Leitfehler

[ˈlaɪtfe:la]

German for 'guiding error' (i.e. guiding the scholar towards understanding the text's genealogy), from leiten 'to guide, lead' and Fehler 'error'. See error, indicative or significant. Paul Maas coined this term (Textkritik, p. 26, where he refers to Gnomon n. 6 (1930), p. 561, but there he uses the synonym Leitkorruptel) thinking of the German term Leitfossil 'index fossil' in palaeontology, so one might also translate as 'index error'.

Reference

– Maas, Paul. 1960. Textkritik. 4th ed. Leipzig: Teubner. – First ed. 1927.

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