Reassessing Etruscan Inscriptions Through a Turkic Linguistic Framework: Evidence from Vital Like Moral, Judicial, and Didactic Texts

This study reassesses selected Etruscan inscriptions through a Turkic linguistic framework, emphasizing the importance of artifact-based contextual reading. By correlating epigraphic text with visual narratives depicted on Etruscan bronze mirrors, the paper challenges the prevailing mythological interpretations commonly applied in Etruscan studies. Two representative case studies are examined: a mirror scene traditionally identified as the “Judgment of Paris,” here reinterpreted as the formal registration of a marriage alliance, and a second mirror depicting an elite woman receiving hairstyling services, argued to encode a didactic, procedural instruction. The analysis demonstrates that when inscriptions are read in direct relation to the depicted social practices, coherent moral, judicial, and practical meanings emerge. These findings support the hypothesis that a portion of Etruscan epigraphic material reflects real social life and institutional practices rather than abstract mythology. The study contributes to methodological discussions in epigraphy by proposing a context-driven, linguistically grounded approach to Etruscan texts