Canaano-Akkadian language
| Canaano-Akkadian | |
|---|---|
| Region | Canaan |
Afro-Asiatic
| |
| Sumero-Akkadian cuneiform | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | – |
Canaano-Akkadian or Amarna Canaanite is an ancient Semitic language which was the written language of the Amarna letters from Canaan, Alashiya and Amurru.[1][2][3] It is a mixed language with mainly Akkadian vocabulary and Canaanite grammatical features. It has been variously described as a Canaanite dialect of Akkadian, Canaanite coded in Sumero-Akkadian cuneiform and a purely scribal language.[4]
Linguistic features
[edit]Canaano-Akkadian combined the Akkadian lexicon with Canaanite grammar, which influenced the syntax and morphology of the language. As such, the hybridization manifested in numerous ways, including:[1]
- Akkadian verbs were conjugated using Canaanite verb affixes, using the Akkadian term's 3MS form as the base.
- a change i > e, seen in Canaano-Akkadian edin, for Akkadian idin, "give!".
- elision of vowels between the root radicals r and b, seen in CA tîrbu for Akk. têrubu, "you enter".
- a change -Vn > -CV in words which end with the energic marker -(n)na followed by a suffix or enclitic participle, seen in CA ištimûš+šu for Akk. ištemun+šu, "I have heard it"; and CA nûbbalûš+šu for Akk. nubbalun+šu, "we must bring him".
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b Izre'el, Sh. "Canaano-Akkadian: Some Methodological Requisites for the Study of the Amarna Letters from Canaan" (PDF).
- ^ Izre'el, Sh. (1998). Canaano-Akkadian. Lincom Europa.
- ^ Mandell 2015, p. 26
- ^ Mandell 2015, p. 24
Bibliography
[edit]- Mandell, Alice Helene (2015). Scribalism and Diplomacy at the Crossroads of Cuneiform Culture: The Sociolinguistics of Canaano-Akkadian (PDF) (PhD thesis). University of California Los Angeles.
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