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What about the Sumerian language itself is still unknown after 170 years of study?

Asked 31 Oct 2026 by ·1 answer·0·0 following
One answer, none aheadNone is ahead yet. See what would settle it.

Where it stands

One answer has been proposed. None is ahead on the evidence yet. One is still possible. Of the two narrower questions under it, none is answered yet.

Why it matters

Sumerian is read through Akkadian glosses and bilingual lists, so its phonology is inferred: the consonant transcribed ř, the velar nasal, the number of vowels, the existence of /h/ and a glottal stop, and the place of stress are all disputed, and the verbal prefix chain is analysed differently by Thomsen (1984), Edzard (2003) and Jagersma (2010)⁠[1]⁠[2]. The language has no accepted relative, and the Emesal dialect's relation to the main dialect is still argued⁠[3]⁠[4].

Answers 1

Evidence: 1 for
Still possible

History

  1. Abraham Hendrik Jagersma: ePSD2 lists about 16,000 Sumerian words in 3.4 million instances, while several phonemes and the verbal prefix system…For: Words known; sounds, verb and origin disputed
  2. Pennsylvania Sumerian Dictionary Project: ePSD2 lists about 16,000 Sumerian words in 3.4 million instances, while several phonemes and the verbal prefix system…For: Words known; sounds, verb and origin disputed
  3. Wikipedia contributors: ePSD2 lists about 16,000 Sumerian words in 3.4 million instances, while several phonemes and the verbal prefix system…For: Words known; sounds, verb and origin disputed
  4. Session 1: raised the question and worked on two of its sub-questions
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