Grammar - The case system of Sumerian will be discussed in more depth, including the ergativity of the language. The concepts introduced in Hayes Lesson 2 will be gone over facarefully. We will read our first rather lengthy royal inscription in Old Sumerian.
Reading: Foxvog Chapter 2, Hayes Lesson 2
Cuneiform Text: Gudea E3/1.1.7.8
Sumerian Normalized Text: Ur-Nanshe E1.9.1.2, E1.9.1.6b
These royal inscriptions come from Ur-Nanshe, an early king of Lagash, and the founder of a dynasty of notable rulers of the city-state. While most of his texts are dedicatory and contain little in the way of narrative content, it is important to take a look at some of the conventions in these early texts and compare them to later texts from the same dynasty (Eannatum, Enannatum, Akurgal, etc.). Note the utilization (or lack thereof) of determinatives in these texts, as well as the titulary. Ur-Nanshe utilizes the Sumerian term lugal when describing himself as king/ruler of Lagash, but describes his enemies as “lu”, man/leader, or ensi in various contexts. We will be comparing the utilization of various royal titles throughout this course in order to better understand the nuances in the meaning of the various Sumerian royal terms (lugal, ensi, en, ensi-gar, lu, etc.).
Vocabulary
|
Inanna |
The goddess Ishtar |
|
Ki-en-gi (Kengir?) |
Sumer |
|
Ki-uri |
Akkad |
|
nin |
lady |
|
nitah |
male |
|
kalag |
To be strong |
|
bad |
Wall, fortification |
|
e |
House, temple |
|
lugal |
king |
|
gal |
great |
|
lu |
man |
|
ensi |
Ruler. governor |
|
en |
lord |
|
dub |
To bury |
|
dab5 |
To capture |