Hammurabi Cylinder (Sumerian Translation from Old Babylonian Original)
Introduction The following text (LIH 58; E4.3.6.12) is part of a bilingual Sumerian-Akkadian commemorative inscription wherein Hammurabi, the king of Babylon, boasts about his deeds... Read More
Matthew Saunders
Matthew Saunders is a PhD student in the Department of Near Eastern Studies at Johns Hopkins University. He researches the languages and literatures of the ancient Near East, especially Aramaic Studies, Ugaritic Studies, and Comparative Semitics.
A Sumerian Legal Case (ditila): Claim of Property and a Slave (ITT 3/2, pl. 21, 5279; Volk #38)
5 min read
Introduction The following text is a Sumerian legal case, called a ditila, which recounts the litigant’s claim over property and a slave as well as... Read More
Rare Semitic Languages
2 min read
In the future, I will feature information about the rarer (or lesser-known) Semitic languages, such as Neo-Aramaic, Mandaic, Modern South Arabian, and minor Ethiopian Semitic... Read More
Two More (Online) Publications
3 min read
Introduction In a previous post, I drew your attention to Two New (Online) Publications which I wrote for the online Database of Religious History (DRH)... Read More
A Ugaritic Incantation against Snakebite (KTU 1.178 / RS 92.2014)
Introduction Later today, in my Advanced Ugaritic seminar, I will present and lead a discussion on KTU 1.178 (= RS 92.2014), a Ugaritic incantation against... Read More
Semitic Consonant Correspondences
3 min read
Introduction The impetus for this post is my regular need to pull up a chart of Semitic and/or Afro-Asiatic consonant correspondences, mostly for the languages... Read More
M. Richey: A (Brief) Literature Review
10 min read
Introduction Madadh Richey, Assistant Professor of Hebrew Bible at Brandeis University, will be giving a department lecture at Johns Hopkins later today, April 10th, titled... Read More
Learn to Read Ancient Aramaic: E. Cook (2022), Chapter Two, “Orthography”
Introduction This is the second post in a series that provides a resource to learn or review Biblical Aramaic and its related (Middle) Aramaic dialects... Read More