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{{Infobox language
|name=Akkadian
|nativename=''akkadû''
|states=[[Assyria|Assur]] and [[Babylonia|Babylon]]
|region=[[Mesopotamia]]
|era=29th–8th centuries BC; academic or liturgical use until 100 AD
|familycolor=Afro-Asiatic
|fam2=[[Semitic languages|Semitic]]
|fam3=[[East Semitic languages|East Semitic]]
|iso2=akk
|iso3=akk
|glotto=akka1240
|glottorefname=Akkadian
|script=[[Cuneiform script|Sumero-Akkadian cuneiform]]
|nation=initially [[Akkadian Empire|Akkad]] (central [[Mesopotamia]]); [[lingua franca]] of the [[Middle East]] and [[Egypt]] in the late [[Bronze Age|Bronze]] and early [[Iron Age]]s.
|notice=IPA
}}
'''Akkadian''' (''akkadû'', {{cuneiform|{{lang|akk|{{linktext|𒅎|𒀝|𒂵|𒌈}}}}}} ak.kADû)<ref>John Huehnergard & Christopher Woods, "Akkadian and Eblaite," ''The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the World's Ancient Languages''. Ed. Roger D. Woodard (2004, Cambridge) Pages 218-280</ref> is an [[Extinct language|extinct]] east [[Semitic language]] (part of the greater [[Afroasiatic languages|Afroasiatic]] language family) that was spoken in ancient [[Mesopotamia]]. The earliest [[attested language|attested]] Semitic language,<ref>John Huehnergard and Christopher Woods, Akkadian and Eblaite, in Roger D. Woodard, ed., ''The Ancient Languages of Mesopotamia, Egypt and Aksum'', Cambridge University Press, 2008, p.83</ref> it used the [[cuneiform (script)|cuneiform]] writing system, which was originally used to write ancient [[Sumerian language|Sumerian]], an unrelated [[language isolate]]. The language was named after the city of [[Akkad (city)|Akkad]] by linguists, a major center of [[Semitic]] Mesopotamian civilization during the [[Akkadian Empire]] (ca. 2334–2154 BC), although the language itself predates the founding of Akkad by many centuries.
The mutual influence between [[Sumerian language|Sumerian]] and Akkadian had led scholars to describe the languages as a ''[[sprachbund]]''.<ref>{{cite book|title=Syntactic Change in Akkadian: The Evolution of Sentential Complementation|author=Deutscher, Guy|authorlink=Guy Deutscher (linguist)|publisher=[[Oxford University Press|Oxford University Press US]]|year=2007|isbn=978-0-19-953222-3|pages=20–21}}</ref>
Akkadian proper names were first attested in Sumerian texts from ca. the late 29th century BC.<ref>[http://eprints.soas.ac.uk/3139/1/PAGE_31%2D71.pdf] Andrew George, "Babylonian and Assyrian: A History of Akkadian", In: Postgate, J. N., (ed.), Languages of Iraq, Ancient and Modern. London: British School of Archaeology in Iraq, pp. 31-71.</ref> From the second half of the third millennium BC (ca. 2500 BC), texts fully written in Akkadian begin to appear. Hundreds of thousands of texts and text fragments have been excavated to date, covering a vast textual tradition of mythological narrative, legal texts, scientific works, correspondence, political and military events, and many other examples. By the second millennium BC, two variant forms of the language were in use in [[Assyria]] and [[Babylonia]], known as '''Assyrian''' and '''Babylonian''' respectively.
Akkadian had been for centuries the native language in [[Mesopotamia]]n nations such as [[Assyria]] and [[Babylonia]], and indeed became the [[lingua franca]] of much of the Ancient [[Near East]] due to the might of various Mesopotamian empires such as the [[Akkadian Empire]], [[Old Assyrian Empire]], [[Babylonian Empire]] and [[Middle Assyrian Empire]]}. However, it began to decline during the [[Neo Assyrian Empire]] around the 8th century BC, being marginalized by [[Aramaic language|Aramaic]] during the reign of [[Tiglath-pileser III]]. By the [[Hellenistic period]], the language was largely confined to scholars and priests working in temples in [[Assyria]] and [[Babylonia]]. The last Akkadian [[cuneiform]] document dates to the 1st century AD.<ref>Marckham Geller, "The Last Wedge," ''Zeitschrift für Assyriologie und vorderasitische Archäologie'' 86 (1997): 43–95.</ref> A fair number of [[Akkadian]] loan words, together with the Akkadian grammatical structure, survive in the [[Mesopotamian]] [[Northeastern Neo-Aramaic|Neo Aramaic]] dialects spoken in and around modern [[Iraq]] by the indigenous [[Assyrian people|Assyrian]] (aka [[Chaldo-Assyrian]]) [[Christians]] of the region.
