Freethought & Rationalism Archive

mark9950 · 05-20-2003, 04:25 PM

Who wrote and spoke in akkadian?

I know that archaeologists have found akkadian writings in stone.

What were their religion?Was the bible ever translated from akkadian to hebrew?

Viti · 05-20-2003, 04:33 PM

Quote:

Akkadian is one of the great cultural languages of world history. Akkadian (or Babylonian-Assyrian) is the collective name for the spoken languages of the culture in the three millennia BCE in Mesopotamia, the area between the rivers Euphrates and Tigris, approx. covering modern Irak. The name Akkadian --so called in ancient time-- is derived from the city-state of Akkad, founded in the middle of the third millennium BCE and capital of one of the first great empires after the dawn of human history. The downfall of Akkad is described (in literary terms) in the curse of Akkad, but the name has continued to be used for millennia since. http://saturn.sron.nl/~jheise/akkadian/

Great site, talks about what writings have been found dealing with topics like laws and religion

Why would the Bible have been translated from Akkadian to Hebrew. Do you mean from Hebrew to Akkadian?

mark9950 · 05-20-2003, 05:49 PM

Were there two languages at that time akkadian and hebrew?

Which language is older.

Also about abraham since he lived in ur which is near ancient babylon/mesopotamia which language did he speak hebrew or akkadian?

I was inferencing that the bibles original tablets and papyrus maybe was translated from ancient akkadian to hebrew.

Viti · 05-20-2003, 09:13 PM

Well, according to that site, Akkadian is a collective name of several Semitic languages. Another site says it was much more regionalized in what is today Iraq.

Quote:

Akkadian was spoken in parts of what is today Iraq. From about 2000 BC, two dialects of Akkadian are known: Babylonian, which was spoken in southern Mesopotamia and Assyrian, which was spoken in the north. As spoken languages, they were succeeded by Aramaic in the 6th century BC, but as a literary language Akkadian survived approximately until the beginning of the Christian era. http://www.phoenicia.org/semlang.html

But, Akkadian may have been the "official" language of the region for legal and political purposes

Quote:

The main Canaanite languages are Phoenician, Punic, Moabite, Edomite, Hebrew and Ammonite. Initially all these were written in Phoenician script. Letters from the 14th century BC, written in Akkadian, the language of diplomacy at the time and discovered at Tell el-Amarna in Egypt, contain 'mistakes' which are actually early Phoenician Canaanite words and phrases.

I don't think it is possible to know whether the old testament was written in some other language first. I don't see why it would have been because the Hebrews developed from other Sumerian peoples and their polytheistic religions. It is far more likely the OT was merely transcriptions of oral traditions and legends written at a later time.

I am curious as to why you are asking, do you have a hypothesis you want to throw out there?

Viti · 05-20-2003, 09:19 PM

This is from a theistic POV

Quote:

Abraham probably knew one or two of the great world-class languages of his day. Growing up in or near Ur, he would have known the language of Mesopotamia, called Akkadian, which is preserved to us today in many ancient documents and inscriptions. He might also have learned Egyptian while in Egypt, which is also preserved in many documents and inscriptions. As a shepherding nomad, Abraham would have known Amorite or some form of Arabic, probably as his mother tongue. In addition, it is almost certain that he knew Aramaic. But Abraham moved to Canaan, and his large household there would have included many Canaanite servants. His two sons grew up speaking southern Canaanite, and so did his grandson Jacob. So when Jacob and Laban named a monument they had built, Laban gave it an Aramaic name, but Jacob gave it a Canaanite name (Genesis 31:47)! Jacob�s descendents continued to speak this language (as did Lot�s, the Moabites), and we know it today as "Hebrew." http://www.newwway.org/strategy_netw...age_choice.htm

jayh · 05-21-2003, 06:15 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by LadyShea
This is from a theistic POV

Abraham probably knew one or two of the great world-class languages of his day. Growing up in or near Ur, he would have known the language of Mesopotamia, called Akkadian,

It's only natural that Abraham would know lots of languages since he is a compendum of multiple characters.By the time that the early OT was compiled (starting about the 7th Century), the area of Sumaria was thought of as high culture, so it was natural that the purported ancestor of the nation originated there.

j

Marduk · 05-21-2003, 03:45 PM

"I don't think it is possible to know whether the old testament was written in some other language first. I don't see why it would have been because the Hebrews developed from other Sumerian peoples and their polytheistic religions"

I don't believe the Sumerians were Semites. Sumer was conquered by Semites ca. 2270 BCE, Sargon the Great. IIRC that is when Sumerian became Akkadian.
Akkadian scribes often had difficulty translating Sumerian to Akkadian since Sumerian is a non-Semitic language

05-20-2003, 04:25 PM	#1
mark9950 Banned Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: midwest usa Posts: 1,203	Who were the people Who wrote and spoke in akkadian? I know that archaeologists have found akkadian writings in stone. What were their religion?Was the bible ever translated from akkadian to hebrew?

05-20-2003, 05:49 PM	#3
mark9950 Banned Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: midwest usa Posts: 1,203	At that time Were there two languages at that time akkadian and hebrew? Which language is older. Also about abraham since he lived in ur which is near ancient babylon/mesopotamia which language did he speak hebrew or akkadian? I was inferencing that the bibles original tablets and papyrus maybe was translated from ancient akkadian to hebrew.

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version	Search this Thread: Advanced Search

05-21-2003, 03:45 PM	#7
Marduk Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: the 10th planet Posts: 5,065	"I don't think it is possible to know whether the old testament was written in some other language first. I don't see why it would have been because the Hebrews developed from other Sumerian peoples and their polytheistic religions" I don't believe the Sumerians were Semites. Sumer was conquered by Semites ca. 2270 BCE, Sargon the Great. IIRC that is when Sumerian became Akkadian. Akkadian scribes often had difficulty translating Sumerian to Akkadian since Sumerian is a non-Semitic language

Freethought & Rationalism Archive

The archives are read only.