Magic Words [Running List]

[us4-he2-gal2]

Thread Orientation: This thread is a magical words running list, meaning it will store a list of Sumerian/Akkadian words relating to the Incantation or ritual practices of Mesopotamia. These words might be names of professions, words meaning incantation, words for the practice of magic, names of substances used in ritual, key words used in incantations etc. This is a chance to combine choice sources, and as it is a running list, anyone can add a magic word at any time.

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Post 1: Words from the ePSD

(Note: In listing the occurences of these words ePSD draws on the literary and lexical materials but not on the incantations themselves.)






Words meaning Incantation:



en [INCANTATION] wr. en2 "incantation, spell" Akk. šiptu

ka'inima [FORMULA] wr. ka-inim-ma "incantation formula" Akk. ?

kamuĝal [INCANTATION] (1x: Old Babylonian) wr. ka-mu7-ĝal2 "incantation priest" Akk. wāšipu

mu [INCANTATION] (18x: Old Babylonian) wr. mu7 "incantation, spell" Akk. šiptu

namšub [INCANTATION] (12x: Ur III, Old Babylonian) wr. nam-šub "incantation" Akk. šiptu

tu [INCANTATION] (20x: Old Babylonian) wr. tu6 "incantation, spell" Akk. šiptu

tuduga [INCANTATION] (1x: Old Babylonian) wr. tu6-dug4 "incantation" Akk. šiptu, tuduqqu

tuduga [INCANTATION FORMULA] (1x: Old Babylonian) wr. tu6-dug4-ga "incantation formula"



Words for the Incantation specialist:



irhandi [SORCERER] wr. irhandi "sorcerer" Akk. āšipu [Akk. āšipu "sorcerer, magician; incantation priest, exorcist".]

luKA'inima [EXPERT] wr. lu2-KA-inim-ma "magical expert" Akk. āšipu

mašmaš; [SORCERER] (33x: ED IIIb, Ebla, Old Akkadian, Ur III, Old Babylonian) wr. maš-maš; "sorcerer, incantation priest" Akk. ašīpu; mašmaš(š)u

gudug [PRIEST] (829x: ED IIIb, Old Akkadian, Lagash II, Ur III, Early Old Babylonian, Old Babylonian, Middle Babylonian, unknown) wr. gudug; gudux(|HI×NUN|) "a priest" Akk. pašīšu ** associated with Ningirim,specified as possibly perfomer of Incantations in Cunningham 1997

išib [PRIEST] (146x: ED IIIa, ED IIIb, Old Akkadian, Ur III, Old Babylonian) wr. išib "sorcerer, magician; incantation priest, exorcist; (to be) pure; (to be) clear; a purification priest; incantation, spell" Akk. ellu; išippu; pašīšu; ramku; āšipu; šiptu

lumumun [PRIEST] (15x: Ur III) wr. lu2-mu13-mu13; mu13-mu13; lu2-mumun; mux(|KA×GAN2@t|)-mux(|KA×GAN2@t|) "incantation priest"



Words for the practice of Magic :


niĝak [MAGIC] (16x: Ur III, Old Babylonian) wr. niĝ2-ak; niĝ2-ak-ak "magic" Akk. kišpu

emeĝar [MAGIC] (1x: Old Babylonian) wr. emeĝar_x (|KAx(ME.GAR)|) "magic"

niĝdimdima [MAGIC] (8x: Ur III, Old Babylonian) wr. niĝ2-dim2-dim2-ma "magical procedures" Akk. upšašû

nammašmaš [SORCERY] (3x: Old Babylonian) wr. nam-maš-maš; "sorcery"



Also, below I have attached a graphic for those who might want to look at the cuneiform for these words, which ePSD has made available. Other words to follow.

[us4-he2-gal2]

With thanks to the Abusch (2002) Indices

(These are predominently late semitic magic words. Brief descriptions are as they appear in the unless in [] )




Words for the Incantation specialist:


naršindu - a type of sorcercer

agugillu - (a type of sorcerer)

kaššāpu - (m.)/kaššaptu (f.) - (warlock/witch)


Assorted terminolgy:


āšipûtu - (the texts and craft of the professional exorcist)

dingir-šà-dib-ba - (cycle of incantations)

mannam lušpur 'whom shall I send to x" (formula) [as in 'whom shall I send' to confer with x deity. An Akkadian development from the Sumerian divine dialogue or Marduk/Ea typ incantation]

māmīt(u) - oath

namburbi - (apotropaic rite to prevent the individual from the evil of portentous events)


Related to Witchcraft:


epēšu - (to bewitch)

kašāpu - (to bewitch)

kišpū - witchcraft

zēru - hatred (a form of witchcraft)


Ritual words :


maş ḫatu - flour (represents witchcraft, burned in ritual)

ušburuda - ritual to release witchcraft

zisurrû - flour paste (used in some rituals)

šà-zi-ga - type of potency ritual

[us4-he2-gal2]

Referring to the Glossary in TMH 6

(Ur III Incantations from the Frau Professor Hilprecht Collection, Jena (TMH 6) by J.A van Dijk/M. J. Geller)

The below words are often context sensitive, gír for example means dagger but most likly doesnt relate to ritual when used elsewhere. And even as Ive chosen from a large list drawn directly from the contents of UrIII incantations, there is no real indication of how representative these words are to the genre in listing them below.


Incantations:

én-é-nu-ru - incantation

búr - break (spell)

tu6-ri - incantation

tu6-tu6- incantations

du₆-du₆ - spells


Ritual


dù - make, carry out ritual

ba - extract

Alan - figurine

sù - sprinkle

sub₆-sub₆ - rub

gír - dagger (in the corresponding incantation, a ritual dagger)

ki-du-du₁₁ - ritual

kìd-kìd - ritual


illness/infectents:

úš - spittle

uš-du₁₁ - spit

uš-érim-du₁₁- spit poison

zú-gar - paralysis

zú-muš - snake bite

sa-gal - paralysis

sa-gig - vien disease

sa-ma-na - disease

sag-gig - headache

a-rúm - poison, 'hostile'