==Classification==
Akkadian belongs with the other [[Semitic languages]] in the [[Near East]]north branch of the [[Afro-Asiatic languages|Afro-Asiatic]] family of languages, a language family native to [[Western Asia]] and [[Northern Africa]].
Within the Near Eastern Semitic languages, Akkadian forms an [[East Semitic]] subgroup (with [[Eblaite language|Eblaite]]). This group distinguishes itself from the Northwest and South Semitic languages by its [[subject–object–verb|SOV word order]], while the other Semitic languages usually have either a [[Verb–subject–object|VSO]] or [[subject–verb–object|SVO]] order. This novel word order is due to the influence of the Sumerian substratum, which has an SOV order.
Additionally Akkadian is the only Semitic language to use the [[preposition]]s ''ina'' and ''ana'' ([[Locative case|locative]], English ''in''/''on''/''with'', and [[Dative case|dative]]-[[Locative case|locative]], ''for''/''to'', respectively). Other Semitic languages like [[Arabic language|Arabic]] and [[Aramaic language|Aramaic]] have the prepositions ''bi/bə'' and ''li/lə'' (locative and dative, respectively). The origin of the Akkadian spatial prepositions is unknown.
In contrast to most other Semitic languages, Akkadian has only one non-sibilant [[Fricative consonant|fricative]]: {{unicode|ḫ}} {{IPA|[x]}}. Akkadian lost both the [[Glottal consonant|glottal]] and [[Pharyngeal consonant|pharyngeal]] fricatives, which are characteristic of the other Semitic languages. Up until the Old Babylonian period, the Akkadian [[Sibilant consonant|sibilants]] were exclusively [[Affricate consonant|affricate]].
==History and writing==
===Writing===
{{Main|Assyrian cuneiform}}
[[Image:AkkadischLand.png|200px|thumb|[[Cuneiform script|Cuneiform writing]] (Neoassyrian script)<br />(1 = Logogram (LG) "mix"/syllabogram (SG) ''{{IPA|ḫi}}'',<br />2 = LG "moat",<br />3 = SG ''{{IPA|aʾ}}'',<br />4 = SG ''{{IPA|aḫ}}, {{IPA|eḫ}}, {{IPA|iḫ}}, {{IPA|uḫ}}'',<br />5 = SG ''kam'',<br />6 = SG ''im'',<br />7 = SG ''bir'')]]
Old Akkadian is preserved on clay tablets dating back to 2600 BC. It was written using [[Cuneiform script|cuneiform]], a script adopted from the Sumerians using wedge-shaped symbols pressed in wet clay. As employed by Akkadian scribes, the adapted cuneiform script could represent either (a) [[Sumerian language|Sumerian]] [[logogram]]s (''i.e.'', picture-based characters representing entire words), (b) Sumerian syllables, (c) Akkadian syllables, or (d) [[phonetic complement]]s. However, in Akkadian the script practically became a fully fledged [[Syllabary|syllabic script]], and the original [[Logogram|logographic]] nature of cuneiform became secondary. However, logograms for frequent words such as 'god' and 'temple' were still used. For this reason, the sign ''AN'' can on the one hand be a logogram for the word ''ilum'' ('god') and on the other signify the god [[Anu]] or even the syllable ''-an-''. Additionally, the sign was used as a [[determinative]] for divine names.
Example 4 in the image on the right shows another peculiarity of Akkadian cuneiform. Many signs do not have a well-defined phonetic value. Certain signs, such as ''{{transl|sem|AḪ}}'', do not distinguish between the different [[vowel]] qualities. Nor is there any coordination in the other direction; the syllable ''{{transl|sem|-ša-}}'', for example, is rendered by the sign ''{{transl|sem|ŠA}}'', but also by the sign ''{{transl|sem|NĪĜ}}''. Both of these are often used for the same syllable in the same text.
Cuneiform was in many ways unsuited to Akkadian: among its flaws was its inability to represent important [[phonemes]] in Semitic, including a [[glottal stop]], [[pharyngeal consonant|pharyngeals]], and [[emphatic consonant]]s. In addition, cuneiform was a [[syllabary]] writing system—''i.e.'', a consonant plus vowel comprised one writing unit—frequently inappropriate for a Semitic language made up of [[Triliteral|triconsonantal root]]s (''i.e.'', three consonants plus any vowels).
