separate glossary for each language. Buck's work also features photographs and illustrations of important inscriptions, as well as a map. This reprint of the 1904 edition is an indispensable resource for the study of the Italic dialects of pre-Roman Italy.

By examining Greek-alphabet Oscan inscriptions, this book shines light on the linguistics, bilingualism and epigraphy of ancient Southern Italy.

This comprehensive linguistic survey of the Indo-European groups synthesizes the vast amount of information contained in the spe­cialized handbooks of the individual stocks. The text begins with an introduction to the concept of the Indo-European language family, the history of its discovery, and the techniques of analysis. The introduction also gives a structural sketch of Proto-Indo-European, the parent language from which the others are descended. Baldi then devotes a chapter to each of the 11 major branches of Indo-European (Italic, Celtic, Indo-Iranian, Greek, Armenian, Albanian, Baltic, Slavic, Germanic, Tocharian, and Anatolian). Each chapter provides an outline of the external history of the branch, its people, di­alects, and other relevant history. This out­line is followed by a structural sketch of the most important language or languages of the branch (e.g., Old Irish for Celtic, Sanskrit and Avestan for Indo-Iranian, Latin and Osco-Umbrian for Italic). The sketch also contains the phonology, morphology, and syntax of each language. There is lastly a sample text of each language containing both interlinear and free translation. In those branches where there are special issues (e.g., the relation of Italic to Celtic and Baltic to Slavic, or the problem of archaism in Hittite), additional discussions of these issues are pro­vided. Baldi's final chapter gives a brief out­line of the "minor" Indo-European lan­guages such as Illyrian, Thracian, Raetic, and Phrygian. Adding further to the usefulness of the book are extensive bibliographies, an up-to-date map showing the geographical dis­tribution of the Indo-European languages throughout the world, and a detailed family tree diagram of the members of each sub­group within the Indo-European language family and their interrelationships.

This dictionary forms part of the project Indo-European Etymological Dictionary, which was initiated by Robert Beekes and Alexander Lubotsky in 1991. The aim of the project is to compile a new and comprehensive etymological dictionary of the inherited vocabulary attested in the Indo-European languages, replacing the now outdated dictionary of Pokorny (1959).