GÖTZE, Albrecht Ernst Rudolf. Leipzig 11.1.1897 — Garmisch-Partenkirchen 15.8.1971. German Assyriologist, Semitic and IE Scholar in the U.S.A. Born in a Jewish family, the son of the physician (psychiatrist) Rudolf Götze (d. 1920) and Elsa Rommler. Grew up in Darmstadt. From 1915 studies at Munich, Leipzig, Berlin, and Heidelberg, in 1916-19 served in the army in Western front, three times wounded. In 1918 resumed his studies. Ph.D. 1921 Heidelberg. From 1921 Assistant of C. Bezold and from 1922 PD at Heidelberg, from 1927 ao. Professor there. From 1930 ord. Professor of Semitic Languages and Ancient Oriental History at Marburg, but in 1933 was forced to quit (as member of Friedensfront he was “politically unreliable”). Went first to Denmark and Norway and 1934 to the U.S.A., invited by Sturtevant to become visiting Professor at Yale. Naturalized as U.S. citizen in 1940. Taught at Yale University: from 1934 as Visiting Professor, in 1936-56 as William Laffan Professor of Assyriology, 1956-65 as Sterling Professor of Near Eastern Languages, in 1958-66 chairman of Near Eastern Languages Department. In 1946 he rejected an offer from Marburg. In 1947-56 also Director of Baghdad School of American Schools of Oriental Research. Hon. A.M. Yale 1936. In 1965 emeritus. In 1922 married Frida Maria Emma Schirbel (1896–19??), one son and two daughters.

As a scholar Götze was mainly an Assyriologist and Semitist, in the 1920s also interested in Iranian, later wrote much on Hittite. In this collaborated with Sturtevant.

Publications: Diss. “Relative Chronologie on Lauterscheinungen im Italischen”, Idg.Fo.  41, 1922, 78-149.

– Published Iranian studies in the 1920s, e.g.: “Tištrya, īr, Tiṧya, Σείριος”, KZ 61, 1923, 146-153; “Persische Weisheit in griechischen Gewande”, ZII 2, 1923, 60-98, 167-177.

– Studies on the ancient Near East, important studies of Hittite.

Sources: D.G.K. 1926; D. Drüll, Heidelberger Gelehrtenlexikon 1803–1932; J.J. Finkelstein, JAOS 92, 1972, 197-203; D.O. Edzard, Zeitschrift für Assyriologie 62, 1972, 163f.; *Th. Jacobsen, BASOR 206, 1972, 3-6; Who Was Who in Am. 5; *bibliography in Journal of Cuneiform Studies 26, 1974, 2-15; Wikipedia (also German version).