===Development===
Akkadian is divided into several [[variety (linguistics)|varieties]] based on [[geography]] and [[historical period]]:<ref>Caplice, p.5 (1980)</ref>
*Old Akkadian, 2500–1950 BC
*Old Babylonian/Old Assyrian, 1950–1530 BC
*Middle Babylonian/Middle Assyrian, 1530–1000 BC
*Neo-Babylonian/Neo-Assyrian, 1000–600 BC
*Late Babylonian, 600 BC–100 AD
The earliest known Akkadian inscription was found on a bowl at [[Ur]], addressed to the very early pre-Sargonic king Meskiang-nuna of Ur by his queen Gan-saman, who is thought to have been from Akkad.
The [[Akkadian Empire]], established by [[Sargon of Akkad]], introduced the Akkadian language (the "language of [[Akkadian Empire|Akkad]]") as a written language, adapting [[Sumerian language|Sumerian]] cuneiform orthography for the purpose. During the [[Middle Bronze Age]] (Old Assyrian and Old Babylonian period), the language virtually displaced Sumerian, which is assumed to have been extinct as a living language by the 18th century BC.
Old Akkadian, which was used until the end of the 3rd millennium BC, differs from both Babylonian and Assyrian, and was displaced by these dialects. By the 21st century BC Babylonian and Assyrian, which were to become the primary dialects, were easily distinguishable. Old Babylonian, along with the closely related dialect [[Mari, Syria|Mari]]otic, is clearly more innovative than the Old Assyrian dialect and the more distantly related [[Eblaite language]]. For this reason, forms like ''lu-prus'' ('I will decide') are first encountered in Old Babylonian instead of the older ''la-prus'' (even though it was archaic compared to Akkadian). On the other hand, Assyrian developed certain innovations as well, such as the "Assyrian vowel harmony" (which is not comparable to that found in [[Turkish language|Turkish]] or [[Finnish language|Finnish]]). Eblaite is even more archaic, retaining a productive [[Dual (grammatical number)|dual]] and a [[relative pronoun]] declined in case, number and gender. Both of these had already disappeared in Old Akkadian.
Old Babylonian was the language of king [[Hammurabi]] and his [[Code of Hammurabi|code]], which is one of the oldest collections of laws in the world. (see [[Code of Ur-Nammu]].)
The Middle Babylonian (or Assyrian) period started in the 16th century BC. The division is marked by the [[Kassites|Kassite]] invasion of Babylonia around 1550 BC. The Kassites, who reigned for 300 years, gave up their own language in favor of Akkadian, but they had little influence on the language. At its apogee, Middle Babylonian was the written language of diplomacy of the entire ancient Orient, including Egypt. During this period, a large number of loan words were included in the language from North West Semitic languages and [[Hurrian language|Hurrian]]; however, the use of these words was confined to the fringes of the Akkadian speaking territory.
Middle Assyrian served as a ''[[lingua franca]]'' in much of the [[Ancient Near East]] of the [[Late Bronze Age]] ([[Amarna Period]]). During the [[Neo-Assyrian Empire]], Neo-Assyrian began to turn into a chancellery language, being marginalized by [[Old Aramaic]]. Under the [[Achaemenids]], Aramaic continued to prosper, but Assyrian continued its decline. The language's final demise came about during the [[Hellenistic period]] when it was further marginalized by [[Koine Greek]], even though Neo-Assyrian cuneiform remained in use in literary tradition well into [[Parthian Empire|Parthian]] times. The latest known text in cuneiform Babylonian is an astronomical text dated to 75 AD.<ref>Adkins 2003, p. 47.</ref> The youngest texts written in Akkadian date from the 3rd century AD. A number of Akkadian words and many personal names survive to this day in the modern Assyrian (or Neo Aramaic) language spoken by ethnic Assyrians (aka Chaldo-Assyrians)in Iraq, Iran, Syria and Turkey.
[[Image:Cuneiform script.jpg|thumb|An Akkadian inscription]]
Old Assyrian developed as well during the second millennium BC, but because it was a purely popular language — kings wrote in Babylonian — few long texts are preserved. From 1500 BC onwards, the language is termed Middle Assyrian.
