Basic principles with the Sumerian Grammar 8

koot van wyk (DLitt et Phil; ThD)

Kyungpook National University

Sangju Campus

South Korea

Conjoint lecturer of Avondale College

Australia

17 August 2010

This is the 8th treatment of the subject on Sumerian Grammar. The term Dative means "to me, with me, for me, in me". The term Accusative means a direct object. Dative is the indirect object. He gave to me the book. He (Nominative or Subject) gave (Verb) to me (Dative = Indirect Object) the book (Accusative = Direct Object).

Dative Prefix

to me                  ma-

to you                 -ra-

to him, her          -na-

to it, them           ba-(impersonal)

to us                   me-

to you                 -e-ne-

to them               -ne-(personal)

What it actually is, is that a pronominal element /m/ is connected to a case element /a/ and that is how ma- is made (Foxvog 2010: 73).

ma-an-šúm           He gave it to me

dative = to me;       accusative = it; verb = 3rd person singular

nu-ma-an-šúm      He gave it not to me

negative = not; dative; accusative; verb

ì-ra-an-šúm         He gave it to you

prosthetic /i/ by some dialects; dative; accusative; verb

nu-ra-an-šúm       He gave it not to you

ba-an-šúm           He gave it to them

la-ba-an-šúm       He gave it not to them

In this case nu+ba becomes la+ba (Foxvog 2010: 73)

lugal-e engar-ra še ì-na-an-šúm

The king gave barley to the farmer.

agent+patient+accusative+prosthetic vowel + dative + accusative prefix + verb

énsi-ke₄      lú-ne-er     nì-ba ì-ne-en-šúm

xxxxxx       ________    OOO  ++++++++++

The governor     gave                   gifts to the men

xxxxxxxxxx         ++++ OOO __________

diĝir-ĝu₁₀ nam-lugal ma-an-šúm

god + my; kingship; to me + it + verb

My god gave kingship to me.

nam-ti-šù ì-ra-an-šúm

To you he gave long life.

long life; he, to you, it, he gave

um-ma-bé ad-gi₄-gi₄ ba-an-šúm ab-ba-bé inim-inim-ma ba-an-šúm

To its old women he gave advising, to its old men he gave consulting

women, old; advising; to them, it, he gave; men, old;

[Text: Curse of Agade 29-30 Old Babylonian Period 1980-1750 BCE]

inim diĝir-ra an-e ba-te

the word of the god to heaven it approached to it

The word of the god approached heaven

lugal-ra ì-na-te

It approached the king

to the king, it approached to him

Prefix ba-

It may be an ablative marker (away from, out of) and used with dimensional ablative case elements (-ta-, and -ra-) (Foxvog 2010: 75).

There is a derivation transition here involved since Foxvog listed also the prospective preformative ù-, which is derived from the word for day, time = u₄. The other case is the dimensional prefix -da- which derives from da = side (see Falkenstein ZA 45 [1939]: 180f; op. cit. Foxvog 2010: 75).

The prefix ba- with an ablative meaning is seen with verbs of actual or figurative taking away, destroying, spatial or temporal removal from the area of speech situation (Foxvog 2010: 75).

The ba- prefix may also function in the place of the prefixed prosthetic vowel /i/ like in é ba-dù = the house was built. Some scholars are thinking that it is a voice in Sumerian, with a passive or medio-passive indication (C. Wilcke, Archiv für Orientforschung 25 [1974/77]: 85 at note 6. See also C. Woods, The Grammar of Perspective. The Sumerian Conjugation Prefixes as a System of Voice [Leiden, 2008]).

Bilingual texts from the Old Babylonian period (1980-1750 BCE) (OBGT = Old Babylonian Grammatical Texts) are showing us that the prefix ba- functions at times the same as the Akkadian verbal infix -t- with four meanings: separative [ablative], passive, reflexive, and perfect (Foxvog 2010: 75).

For the scholar of the Bible and the book of Daniel, this Akkadian verbal infix -t- is very important since in Daniel 11:40, it states that the King of the North will be [infix -t- inside the root for "hair"] "in each other's hair". Since Daniel was writing from Sushan, we remember the picture on CNN of the presumed King of the North = Iraq, Saddam Hussein when he was captured. It appears that Daniel foresaw this CNN picture and described it accurately with a passive or reflexive infix -t- within the root for hair.

