Alphabet scribes in the land of cuneiform : sēpiru professionals in Mesopotamia in the neo-Babylonian and Achaemenid periods /

Alphabet scribes in the land of cuneiform : sēpiru professionals in Mesopotamia in the neo-Babylonian and Achaemenid periods /

Saved in:

Bibliographic Details
Author / Creator:	Bloch, Yigal, author.
Imprint:	Piscataway, NJ, USA : Gorgias Press, 2018. ©2018
Description:	xv, 497 pages ; 24 cm.
Language:	English
Series:	Gorgias studies in the ancient Near East ; 11 Gorgias studies in the ancient Near East ; 11.
Subject:	Scribes -- Iraq -- Babylonia. Alphabet. Cuneiform writing. Semitic languages -- Alphabet. Alphabet. Cuneiform writing. Scribes. Semitic languages -- Alphabet. Middle East -- Babylonia.
Format:	Print Book
URL for this record:	http://pi.lib.uchicago.edu/1001/cat/bib/11703849

Hidden Bibliographic Details
ISBN:	9781463206352 1463206356
Notes:	Includes bibliographical references and index.
Summary:	This book discusses the alphabetic scribes (sēpiru) mentioned in Mesopotamian documents of the Neo-Babylonian and Achaemenid periods - specifically, of the 6th-5th centuries BCE. The period in question saw a wide diffusion of writing in the Northwest Semitic alphabetic script - mostly in Aramaic - in Mesopotamia; yet, alphabetic texts were normally written in ink on perishable materials and did not survive to be discovered by modern archaeologists. In contrast, cuneiform tablets written on clay have been found in large numbers, and they document different aspects of the alphabetic scribes' activities. This book presents evidence for understanding the Akkadian term sēpiru as a designation for an alphabetic scribe and discusses the functions of these professionals in different administrative and economic spheres. It further considers the question of the ethnic origins of the alphabetic scribes in Mesopotamia, with special attention to the participation of Judeans in Babylonia in this profession. Bloch also provides translations of over 100 cuneiform documents of economic, legal and administrative content.

Regenstein, Bookstacks

Loading map link

Holdings details from Regenstein, Bookstacks
Call Number:	PJ3019 .B57 2018
c.1	Available Loan period: standard loan Scan and Deliver Request for Pickup Need help? - Ask a Librarian