Among other theories of ''[[Shabbat]]'' origin, the ''[[Universal Jewish Encyclopedia]]'' advanced a theory of [[Assyriologist]]s like [[Friedrich Delitzsch]]<ref name=landau>{{cite book|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/sabbath00land/sabbath00land_djvu.txt|title=The Sabbath|author=Landau, Judah Leo|publisher=Ivri Publishing Society, Ltd|accessdate=2009-03-26|location=[[Johannesburg, South Africa]]|pages=2, 12}}</ref> that ''Shabbat'' originally arose from the [[lunar cycle]],<ref>{{cite book|year=1943|title=The Universal Jewish Encyclopedia: An authoritative and popular presentation of Jews and Judaism since the earliest times|volume=5|page=410|editor=[[Isaac Landman|Landman, Isaac]]|chapter=Holidays|author=Joseph, Max|others=Cohen, Simon, compiler|publisher=The Universal Jewish Encyclopedia, Inc}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|year=1943|title=The Universal Jewish Encyclopedia: An authoritative and popular presentation of Jews and Judaism since the earliest times|volume=9|page=295|editor=[[Isaac Landman|Landman, Isaac]]|chapter=Sabbath|author=Joseph, Max|others=Cohen, Simon, compiler|publisher=The Universal Jewish Encyclopedia, Inc}}</ref> containing four weeks ending in Sabbath, plus one or two additional unreckoned days per month.<ref>{{cite book|year=1943|title=The Universal Jewish Encyclopedia: An authoritative and popular presentation of Jews and Judaism since the earliest times|volume=10|page=482|editor=[[Isaac Landman|Landman, Isaac]]|chapter=Week|author=Cohen, Simon|others=Cohen, Simon, compiler|publisher=The Universal Jewish Encyclopedia, Inc}}</ref> The difficulties of this theory include reconciling the differences between an unbroken week and a lunar week, and explaining the absence of texts naming the lunar week as ''Shabbat'' in any language.<ref name=orr>{{cite book|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=Tn4PAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA2630&lpg=PA2630|title=The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia|editor=[[James Orr (theologian)|Orr, James]]|page=2630|chapter=Sabbath: Critical Theories|author=Sampey, John Richard|publisher=Howard-Severance Company|year=1915}}</ref>
The Babylonians additionally celebrated the 19th as a special "evil day", the "day of anger", because it was roughly the 49th day of the (preceding) month, completing a "week of weeks". {{cn|date=April 2015}} Sacrifices were offered to [[Ninurta]] and the day dedicated to [[Nintinugga|Gula]], and it may be supposed that prohibitions were strengthened.{{cn|date=April 2015}}
Further, reconstruction of a broken tablet {{cn|date=April 2015}} seems to define the rarely attested ''Sapattu<sup>m</sup>'' or ''Sabattu<sup>m</sup>'' as the [[full moon]]. This word is cognate or merged with Hebrew ''[[Shabbat]]'', but is monthly rather than weekly; it is regarded as a form of [[Sumer]]ian ''sa-bat'' ("mid-rest"), attested in [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]] as ''um nuh libbi'' ("day of mid-repose"). According to [[Marcello Craveri]], Sabbath "was almost certainly derived from the Babylonian ''Shabattu'', the festival of the full moon, but, all trace of any such origin having been lost, the Hebrews ascribed it to Biblical legend."<ref>{{cite book|author=Craveri, Marcello|title=The Life of Jesus|publisher=Grove Press|year=1967|page=134}}</ref> This conclusion is a contextual restoration of the damaged [[Enûma Eliš]] creation account, which is read as: "[Sa]bbath shalt thou then encounter, mid[month]ly."<ref name=ere>{{cite book|author=Pinches, T.G.|editor=Hastings, James|others=Selbie, John A., contrib|title=Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics|volume=20|publisher=Kessinger Publishing|year=2003|pages=889–891|chapter=Sabbath (Babylonian)|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=qVNqXDz4CE8C|isbn=978-0-7661-3698-4|accessdate=2009-03-17}}</ref>
==See also==