r/Cuneiform

Hi everyone, I am quite new to Assiriology (without any real academic training) but really want to learn the basicest of Sumerian to translate very daily texts (receipts etc) that sometimes aren't translated.

Original post is linked.

From the help of a user here, it was translated. If they want me to take this down let me know.

Beginning of message!

Brick inscription of

KING UNTASH-NAPIRISHA OF ELAM, 1340-1300 BC. (Middle Elamite Period)

The complete brick inscription as known from many duplicate is given; only the ends of the lines are preserved on this example; the restored parts are between square brackets.

Susa-Choga-Zambil no. 1 (=EKI 12). This is a duplicate of many similar bricks from the sites of Susa and Choga-Zambil in Iran.

(1) ] [ù un-taš-DINGIR.GAL ša-ak dhu-ban-um-me-en-na-ki su-un]-ki-ik an-za-an
(2) [šu-šu-un-ka ta-a k-me ú-me tu4-ur-hi-ih si-it]-me ú-me šu-ul-lu-me-ga
(3) [az-ki-it tu4-ur sah -ri hu-šu-ya in-gi hi-en-ga] in di-ig-ga a-gi
(4) [si-ya-an ú -pa-at hu-us-si-ip-me ku-ku-un]-nu-um up-kum-mi-ia ku-ši-ih
(5) [d.in-šu-uš-na-ak si-ya-an-ku-uk-ra5 in] du-ni-ih ú zig-ra-tu4-me
(6) [ ki-ik-ki-te-eh hu-ut-tak-ha-l i-ik ú-me din-šu-uš]-na-ak ul-li-na te-la-ak-ni

(1) I (am) Untash-Napirisha, son of Humbannumena, king of Anzan
(2) and Susa, in order that I preserve my life and my reign of well-being,
(3) the extinction of lineage may not be granted to me (at the time of) judgment (?), for that (reason)
(4-5) I built a temple of baked bricks, a high temple of glazed bricks, and to (the god) Inshushinak of Siyankuk "of the sacred precinct"
(6) I gave/dedicated it. I raised a ziggurat (complex). May my work/deed be acceptable to Inshushinak as a gift.

There are a number of variant translations of this brick – as for most Elamite inscriptions -- as Elamite language is still poorly known.

The most common inscribed bricks at Choga Zanbil, some 70 % of the total number, had the same Elamite text as this brick. A total of 662 bricks with this inscription were still found in situ in the walls of ziggurrat. A limited number of bricks with this inscription were also reported to have been found in Susa. According to texts inscribed on more than 5,000 bricks, at least 18 different deities were worshipped in more than 50 shrines at the site. The Choga Zanbil ziqqurrat was built principally of sundried mud-bricks covered with a 2 m thick shell of baked brick.

End of message!

Based on that translation, I've created a more human readable interpretation:

I am Untash-Napirisha, son of Humbannumena, king of Anzan and Susa. May my life be preserved, my reign endure, and my royal line never come to an end. Therefore I built a grand temple of baked and glazed brick and dedicated it to the god Inshushinak of Siyankuk, of the Sacred Precinct. I raised a ziggurat. May Inshushinak accept my work as an offering.

Very neat stuff.

I really hope someone here can help me. I’ve been looking for this poem for years. I believe I heard it in a video with Irving Finkel, but I might be mistaken.

In my memory it was a love poem, written in first person, about the writer not wanting to work in the fields but would rather run away with their love. I remember it sticking with me that even some thousands of years ago, people still just wanted freedom and to be with the person they loved.

This is all I remember. I’ve tried searching through the years but got nowhere.

I really hope someone here can help me finally find it.

Thank you.

Hello, I am an amateur musician who is currently interested in making myths and poem inspired music. I would like to find a way to vocalise some lines from the Baal Cycle and Ugaritic magic spells/recipes for my pieces.

I’ve looked into Mark Smith’s and Simon Parker’s translation and vocalisation but lines that I would like to include were not vocalised.

Is there any ways to just get a relatively accurate vocalisation? Or an easy way to just learn the pronunciation?

In the unlikely event you haven’t already bankrupted yourself shopping for Hittite reference materials, you can own a reproduction cuneiform (NOT Hittite, alas) tablet!

The Penn Museum (formerly the University Museum) in Philadelphia is one of the most interesting museums I have ever visited. It is amazing — real Indiana Jones stuff. What I deeply appreciate about the joint is that it keeps all of the mummies in one room and has a big sign over the door, saying, “Beware, mummies, keep out if you don’t want to see mummies!” (Okay, I fibbed about the last part. But they do keep the dead bodies separate. They even have cat mummies.) It has an excellent specialized library, which I have visited in order to spend hours slaving over a hot xerox machine. It also has a gift shop.

If you click on the link for the gift shop, you will find on offer about half a dozen reproduction cuneiform tablets, reasonably priced, from roughly $10-$35. I have one myself, the small square black one with the white incisions, and it’s very nice.

Dear all,

I have entered this bible verse into the online English to Old Persian translation tool:

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

This was the automated translation generated:

𐎠𐎺𐎼𐎶 𐏐 𐎲𐎥 𐏐 𐎠𐎺𐎰𐎠 𐏐 𐎭𐎠𐎼𐎹𐎫𐎡𐎹 𐏐 𐎲𐎢𐎷𐎡𐎶 𐏐 𐎹𐎰𐎠 𐏐 𐎳𐎼𐎠𐎲𐎼𐎫 𐏐 𐎠𐎻𐎠𐎴𐎠𐎶 𐏐 𐎱𐎢𐎰𐎼𐎶 𐏐 𐏃𐎢𐎺𐎠𐎴𐎠𐎶 𐏐 𐎠𐎡𐎺𐎶 𐏐 𐎹𐎰𐎠 𐏐 𐎣𐎠𐎿𐎨𐎡𐎹 𐏐 𐎠𐎻𐎠𐎡𐎫𐎡𐎹 𐏐 𐎴𐎠𐎡𐎹 𐏐 𐎠𐎺𐎶𐎼𐎡𐎹𐎠𐎫𐎡𐎹 𐏐 𐎠𐎰𐎠 𐏐 𐎠𐎴𐎢𐏁𐎡𐎹𐎺𐎠𐎶 𐏐 𐎠𐎼𐎠𐎲𐎠𐎫𐎡𐎹

Transliteration: avaram baga avathā dārayatiy būmim yathā frābarat avānām puθram hauvānām aivam yathā kāsacaiy avāitiy nāiy avamariyātiy athā anušiyavām arābatiy

Could you please comment on the accuracy of this translation?

Feel free to provide your own translation of this bible verse into Old Persian or alternatively you can improve on the automated translation above by leaving a comment below with your translated text.

In respect to Sumerian dictionaries, has anyone got any opinions on the one written by M Lafayette ? I know Cohen has got one but That’s a tad pricey. Thanks.