# Sumerogram

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{{Short description|Use of Sumerian cuneiform}}
{{more citations needed|date=September 2023}}
[[File:British Museum Foundation Tablet.jpg|thumb|upright|alt=Rectangle stone tablet with cuneiform inscription|Foundation tablet from the [Temple of Inanna](/source/Temple_of_Inanna) at [Uruk](/source/Uruk), dating to the reign of [Ur-Nammu](/source/Ur-Nammu), featuring the Sumerogram {{cuneiform|akk| 𒈗}} ({{Transliteration|sux|[LUGAL](/source/LUGAL)|italic=no}}) on the left of the last two rows.]]

A '''Sumerogram''' is the use of a [Sumerian](/source/Sumerian_language) [cuneiform](/source/cuneiform) character or group of characters as an [ideogram](/source/ideogram) or [logogram](/source/logogram) rather than a [syllabogram](/source/syllabogram) in the graphic representation of a language other than Sumerian, such as [Akkadian](/source/Akkadian_language), [Eblaite](/source/Eblaite_language), or [Hittite](/source/Hittite_language). This type of logogram characterized, to a greater or lesser extent, every adaptation of the original Mesopotamian cuneiform system to a language other than Sumerian. The frequency and intensity of their use varied depending on period, style, and genre. In the same way, a written Akkadian word that is used ideographically to represent a language other than Akkadian (such as Hittite) is known as an ''Akkadogram''.{{sfnp|Kogan|Krebernik|2021|pp=672–673}}

In the [transliteration](/source/transliteration) of ancient texts Sumerograms are normally represented by [majuscule](/source/majuscule) letters. Most signs have a number of possible Sumerian sound values. The scribes and readers of texts using these Sumerograms would not necessarily have been aware of the Sumerian language, with the ''Sumerograms'' functioning as ideograms or logogram to be substituted in pronunciation by the intended word in the text's language, such as Akkadian.{{sfnp|Powell|2009|p=80}}

== Transliteration and examples ==
{{further|Transliterating cuneiform languages}}

In modern [Assyriological](/source/Assyriology) convention, a cuneiform sign used in this way is transliterated according to its Sumerian pronunciation in non-italic majuscule letters with dots separating the signs.{{sfnp|Streck|2021|pp=72–73}} [Determinative](/source/Determinative)s appear only as [superscript](/source/superscript)s.{{sfnp|Streck|2021|pp=73}} For example, the [Babylonia](/source/Babylonia)n name [Marduk](/source/Marduk) is written in Sumerograms, as {{Transliteration|sux|<sup>[d](/source/dingir)</sup>AMAR.UTU|italic=no}}. Hittite [Kurunta](/source/Kurunta) is usually written as {{cuneiform|hit|𒀭𒆗}} ({{Transliteration|sux|<sup>d</sup>LAMMA|italic=no}}), where {{Transliteration|sux|LAMMA|italic=no}} is the Sumerogram for 'stag', the Luwian deity Kurunta being associated with this animal.

In the [Amarna letters](/source/Amarna_letters), [Lady of the Lions](/source/Lady_of_the_Lions) is the name of a Babylonian Queen mother, spelled as {{Transliteration|sux|[NIN](/source/NIN_(cuneiform)).UR.MAH.MEŠ|italic=no}}. While the meaning 'lady ({{Transliteration|sux|NIN|italic=no}}) of the lions' ({{Transliteration|sux|UR.MAH.MEŠ|italic=no}}) is evident, the intended pronunciation is [Assyrian](/source/Ancient_Assyrian_language) and must be conjectured from external evidence.

== See also ==
{{Portal|Asia}}
{{Commons category|Sumerograms}}
* [Aramaeogram](/source/Aramaeogram)s in [Pahlavi scripts](/source/Pahlavi_scripts)
* [Heterogram](/source/Heterogram_(linguistics))s
* [Hittite cuneiform](/source/Hittite_cuneiform)
* [Sinogram](/source/Chinese_characters)s in East Asian writing systems, including [Hanja](/source/Hanja), [Kanji](/source/Kanji), and [Chữ Hán](/source/Ch%E1%BB%AF_H%C3%A1n)

== References ==

=== Citations ===
{{Reflist}}

=== Bibliography ===
{{Refbegin}}
* {{Cite book |last=Powell |first=Barry B. |title=Writing: theory and history of the technology of civilization |date=2009 |publisher=Wiley-Blackwell |isbn=978-1-4051-6256-2 |location=Chichester, UK |url=https://archive.org/details/writingtheoryhis0000powe/}}
* {{Cite book |title=History of the Akkadian language, 2 volumes |date=2021 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-44520-8 |editor-last=Vita |editor-first=Juan-Pablo |series=Handbook of Oriental studies |location=Leiden}}
** {{Cite encyclopedia |title=Eblaite |encyclopedia=History of the Akkadian language |publisher=Brill |location=Leiden |date=2021 |editor-last=Vita |editor-first=Juan-Pablo |series=Handbook of Oriental studies |volume=1 |isbn=978-90-04-44520-8 |last2=Krebernik |first2=Manfred |first1=Leonid |last1=Kogan}}
** {{Cite encyclopedia |title=Akkadian and Cuneiform |encyclopedia=History of the Akkadian language |publisher=Brill |location=Leiden |date=2021 |editor-last=Vita |editor-first=Juan-Pablo |series=Handbook of Oriental studies |volume=1 |isbn=978-90-04-44520-8 |first1=Michael P. |last1=Streck}}
{{Refend}}

Category:Sumerograms
Category:Sumerian words and phrases

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Sumerogram](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumerogram) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumerogram?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.