During the first millennium BC, Akkadian progressively lost its status as a lingua franca. In the beginning, from around 1000 BC, [[Akkadian]] and [[Aramaic]] were of equal status, as can be seen in the number of copied texts: clay tablets were written in Akkadian, while scribes writing on papyrus and leather used Aramaic. From this period on, one speaks of [[Neo-Babylonian]] and [[Neo-Assyrian]]. Neo-Assyrian received an upswing in popularity in the 10th century BC when the Assyrian kingdom became a major power with the [[Neo Assyrian Empire]], but texts written 'exclusively' in Neo-Assyrian disappear within 10 years of [[Nineveh|Nineveh's]] destruction in 612 BC.
After the end of the Mesopotamian kingdoms, which fell due to the [[Persian Empire|Persian]] conquest of the area, Akkadian (which existed solely in the form of Late Babylonian) disappeared as a popular language. However, the language was still used in its written form; and even after the Greek invasion under [[Alexander the Great]] in the 4th century BC, Akkadian was still a contender as a written language, but spoken Akkadian was likely extinct by this time, or at least rarely used. The latest positively identified Akkadian text comes from the 1st century AD.<ref>John Huehnergard & Christopher Woods, 2004 "Akkadian and Eblaite", ''The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the World's Ancient Languages'', pg. 218.</ref>
===Decipherment===
The Akkadian language began to be rediscovered when [[Carsten Niebuhr]] in 1767 was able to make extensive copies of cuneiform texts and published them in Denmark. The deciphering of the texts started immediately, and bilinguals, in particular [[Old Persian language|Old Persian]]-Akkadian bilinguals, were of great help. Since the texts contained several royal names, isolated signs could be identified, and were presented in 1802 by [[Georg Friedrich Grotefend]]. By this time it was already evident that Akkadian was a Semitic language, and the final breakthrough in deciphering the language came from [[Sir Henry Rawlinson, 1st Baronet|Henry Rawlinson]] in the middle of the 19th century.
[[Image:GilgameshTablet.jpg|right|thumb|200px|The [[deluge (mythology)|Deluge]] tablet of the [[Gilgamesh]] epic in Akkadian.]]
===Dialects===
The following table summarises the dialects of Akkadian certainly identified so far.
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Known Akkadian dialects
! Dialect !! Location
|-
| Assyrian || Northern Mesopotamia
|-
| Babylonian || Central and Southern Mesopotamia
|-
| Mariotic || Central Euphrates (in and around the city of [[Mari, Syria|Mari]])
|-
| Tell Beydar || Northern Syria (in and around [[Tell Beydar]])
|}
Some researchers (such as W. Sommerfeld 2003) believe that the Old Akkadian variant used in the older texts is not an ancestor of the later Assyrian and Babylonian dialects, but rather a separate dialect that was replaced by these two dialects and which died out early.
==Phonetics and phonology==
Because Akkadian as a spoken language is extinct and no contemporary descriptions of the pronunciation are known, little can be said with certainty about the [[phonetics]] and [[phonology]] of Akkadian. Some conclusions can be made, however, due to the relationship to the other [[Semitic language]]s and variant spellings of Akkadian words.
===Consonants===
As far as can be told from the cuneiform orthography of Akkadian, several [[Proto-Semitic]] phonemes are lost in Akkadian. The Proto-Semitic glottal stop {{transl|sem|[[Aleph (letter)|*ʾ]], as well as the fricatives [[Ayin|*ʿ]]}}, {{transl|sem|[[He (letter)|*h]], [[Heth (letter)|*ḥ]]}} are lost as consonants, either by sound change or orthographically, but they gave rise to the vowel quality ''e'' not exhibited in Proto-Semitic. The [[Voiceless dental fricative|interdental]] and the [[voiceless lateral fricatives]] ({{transl|sem|[[Śawt|*ś]], [[Ḍād|*ṣ́]]}}) merged with the sibilants as in [[Canaanite languages|Canaanite]], leaving 19 consonantal phonemes.
The following table gives the [[consonant]] sounds distinguished in the Akkadian use of cuneiform, with the presumed pronunciation in [[IPA]] transcription according to Streck 2005. The parenthesised sign following is the transcription used in the literature, in the cases where that sign is different from the phonetic sign. This transcription has been suggested for all Semitic languages by the Deutsche Morgenländische Gesellschaft (DMG), and is therefore known as ''DMG-umschrift''.
