A proof-of-principle study of a 1.97-µm Tm:Lu2O3 ceramic disk laser, intracavity pumped by a 1.2-µm semiconductor disk laser, is presented. The demonstrated concept allows for improved pump absorption and takes advantage of the broad wavelength coverage provided by semiconductor disk laser technology. For thin disk lasers the small thickness of the gain element typically leads to inefficient pump light absorption. This problem is usually solved by using a complex multi-pass pump arrangement. In this study we address this challenge with a new laser concept of an intracavity pumped ceramic thin disk laser. The output power at 1.97 µm was limited to 250 mW due to heat spreader-less mounting scheme of the ceramic gain disk.