04-AO-AOT2

Course identification: 04-AO-AOT2
Class hours per week: 4
ECTS points: 15
Duration: 1 semester
Course offering: winter semester, every other year
Level: MA

Seminar: Ancient Near Eastern Texts: the 2nd Millennium

Content:
The module is dedicated to reading ancient Near Eastern texts of the 2nd millennium BC, including both literary and non-literary texts. Emphasis is normally placed upon the Akkadian tradition of the 2nd millennium BC (including the use of Akkadian outside of Babylonia and Assyria), but Sumerian texts of the 2nd millennium may also be incorporated into the curriculum. Further, it is possible to study the ancient Near Eastern languages, which are documented outside of Mesopotamia in the 2nd millennium (especially Hittite, but also Hurrian and other languages with a small text corpus). The linguistic form and the historical background of the texts read, including questions concerning the history of law, society, sciences and ideas, will be explained and discussed in class.

Learning objectives:
The student will acquire a comprehensive overview of the transmission of ancient Near Eastern texts of the 2nd millennium BC. He/she will gain deeper knowledge of selected text groups and their historical background, including questions about the history of law, society, sciences and ideas. The student will have a good reading knowledge of selected dialects of Akkadian in the 2nd millennium BC and - as far as these are incorporated into the curriculum - knowledge of other ancient Near Eastern languages as well as the text groups associated with them. He/she will be capable of transliterating and translating the texts assigned or read in class and of commenting on both their content and formal style. He/she will possess the ability to transliterate, translate and (with regard to content) classify more difficult Akkadian and/or Hittite texts of the 2nd millennium BC beyond the class curriculum with the help of dictionaries and sign lists.

Examination:
Written test (90 minutes).