Some questions
Apr 18, 2007 16:27:57 GMT -5
Post by cynsanity on Apr 18, 2007 16:27:57 GMT -5
I don't know if this is the right area of the board to ask
this... but I was wondering several things.
A) As far as single topics for research are concernced - how
do we handle the evidence from different historical periods?
How does differing evidence from different periods influence
the topic? If we take the Nergal-thread for example, using the
different sources throughout the millennia - do we group them
all together and say "this is Nergal"? Or do we differentiate
between the different perceptions of the deity in different
geographical areas and historical periods? For example, the
evidence from "A prince's dream of the Netherworld" (nAss) is
quite different compared to that from the myth "Nergal and
Ereshkigal", which in turn differs in the two editions of the
myth we have... etc.
How do we handle that?
B) Have we already agreed on what chronology we use, if
chronology is important to the work we're doing?
C) What kind of timeline do we use? When does ED start and end
etc.?
D) What kind of historical period are each of us most
concerned with? For example, if someone says they want to
fokus on 2nd millennium evidence, and I say I fokus on 3rd and
4th millennium evidence, and others on other periods, or on
different areas/fields within different periods, that would
make it easier for each of us to focus specifically on our
work without each of us having to read through all the
evidence for a topic throughout all the millennia of
Mesopotamian history. We could then combine our studies into
one, instead of everyone doing the same.
E) What about languages? Are we more concerned with Sumerian
or Akkadian texts? And what stage/dialect? Or is that just the
philologist in me that I think this important?
F) Geographical areas? How do we define "Mesopotamia"?
Mesopotamia proper, or Greater Mesopotamia? If the latter -
how do we define that? Or doesn't it seem important?
G) Cultural areas? Assyria, Babylonia, Sumer, the areas around
Mari and Ebla... all of them have distinct cultural
differences, as much as they also share similarities. How do
we want to differentiate, or do we want to at all?
I think that pretty much was it... I am just curious, sorry if
some of those things have already been agreed upon.
On a final note, is anyone interested in me typing the at the
moment actual list of abbreviations from the "Archiv für
Orientforschung"? We could sticky it somewhere so that people
don't have to wonder at more outlandish abbreviations in books
or postings.
*goes back to Ugaritic*
(sorry for the not so hanndy look of this posting, I wrote it in a *txt file because this screen is just black on black for me and my windows display settings... anyways, have a good night!)
this... but I was wondering several things.
A) As far as single topics for research are concernced - how
do we handle the evidence from different historical periods?
How does differing evidence from different periods influence
the topic? If we take the Nergal-thread for example, using the
different sources throughout the millennia - do we group them
all together and say "this is Nergal"? Or do we differentiate
between the different perceptions of the deity in different
geographical areas and historical periods? For example, the
evidence from "A prince's dream of the Netherworld" (nAss) is
quite different compared to that from the myth "Nergal and
Ereshkigal", which in turn differs in the two editions of the
myth we have... etc.
How do we handle that?
B) Have we already agreed on what chronology we use, if
chronology is important to the work we're doing?
C) What kind of timeline do we use? When does ED start and end
etc.?
D) What kind of historical period are each of us most
concerned with? For example, if someone says they want to
fokus on 2nd millennium evidence, and I say I fokus on 3rd and
4th millennium evidence, and others on other periods, or on
different areas/fields within different periods, that would
make it easier for each of us to focus specifically on our
work without each of us having to read through all the
evidence for a topic throughout all the millennia of
Mesopotamian history. We could then combine our studies into
one, instead of everyone doing the same.
E) What about languages? Are we more concerned with Sumerian
or Akkadian texts? And what stage/dialect? Or is that just the
philologist in me that I think this important?
F) Geographical areas? How do we define "Mesopotamia"?
Mesopotamia proper, or Greater Mesopotamia? If the latter -
how do we define that? Or doesn't it seem important?
G) Cultural areas? Assyria, Babylonia, Sumer, the areas around
Mari and Ebla... all of them have distinct cultural
differences, as much as they also share similarities. How do
we want to differentiate, or do we want to at all?
I think that pretty much was it... I am just curious, sorry if
some of those things have already been agreed upon.
On a final note, is anyone interested in me typing the at the
moment actual list of abbreviations from the "Archiv für
Orientforschung"? We could sticky it somewhere so that people
don't have to wonder at more outlandish abbreviations in books
or postings.
*goes back to Ugaritic*
(sorry for the not so hanndy look of this posting, I wrote it in a *txt file because this screen is just black on black for me and my windows display settings... anyways, have a good night!)