An Assyrian gypsum cuneiform dedicatory panel, reign of Tukulti-Ninurta I, circa 1243-1207 BC. Of rectangular form, finely engraved on both sides, with 280 lines of text divided into eight columns ...

It’s not a language. It’s not an alphabet, either, exactly. But if you want to read the original Epic of Gilgamesh, or study the trade records of the ancient Sumerians, cuneiform is the only game in ...

Deciphering ancient languages and texts has been a challenge for archaeologists for generations. Now, researchers are using artificial intelligence to quickly translate ancient texts and languages ...

1. The Sumerian Account of the Invention of Writing -- 2. Time and Place of the Invention -- 3. Received Ideas: The Pictographic Origins of Cuneiform Writing -- 4. Received Ideas: The Origin of ...

Though Akkadian as a spoken language in Mesopotamia died out toward the end of the first millennium B.C., cuneiform continued to be used by temple scribes and astrologers. Greek scholars are known to ...

Archaeologists have recently discovered a previously unknown ancient language from an ancient tablet during excavations in Turkey. According to the Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg in Germany, ...

It’s important to use the right words when writing about writing. Scholars studying the history of it distinguish between pre-writing symbols used to mark objects and more precise marks that establish ...

A recently discovered clay tablet telling part of the Epic of Gilgamesh in cuneiform. Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin FRCP/Wikimedia Indeed, the Iraqi dictator was said to be so immersed in his ...

For more than 3,000 years, hieroglyphs were used to write the language of ancient Egypt. Then the script disappeared from use. The latest known hieroglyphic inscription was carved by a priest into the ...