The nature of the texts is also very repetitive, with all of them dealing with construction. However, they are important for mentioning other gods in addition to Ahura Mazda for the first time. Primarily, they reveal that Old Persian was in the middle of undergoing some significant changes in terms of orthography, grammar, and phonetics. We will focus on the orthographic, grammatical, and phonetic shifts observed until we take a look at the final Old Persian text we have - the building inscriptions of Artaxerxes III. While the text of Artaxerxes III is not particularly enthralling, we will be analyzing it in depth since it is apparently the last Old Persian text we have. Of course, time permitting, we will take a look at other Old Persian texts after reading the text of Artaxerxes III, including the only Old Persian text to have been written on a clay tablet. Unfortunately, there are no known Old Persian texts from the reigns of the final two Achaemenid monarchs.
Script - The orthography and odd spellings of the late inscriptions will be discussed.
Grammar - Some odd late forms will be discussed. Word order will also be covered.
Reading - Skjaervo, Chapters 17, 18, and 19
Vocabulary
|
abayapara |
Subsequently, later on |
|
bātugara- |
A kind of vessel |
|
paraday(a)dā- |
Garden, pleasure grounds |
|
stūnāya- |
columned |
|
ustacanā- |
staircase |
|
huvaipašiya- |
self |
|
dasta- |
hand |
|
dāraya- (+ place) |
Stay near, dwell (in/at) |
|
drauga- |
The Lie |
|
drayah- |
sea |
|
duruva- |
Healthy, whole, safe |
|
fraharavam |
Clockwise (?) |
|
fra-naya- |
To bring forth |
|
fratama- |
foremost |
|
gaiθā- |
Herd, livestock |
|
gāθu- |
Place, throne |
|
maškā- |
Inflated hide (used for ferrying) |