Sumerian Grammar

by Dietz Otto Edzard

It seems safe to say that this "Sumerian Grammar" by Professor D.O. Edzard will become the new classic reference in the field. It is an up-to-date, reliable guide to the language of the Sumerians, the inventors of cuneiform writing in the late 4th millennium B.C., and thus essential contributors to the high cultural standard of the whole of Mesopotamia and beyond. Following traditional lines, the "Grammar" describes general characteristics, origins, linguistic environment, phonetics and phonology, morphology, syntax, and phraseology. Due attention is given to the symbiosis with Semitic Akkadian, with which Sumerian was to form a veritable linguistic area. With lucid explanations of all technical linguistic theory. Each transliteration carries its English translation.

Genres: Language, Linguistics

191 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

Reviews

[Koen Crolla · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of a muddle, especially in the discussion of the verbal system, and with some obvious gaps, not all of which seem to be due to our deficient understanding of Sumerian (some of them are acknowledged in the final chapter). I appreciate that Edzard doesn't shy away from Akkadian even outside the chapter specifically dedicated to Akkadian/Sumerian interaction—you don't need to know Akkadian to follow the discussion, but it definitely makes it more interesting.

[André · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe this book is linguistically exact, but I dislike the writing style. It's really hard to read and difficult to grasp. That's why I didn't like it. An expert on Sumerian assured me that the book here is quite accurate, but he agrees with me that it's not really written in linguistic standards.