Run · Proto-cuneiform: the archaic texts of Uruk
Labels or names: element-reuse profile of the archaic names
Two caveats. Partly phonetic Early Dynastic spelling concentrates signs for reasons of script, so the comparison within the archaic script (names against labels) is the more reliable contrast. The ED I–II reference is a single point, because its pool is smaller than the target.
Result
| Run | Measured | Result | Against | Decision | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Run | Five order-free reuse metrics at matched token count (1,103), archaic names against 200 subsamples each of archaic administrative entries and Early Dynastic names | {'m3_ttr': {'ED': [0.149, 0.211], 'names': 0.191, 'labels': [0.242, 0.272], 'verdict': 'NAME-LIKE'}, 'overall': 'NAME-LIKE', 'm1_reuse': {'ED': [0.54, 0.671], 'names': 0.569, 'labels': [0.505, 0.601], 'verdict': 'UNDECIDED'}, 'm2_top10': {'ED': [0.315, 0.373], 'names': 0.317, 'labels': [0.194, 0.236], 'verdict': 'NAME-LIKE'}, 'm4_pairs': {'ED': [0.478, 0.66], 'names': 0.382, 'labels': [0.249, 0.379], 'verdict': 'UNDECIDED'}, 'm5_repeat': {'ED': [0.198, 0.342], 'names': 0.3, 'labels': [0.208, 0.268], 'verdict': 'NAME-LIKE'}} | Archaic Uruk III administrative non-name entries of length 1–7 (labels) · Early Dynastic I–II, IIIa, IIIb lemmatized personal names (names) | NAME-LIKE by the pre-declared majority rule: three metrics name-like, two undecided, none label-like. The archaic name entries behave as a naming system, not as ordinary administrative designations. |
What it used and found
DAT
ANS
The archaic names form a real naming system that is not Sumerian
EVDEvidence it produced
EVD
The names are not drawn from the ordinary sign stock the way labels are
EVDEvidence it produced
Figures 1
Figure 1
Archaic names concentrate their signs like real names, not like the labels around them
Share of sign tokens covered by the 10 commonest signs, at 1,103 tokens; 200 subsamples per reference, median and 95% range; CDLI Uruk III and Oracc ePSD2
median / observed95% low95% high
Drawn by the site
Parameters
rule = name-like if inside ED name 95% range and outside label range, label-like if the reverse, majority of 5 metrics, unit = entry as an unordered sign multiset, note_ed12 = ED I-II pool (326 names, 721 tokens) is smaller than the target, so every subsample is the whole pool and its range is a point, subsamples = 200, matched_tokens = 1103
Cite it
Mysteries Department. (2026). Labels or names: element-reuse profile of the archaic names [Run RUN0DG2MEXJ8YZH]. https://mysteriesdept.com/r/RUN0DG2MEXJ8YZH
@misc{mysteriesdept_run0dg2mexj8yzh,
title = {Labels or names: element-reuse profile of the archaic names},
author = {{Mysteries Department}},
year = {2026},
note = {Run, catalog key RUN0DG2MEXJ8YZH},
url = {https://mysteriesdept.com/r/RUN0DG2MEXJ8YZH}
}