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An Investigation on Connection of Ideograms Related to the Chain of Phonetic Signs in the Proto-Elamite Writing System

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Ph.D. Candidate of Archeology, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.

2 Associate Professor, Department of Archaeology, Islamic Azad University Varamin, Pishva Branch, Varamin, Iran.

Abstract

With substantial increase in socio-political complexity during the second half of the fourth millennium BC and emergance of a need to record the economic transactions, the Proto Elamite writing system on the Iranian plateau and the proto Cuneiform in Mesopotamia was emerged. As a result of the political, climatic and cultural conditions prevailing the Iranian Plateau, the Proto Elamite writing system was used by various communities on the Iranian plateau in late 4th millennium B.C. It seems that there were probably different tribes with diversed cultures and languages, among which, they were able to take advantage of the identical sign list to register names in their language. In Proto Elamite writing system, there also have different numbers and signs for objects, property and the signs with phonetic values are combined togather, making string of signs with single meaning and separation of such chain of signs requires full knowledge of this writing system. The purpose of this article is to introduce and examine the signs integrated in phonetic values, which are probably integrated among the ideogram signs. The ideogram signs  may have been read with phonemes in the past, but there were never exclusively related to phonetic signs. The method of study is as follows: after classifying the groups of similar texts that were probably written by the same scribe or a group of Proto Elamite clay tablets sealed by a same image, the same structural similarities and phonetic differences have been studied. On the other hand, according to the similar position of the ideological signs before and after phonetic values, an attempt has been made to separate the chain of phonetic values. As a result, the pre-name signs probably have the gender value or social status of the owner of the name, and the sign after the name conveys the use of the verb and in small number of the texts, it conveys the meaning of a household or tribe

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References
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Journal of Archaeological Studies
Volume 14, Issue 1 - Serial Number 29
June 2022
Pages 1-22
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History
  • Receive Date: 12 November 2020
  • Revise Date: 08 October 2021
  • Accept Date: 25 June 2022
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