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;" align="center"
|+ '''Akkadian consonantal phonemes'''
|-
! colspan=2 |
! [[Labial consonant|Labial]]
! [[Dental consonant|Dental/Alveolar]]
! [[Palatal consonant|Palatal]]
! [[Velar consonant|Velar]]
! [[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-
! colspan=2 | [[Nasal stop|Nasal]]
| {{IPA|m}} || {{IPA|n}} || || ||
|-
! rowspan=3 | [[Plosive consonant|Plosive]]
! <small>[[Voiceless consonant|voiceless]]</small>
| {{IPA|p}} || {{IPA|t}} || || {{IPA|k}} || {{IPA|ʔ}} ({{transl|sem|ʾ}})
|-
! <small>[[Voiced consonant|voiced]]</small>
| {{IPA|b}} || {{IPA|d}} || || {{IPA|ɡ}}||
|-
! <small>[[emphatic consonant|emphatic]]</small>
| || {{IPA|tʼ}} ({{transl|sem|ṭ}})<ref group=t1 name=Akkadian>Akkadian emphatic consonants are reconstructed as ejectives (Hetzron, Robert (1997) . "The Semitic languages ". Taylor & Francis, 1997. p8).</ref> || || {{IPA|kʼ}} ({{transl|sem|q}})<ref group=t1 name=Akkadian/> ||
|-
! rowspan=3 | [[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]
! <small>[[Voiceless consonant|voiceless]]</small>
| || {{IPA|s}} || {{IPA|ʃ}} ({{transl|sem|š}}) || {{IPA|x}} ({{transl|ar|DIN|ḫ}}) ||
|-
! <small>[[Voiced consonant|voiced]]</small>
| || {{IPA|z}} || || ||
|-
! <small>[[emphatic consonant|emphatic]]</small>
| || {{IPA|sʼ}} ({{transl|sem|ṣ}})<ref group=t1 name=Akkadian/> || || ||
|-
! colspan=2 | [[trill consonant|Trill]]
| || {{IPA|r}} || || ||
|-
! colspan=2 | [[Approximant]]
| || {{IPA|l}} || {{IPA|j}} ({{transl|sem|y}}) || {{IPA|w}} ||
|}
{{reflist|group=t1}}
The status of {{unicode|*š}} as postalveolar and of {{unicode|*z *s *ṣ}} as [[fricative consonant|fricative]]s is contested, for instance by Kogan<ref>Kogan, Leonid (2011). "Proto-Semitic Phonetics and Phonology". In Semitic languages: an international handbook, Stefan Weninger, ed. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. p. 68.</ref> and Dolgopolsky, due to attested [[assimilation (linguistics)|assimilations]] of [[voiceless consonant|voiceless]] [[coronal consonant|coronal]] [[affricate consonant|affricate]]s to {{unicode|*s}}. For example, when the possessive suffix {{unicode|-šu}} is added to the root {{unicode|awat}} ('word'), it is written {{unicode|awassu}} ('his word') even though {{unicode|šš}} would be expected. What triggered the change from {{unicode|tš}} to {{unicode|ss}} is unclear, especially since a shift of {{unicode|š}} to {{unicode|s}} does not occur in other contexts.
According to Patrick R. Bennett's "Comparative Semitic Linguistics: a manual", the *š was a voiceless alveolo-palatal. In the pronunciation of an alveolo-palatal, the tongue approximates the teeth more closely.
An alternative approach to the phonology of these consonants is to treat *s *ṣ as voiceless coronal affricates {{IPA|[t͡s t͡sʼ]}}, *š as a voiceless coronal fricative {{IPA|[s]}} and *z as a voiced coronal affricate or fricative {{IPA|[d͡z~z]}}. In this vein, an alternative transcription of *š is *s̠, with the macron below indicating a soft (lenis) articulation in Semitic transcription. The assimilation is then awat-su to {{IPA|[awat͡su]}}, which is quite common across languages.
