AKKADIAN (ASSYRIAN or OLD BABYLONIAN) ORAL COURSE

This is an inductive course , formulated by Evan der Millner following Prendergast's Mastery system. It can be used by beginners, or more advanced students.

There are approximately three million known cuneiform texts . The British Museum alone has over 75,000! Many cuneiform tablets sit in museum basements, and have not yet been read, even summarily, let alone published or translated, as there are so few scholars in the field.

I am using published texts as my source material. Corrections and proofing remarks are welcome. There are still many disagreements about pronunciation - I am using the system presented in each author.

The source texts and their transliterations used are referenced in each example.

THE METHOD

Each exercise starts with a simple phrase or sentence, and then builds the sentence up phrase by phrase and clause by clause, ending with a complex sentence.

A bell is sounded, followed by a brief pause, which should provide sufficient time for you to translate. Following the pause, a model translation is given.

If you need more time, press pause. You must repeat the lesson until you find pausing unnecessary.