Gotthelf Bergsträsser (5 April 1886, in Oberlosa, Plauen – 16 August 1933, near Berchtesgaden) was a German linguist specializing in Semitic studies, generally considered to be one of the greatest of the twentieth century.

[1] He was a professor at Istanbul University during World War I, when he was an officer in the German army stationed in Turkey.

One of his most well-known works is the 29th (and final) edition of Wilhelm Gesenius' Hebrew Grammar (1918–1929), which remained incomplete, containing only phonology and morphology of the verb.

[4] His companion Friedrich Thiersch recorded an account of his death in a 16 page typed statement to the local authorities recounting that Bergsträsser had fallen off a sharp incline during the excursion and had injured his head.

His death though was the subject of speculation with some arguing that he was killed by a student for his anti-Nazi views while mountaineering in Bavaria.