Ud (cuneiform)

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A style of ud/ut (inside ka (cuneiform), KA x UD). B051ellst.png
A style of ud/ut (inside ka (cuneiform), KA x UD).
Inscription at the British Museum
Sign ut/ud, last sign in line 1.
Line 1: im, u, an, sur-(or =AMAR), and ud.
(high resolution expandible photo) Flickr - Nic's events - British Museum with Cory and Mary, 6 Sep 2007 - 163.jpg
Inscription at the British Museum
Sign ut/ud, last sign in line 1.
Line 1: im, u, an, ṣur-(or =AMAR), and ud.
(high resolution expandible photo)

The cuneiform ud sign, also ut, and with numerous other syllabic and Sumerogram uses, is a common sign for the mid 14th-century BC Amarna letters and the Epic of Gilgamesh . The sign is constructed upon the single vertical stroke C+B-Persia-Cuneiform1.PNG , with various positionings of two wedge-strokes C+B-Persia-Cuneiform10.PNG at the left, sometimes approximately centered, or often inscribed upwards to the left, the second wedge-stroke (or 'angled line-stroke'), occasionally inscribed/ligatured upon the first. The wedge-strokes can have any size, are often smaller than the vertical, but as an example, Amarna letter EA 256, can be almost as large as the vertical.

In the Epic of Gilgamesh, sign ud is listed as used for the following linguistic elements: [1]

  • lah
  • par
  • pir
  • tam
  • ud
  • ut
  • uṭ

Sumerograms

  • BABBAR--"silver"
  • UD--"daily", "day", (2nd "daily"-(no. 2))
  • UTU--"sun"

The usage numbers for each linguistic element in the Epic of Gilgamesh are as follows: [2] lah--(2), par--(5), pir--(4), tam--(32), --(46), ud--(30), ut--(95), uṭ-(7), BABBAR-(1), UD-(75), UTU-(58).

Amarna letters usage

In the Amarna letters, mid 1300s BC, letters written to the King (Pharaoh) of Egypt (or an official at the Egyptian court), many letters (numbered up to EA 382, about 300+ actual letters, or partials) are written by 'governors' of city-states in Canaan.

C+B-Persia-Cuneiform10.PNG C+B-Persia-Cuneiform10.PNG Sumeriaanse1.png

The Canaanite letters are famous for various forms of a prostration formula, following a 'letter Introduction'. The introduction often states accolades such as: "...(of) My-God(s), My Sun-God,....", or continuing, "My Sun, from, Heaven"-(heaven), sa-me. (Akkadian language: an UTU-ia AN UTU-Sa-Me , English: God-Sun-mine, Heaven-Sun-"Sa-Me", for Akkadian heaven, "šamû". [3] ) "Sun" is here used as UTU. Numerous Canaanite letters use this; other letters, for example Amarna letter EA 34 [4] titled: The Pharaoh's Reproach Answered, addresses the Pharaoh as being honored "daily", referring to Sun God Ra's daily appearanceas "the sun" itself; Akkadian language 'daily', is "ūmussu", [5] and EA 34 uses UD (day, daily), ud-mi.


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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ib (cuneiform)</span> Cuneiform sign

The cuneiform sign ib, is a common-use sign in the Epic of Gilgamesh, the Amarna letters, and other cuneiform texts. Its common usage is syllabic for ib, or alphabetic for i or b/p; the "i" is also exchanged for "e" when spelling specific words in the Akkadian language. Cuneiform ib also can be found as sumerogram URTA,, and for example it is used in the Epic of Gilgamesh for the god's name: Ninurta, spelled DNIN.URTA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Di (cuneiform)</span> Cuneiform sign

The cuneiform di sign, also de, ṭe, ṭi, and sumerograms DI and is a common-use sign of the Epic of Gilgamesh, the 1350 BC Amarna letters, and other cuneiform texts. In the Akkadian language for forming words, it can be used syllabically for: de, di, ṭe, and ṭi; also alphabetically for letters d, , e, or i. Some consonant-pairs (d/t), are also interchangeable.

References

  1. Parpola, 1971. The Standard Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh , Sign List, pp. 155-165, Sign No. 381, p. 162.
  2. Parpola, 1971. The Standard Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh , Sign List, pp. 155-165, Sign No. 381, p. 162.
  3. Parpola, 1971. The Standard Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh , Glossary, pp. 119-145, šamû, p. 140.
  4. Moran, William L. 1987, 1992, The Amarna Letters, letter EA 34, The Pharaoh's Reproach Answered, pp. 105-107.
  5. Parpola, 1971. The Standard Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh , Glossary, pp. 119-145, ūmussu, p. 144.