GABELENTZ, HANS CONON VON DER (1807 1874), German linguist and ethnologist, born at Altenburg on Oct. 13, 1807, was the only son of Leopold von der Gabelentz, chancellor and privy-councillor of the duchy of Altenburg. He studied at Leipzig and Gottingen and after 183o held various public offices. He died at Lemnitz, in Saxe-Weimar, on Sept. 3, 1874.
Gabelentz is said to have learned no fewer than 8o languages, 3o of which he spoke fluently. Immediately after quitting the university, he followed up his Chinese researches by a study of the Finno-Ugrian languages, which resulted in the publication of his Elements de la grammaire mandchoue in 1832. In 1837 he became one of the promoters, and a joint-editor, of the Zeit schri f t fur die Kunde des Morgenlandes. His works include : Grundziige der syr janischen Grammatik (1841) ; a complete edi tion (with J. Lobe), with translation, glossary and grammar, of Ulfilas's Gothic version of the Bible ; articles on the languages of the Swahilis, the Samoyedes, the Hazaras, the Aimaks, the Formosans and other widely-separated tribes in the Zeitschr. d. dent. morgenland. Gesell.; Beitrage zur Sprachen kunde (185 2) containing Dyak, Dakota, and Kiriri grammars; a Grammatik u. W orterbuch der Kassiasprache (1857); an edition of the Manchu translations of the Chinese Sse-shu, Shu-king and Shi-king, with a dictionary (1864) ; and Die melanesischen Sprachen nach ihrem grammatischen Bau and ihrer V erwand schaf t unter sick and mit den malaiisch-polynesischen Sprachen untersucht (186o-73). The last-named work treats of the lan guage of the Fiji islands, New Hebrides, Loyalty islands, Caledonia, etc., and shows their radical affinity with the Poly nesian class.