Karl Helm

Karl Helm was born in Karlsruhe, Germany on 19 May 1871. He studied German philology in Heidelberg and Freiburg, earning his doctorate in 1895 with a study on 16th-century poetry.

Helm's habilitation was on the literature surrounding the Teutonic Order, published 1899 in Giessen. After teaching in Giesen, Würzburg and Frankfurt, he received tenure in Marburg as professor for early Germanic philology (Altgermanistik) in 1921.

Helm took over editorship of the Althochdeutsche Grammatik, Althochdeutsches Lesebuch and Gotische Grammatik from Wilhelm Braune, all standard works in Germanic studies. His own research focused on Middle High German, Old High German, Germanic folklore and religion. students of Helm include Karl Bischoff, Ernst Albrecht Ebbinghaus, Hans Kuhn, Nechama Leibowitz,[1][2] Eduard Neumann and Jost Trier.

Helm adhered to a national conservative ideology throughout his life, expressing sympathy for the German National People's Party (without however becoming a regular member). He was a member of the Militant League for German Culture from 1933, but he never became a member of the Nazi party. In November 1933 Helm signed the Vow of allegiance of the Professors of the German Universities and High-Schools to Adolf Hitler and the National Socialistic State.

Helm retired from Marburg as professor emeritus in 1936, but continued hold lectures there until 1958. He died in Marburg on 9 September 1960.

• Zur Rhythmik der kurzen Reimpaare des 16. Jahrhunderts, 1895
• (Publisher) Das Evangelium Nicodemi, 1902
• (Publisher) Dichtungen des Deutschen Ordens. 1: Die Apokalypse Heinrichs von Hesler: aus der Danziger Handschrift, 1907
• Altgermanische Religionsgeschichte, 1913
• Altgermanische Religionsgeschichte. 2: Die nachrömische Zeit; Teil 1: Die Ostgermanen, 1937
• Die Literatur des Deutschen Ritterordens, 1951
• Altgermanische Religionsgeschichte. 2: Die nachrömische Zeit; Teil 2: Die Westgermanen, 1953

• Rudolf Much
• Andreas Heusler
• Eugen Mogk
• Otto Höfler

• Peter Wengel: Karl Helm. In: Internationales Germanistenlexikon 1800-1950, eds. König, Wägenbaur, Frindt, vol. 1, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin – New York 2003. ISBN 3110154854.
• Bernhard Maier: Karl Helm, In: Heinrich Beck, Dieter Geuenich, Heiko Steuer (eds.): Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde, vol.14, Berlin – New York 1999, ISBN 3-11-016423-X
• Ludwig Wolff (1969), "Helm, Karl", Neue Deutsche Biographie (in German), vol. 8, Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, pp. 491–492; (full text online)
• Deutsche Biographische Enzyklopädie, 1996. ISBN 3-598-23160-1

• Works by or about Karl Helm at Internet Archive
• Karl Helm in the OPAC of Regesta Imperii