Inroductory Materials
Oct 24, 2008 11:05:41 GMT -5
Post by us4-he2-gal2 on Oct 24, 2008 11:05:41 GMT -5
Thread Orientation: On this thread all newcomers to enenuru, or new comers to the field of Near East Studies, can come to read some suggestions. As it's been said "everyone must start somewhere". This thread then attempts to be somewhere for these persons.
The study of Ancient Near East cultures, specifically those from the Mesopotamian Civilization Sumerian, Akkadian, Assyrian, and Babylonian, is a difficult prospect for the layman and especially for the unaided layman. It is an obscure field given little regard by the world though exceptions are the alternative history nuts who succeed in furthing obscuring the facts. Because Sumerian civilization was all but entirely forgotten by modern man, the study of these people is heavily reliant on textual evidence and this means direct consideration of the primary resources is reserved to those with a high level of linguistic acheivement. This in turn makes the interested non-expert quite dependent on the secondary materials that experts have written variously in English, French and German. They use also a specialised technical jargon, and communicate much of their more essential notes in journals partially or completely out of the reach of the public... So. It's a challenge to engage these enthusiasms but something anyone can do so long as they have a genuine determination. Below are some places I suggest to start:
On Sumer and its Mythology/
The first book I read and profited from on this subject is S. N. Kramer's "Sumerian Mythology". This book represents the classic treatment on the subject, and though dated would serve admirable to introduce you to an import genre of Sumerian literary text: The myths. While myths should not be understood as on a one to one basis with Sumerian religion, they did portray religious concepts and yet their purpose is believed to have been entertainment based, for kings in palaces, as oppose to that which may have held firm in the temple. Kramers books is available for free online here:
sacred-texts.com/ane/sum/index.htm
At the link above, you should only consider Kramer's book. Secondly, Kramer's book "The Sumerians" is a wonderful book for its portrayal of the Sumerians, their History, culture and character. It is more than anything Kramer's enjoyment of the subject and endless enthusiasm that the newcomer should read in this book.
www.eisenbrauns.com/ECOM/_2HU0OWHWO.HTM
Primer Departments and Cuneiform Collections of the world/
In order to follow the notes and references that make up the framework of any Assyriological explanation, it is important to know what departments and cuneiform collections are envovled and essential around the world. See our enenuru Deptartments and collections list:
enenuru.net/html/DCmenu.htm
Know your Assyriological Journals/
These are often tough to access although this is greatly relieved if you can take a trip down to your local university library. They contain many short articles and observations which often feature later in published books by the same scholar or when a scholars sample notes or observations of each other.
See our thread on Periodicals.
Know the Online Resources/
The online world is becoming an inreaseingely powerful took for Assyriologists and enthusiasts alike. We have databases of cuneiform tablets, Sumerian and Assyrian dictionaries, huges collections of myths and other primary materials, and pdfs and essays and dissertations of all sorts. See the enenuru.net links area.
enenuru.net links to online resources
Get to know enenuru and the people who participate here/
The following is an Academic Orientating thread of a sorts:
From Fingers to Forks
Also there is the Enenuru Guidelines from enenuru.net that should be considered. On the Sumerologistics board there is further information about the field and at least some sense of the early history of Assyriology which is interesting in itself.
Lastely at the below thread you can see our chat thread - meeting fellow enthusiasts and chatting on IM for example is a really great way to learn and expand effectively, and meet some good people in the process
Enenuru chat thread
So: who else has got some ideas for Introductory materials? What item did you find very helpful when you were new? What was the first ANE book you read or owned? Lets help these people out!
The study of Ancient Near East cultures, specifically those from the Mesopotamian Civilization Sumerian, Akkadian, Assyrian, and Babylonian, is a difficult prospect for the layman and especially for the unaided layman. It is an obscure field given little regard by the world though exceptions are the alternative history nuts who succeed in furthing obscuring the facts. Because Sumerian civilization was all but entirely forgotten by modern man, the study of these people is heavily reliant on textual evidence and this means direct consideration of the primary resources is reserved to those with a high level of linguistic acheivement. This in turn makes the interested non-expert quite dependent on the secondary materials that experts have written variously in English, French and German. They use also a specialised technical jargon, and communicate much of their more essential notes in journals partially or completely out of the reach of the public... So. It's a challenge to engage these enthusiasms but something anyone can do so long as they have a genuine determination. Below are some places I suggest to start:
On Sumer and its Mythology/
The first book I read and profited from on this subject is S. N. Kramer's "Sumerian Mythology". This book represents the classic treatment on the subject, and though dated would serve admirable to introduce you to an import genre of Sumerian literary text: The myths. While myths should not be understood as on a one to one basis with Sumerian religion, they did portray religious concepts and yet their purpose is believed to have been entertainment based, for kings in palaces, as oppose to that which may have held firm in the temple. Kramers books is available for free online here:
sacred-texts.com/ane/sum/index.htm
At the link above, you should only consider Kramer's book. Secondly, Kramer's book "The Sumerians" is a wonderful book for its portrayal of the Sumerians, their History, culture and character. It is more than anything Kramer's enjoyment of the subject and endless enthusiasm that the newcomer should read in this book.
www.eisenbrauns.com/ECOM/_2HU0OWHWO.HTM
Primer Departments and Cuneiform Collections of the world/
In order to follow the notes and references that make up the framework of any Assyriological explanation, it is important to know what departments and cuneiform collections are envovled and essential around the world. See our enenuru Deptartments and collections list:
enenuru.net/html/DCmenu.htm
Know your Assyriological Journals/
These are often tough to access although this is greatly relieved if you can take a trip down to your local university library. They contain many short articles and observations which often feature later in published books by the same scholar or when a scholars sample notes or observations of each other.
See our thread on Periodicals.
Know the Online Resources/
The online world is becoming an inreaseingely powerful took for Assyriologists and enthusiasts alike. We have databases of cuneiform tablets, Sumerian and Assyrian dictionaries, huges collections of myths and other primary materials, and pdfs and essays and dissertations of all sorts. See the enenuru.net links area.
enenuru.net links to online resources
Get to know enenuru and the people who participate here/
The following is an Academic Orientating thread of a sorts:
From Fingers to Forks
Also there is the Enenuru Guidelines from enenuru.net that should be considered. On the Sumerologistics board there is further information about the field and at least some sense of the early history of Assyriology which is interesting in itself.
Lastely at the below thread you can see our chat thread - meeting fellow enthusiasts and chatting on IM for example is a really great way to learn and expand effectively, and meet some good people in the process
Enenuru chat thread
So: who else has got some ideas for Introductory materials? What item did you find very helpful when you were new? What was the first ANE book you read or owned? Lets help these people out!
