The Meroitic Language and Writing SystemThis book provides an introduction to the Meroitic language and writing system, which was used between circa 300 BC and 400 AD in the kingdom of Meroe, located in what is now Sudan and Egyptian Nubia. This book details advances in the understanding of Meroitic, a language that until recently was considered untranslatable. In addition to providing a full history of the script and an analysis of the phonology, grammar and linguistic affiliation of the language it features: linguistic analyses for those working on Nilo-Saharan comparative linguistics, paleographic tables useful to archaeologists for dating purposes and an overview of texts that can be translated or understood by way of analogy for those working on Nubian religion, history and archaeology. |
Contents
Meroitic Writing | 35 |
Numerals | 56 |
Linguistic Affiliation | 62 |
Facts and Reconstruction | 106 |
Labialized Velars | 112 |
4 | 119 |
Phonetic Correspondences | 128 |
Problems with Identifying the Grammatical Categories | 136 |
The Vocative | 155 |
Case Markers and Postpositions | 156 |
The Pronominal Object Suffix xebxe Verbal Dative | 158 |
Postpositions | 159 |
B The Presentative Construction | 163 |
The Copula okwi | 164 |
Presentative Clauses with Topicalization | 165 |
Pronouns and Complex Pronouns | 166 |
The Nominal or Noun Phrase | 138 |
The Historical Derivation of the Determinant | 140 |
The Roles of the Determinant | 141 |
e Other Possible Determinants | 143 |
The Adjective | 144 |
The Apposition | 145 |
The Genitive | 146 |
a The Synthetic Genitive | 147 |
b The Analytic Genitive | 149 |
The Use of the Two Genitives | 150 |
by the Separator? 2 General Typology of the Meroitic Language | 151 |
The Suffix yose | 152 |
The Plural of Nouns | 153 |
a The Historical Derivation of the Suffix Plural b | 154 |
Verbal Morphology | 167 |
The Verbal Structures | 168 |
The Negative Marker m | 171 |
Coordination and Subordination | 172 |
Conclusions | 174 |
Glossary | 183 |
List of the Rulers of Kush | 187 |
Appendix | 189 |
132 | 216 |
| 231 | |
| 241 | |
| 243 | |
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Common terms and phrases
1st half 2nd half 3rd century 5th century BC adjective Amanap Amun analytic genitive Apedemak attested Bender benedictions Birgid century BC consonant copula corresponds Darfur dative deity determinant l(i Eastern Sudanic language Egyptian epitaphs example followed formula funerary Gebel genitive governing noun grapheme Greek Griffith Hintze Hofmann indicates inscriptions Isis Karanog Kerma Kordofan lexeme loanwords locative marker Meroe Meroitic language Meroitic word Midob morpheme Napata Nara proto-Nubian proto-Taman nasal Nile Nubian Nilo-Saharan Nobiin nominal phrase North Eastern Sudanic Nuba Mountains Nyimang Old Nubian Osiris percent personal name phonetic place-name plural postposition predicate prefix present priest pronoun PROTO-NES Nara Nubian proto-NES Nara proto-Nubian proto-Nubian proto-Taman proto-Nyima Qasr Ibrim qore reconstructed Rilly royal ruler script speakers spoken suffix suggested syllable synthetic genitive Tama term texts transcr variant velar verb verbal vocative Wadi Howar writing system written yetmde