Because Akkadian and Sumerian originated together after the Tower of Babel (ca. 2520 BCE) the languages belong together (Sprachbund) since they come from the same linguistic area and thus, the copyists of Old Sumerian texts in the Old Babylonian period by Akkadian scribes sometimes applied the prefix ba- for the verbal infix -t- in Akkadian (Foxvog 2010: 75).

In Old Sumerian the prefix ba- can occur with the 2nd, 3rd persons dative prefix, thus ba-ra-; ba-na-; and ba-ne-. It cannot occur with the 1st person. However, by error some Akkadian copyists of the Old Babylonian period created a forced and artificial 1st person ba-ma- or ba-me- (OBGT VII 207-208 and 219-229, op. cit. Foxvog 2010: 75).

Thomsen and Falkenstein view the prefix ba- as a conjugation prefix but Foxvog disagrees (Foxvog 2010: 75).

ba- used to resume locative-terminative goals

a na₈-na₈ nu-na-šúm-mu anše a na₈-na₈ nu-ba-šúm-mu

He used not to give him (-na-) drinking water,

he used not to give the donkeys (-e-) drinking water

[Text: Ukg 6 2:6'-9' Old Sumerian period and a text from the time of Urukagina].

a = water

na₈-na₈ = drinking

nu-= not

na-= him

šúm-= he give

mu

anše = donkeys [anše + e]

a = water

na₈-na₈ = drinking

nu- = not

ba- = he

šúm- = he gives

mu

PN-e nu-èš sagi ir₁₁ géme é-e ba-šúm

PN gave a nu'eš-priest, a cup-bearer, and male and female slaves to the temple

(Text: Biga, Festschrift J. Klein 30: 2:9-12 Sargonic times 2305 BCE).

PN-e = personal name

nu-èš = nu'eš-priest

sagi = a cup-bearer

ir₁₁ = male

géme = female

é-e = to the temple

ba- = he

šúm = he gave

alaĝ-na-ni mu-tu nam-šita-e ba-gub

He created his stone figure and set it up for prayer

alaĝ-na-ni = for prayer

mu-tu = he set it up [m+n+tu(d)+Ø]

nam-šita-e = stone figure

ba-gub = he created [ba+n+gub+Ø]

[Text: Gudea Statue M 2:7-3:2 Ur III period 2114-2004 BCE]

énsi-ke₄ diĝir iri-na-ke₄ rá-zu im-ma-bé

The governor performs a prayer to the god of his city

[Text: Gudea, Cylinder B 1:15 Ur III period 2114-2004 BCE]

énsi-ke₄ = governor

diĝir = god

iri-na-ke₄ = city his of [-(a)ni+ak+Ø]=-(a)-na = of his/her

rá-zu = prayer [see Foxvog 2010: 41]

im-ma-bé = he performs/do

[see Foxvog 2010: 48 for bé at the end of the verbal system].

anzu^mušen-gin₇ gù dúb-da-zu-dè igi-zu-ù a-ba ba-gub

At your making (your) voice quaver like the Anzu bird, who could stand before you?

[Text: Šulgi X 113 Ur III period 2114-2004 BCE]

anzu^mušen- = Anzu bird

gin₇ = like [see Foxvog 2010: 48]

gù = voice

dúb-da-zu-dè = your making quaver [see Foxvog 2010: 32 for the possessive suffix -zu]

igi-zu-ù = witness you

a-ba = It is who? Who is it? [Foxvog 2010: 36]

ba-gub = he could stand

Agentless Verbs with ba-

mu lugal-la ba-pà

A royal oath was sworn

oath, royal, it was sworn

mu lugal-la in-pà

A royal oath he swore

oath, royal, he swore

[Text: legal phrases, Steinkeller, Sales Documents p. 57]

udu ba-urThe sheep were plucked

udu nu-urThe sheep were not plucked

[Text: Standard Ur III administrative terminology, 2114-2004 BCE]

mu é ba-dù

Year the temple of DN was built

mu lugal-e é mu-dù

Year the king built the temple

[Text: Standard Ur III year-formula terminology, 2114-2004]

10,8.0.0 še gur-saĝ+ĝál é-a ba-si

en-ig-gal nu-bànda é-é-bar-dbìl-àga-mes-šè-dù-a ì-si

608 s.-gur of barley were stored in the house;

Eniggal the overseer stored it in the E. -storehouse

[Text: Nik I 83 1:1-2 & 5:4-7 Old Sumerian 2305-2112 BCE]