The following table shows Proto-Semitic phonemes and their correspondences among Akkadian, [[Arabic]] and [[Tiberian Hebrew]]:
{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" align="center"
! | [[Proto-Semitic]]
! | Akkadian
! colspan="2" | [[Arabic language|Arabic]]
! colspan="2" | [[Hebrew]]
|-
! {{transl|sem|*b}}
| ''{{transl|sem|b}}''
| ب || {{transl|ar|DIN|b}}
| ב || {{transl|sem|b}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*d}}
| ''{{transl|sem|d}}''
| د || {{transl|ar|DIN|d}}
| ד || {{transl|sem|d}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*g}}
| ''{{transl|sem|g}}''
| ج || {{transl|ar|DIN|ǧ}}
| ג || {{transl|sem|g}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*p}}
| ''{{transl|sem|p}}''
| ف || {{transl|ar|DIN|f}}
| פ || {{transl|sem|p}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*t}}
| ''{{transl|sem|t}}''
| ت || {{transl|ar|DIN|t}}
| ת || {{transl|sem|t}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*k}}
| ''{{transl|sem|k}}''
| ك || {{transl|ar|DIN|k}}
| כ || {{transl|sem|k}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*ʾ}} {{IPA|[ʔ]}}
| (Ø)/ {{transl|sem|ʾ}}
| ء || {{transl|ar|DIN|ʾ}}
| א || {{transl|sem|ʾ}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*ṭ}}
| ''{{transl|sem|ṭ}}''
| ط || {{transl|ar|DIN|ṭ}}
| ט || {{transl|sem|ṭ}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*ḳ}}
| ''{{transl|sem|q}}''
| ق || {{transl|ar|DIN|q}}
| ק || {{transl|sem|q}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*ḏ}}
| rowspan="2" valign="center"| ''{{transl|sem|z}}''
| ذ || {{transl|ar|DIN|ḏ}}
| rowspan=2 | ז || rowspan=2 |{{transl|sem|z}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*z}}
| ز || {{transl|ar|DIN|z}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*ṯ}}
| rowspan="3" valign="center"| ''{{transl|sem|š}}''
| ث || {{transl|ar|DIN|ṯ}}
| rowspan=2 |שׁ || rowspan=2 |{{transl|sem|š}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*š}} {{IPA|[ʃ]}}
| س || {{transl|ar|DIN|s}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*ś}}
| ش || {{transl|ar|DIN|š}}
| שׂ || {{transl|sem|ś}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*s}}
| ''{{transl|sem|s}}''
| س || {{transl|ar|DIN|s}}
| ס || {{transl|sem|s}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*ṱ}}
| rowspan="3" valign="center"| ''{{transl|sem|ṣ}}''
| ظ || {{transl|ar|DIN|ẓ}}
| rowspan=3 |צ || rowspan=3 |{{transl|sem|ṣ}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*ṣ}}
| ص || {{transl|ar|DIN|ṣ}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*ṣ́}}
| ض || {{transl|ar|DIN|ḍ}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*ġ}}
| ''{{transl|sem|ḫ}}''
| غ || {{transl|ar|DIN|ġ}}
| rowspan=2 |ע || rowspan=2 |{{transl|sem|ʿ}} {{IPA|[ʕ]}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*ʿ}} {{IPA|[ʕ]}}
| (e) <ref group=t2 name=zero>These are only distinguished from the Ø (zero) reflexes of {{IPA|/h/}} and {{IPA|/ʾ/}} by {{IPA|/e/}}-coloring the adjacent vowel *a, e.g. PS ''*{{Unicode|ˈbaʿ(a)l-um}}'' ('owner, lord') → Akk. ''bēlu(m)'' ({{harvnb|Dolgopolsky|1999|p=35}}).</ref>
| ع || {{transl|ar|DIN|ʿ}} {{IPA|[ʕ]}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*ḫ}}
| ''{{transl|sem|ḫ}}''
| خ || {{transl|ar|DIN|ḫ}} {{IPA|[x]}}
| rowspan=2 |ח || rowspan=2 |{{transl|sem|ḥ}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*ḥ}}
| (e) <ref group=t2 name=zero/>
| ح || {{transl|ar|DIN|ḥ}} {{IPA|[ħ]}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*h}}
| (Ø)
| ه || {{transl|ar|DIN|h}}
| ה || {{transl|sem|h}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*m}}
| ''{{transl|sem|m}}''
| م || {{transl|ar|DIN|m}}
| מ || {{transl|sem|m}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*n}}
| ''{{transl|sem|n}}''
| ن || {{transl|ar|DIN|n}}
| נ || {{transl|sem|n}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*r}}
| ''{{transl|sem|r}}''
| ر || {{transl|ar|DIN|r}}
| ר || {{transl|sem|r}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*l}}
| ''{{transl|sem|l}}''
| ل || {{transl|ar|DIN|l}}
| ל || {{transl|sem|l}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*w}}
| ''{{transl|sem|w}}''
| و || {{transl|ar|DIN|w}}
| ו<br />י || {{transl|sem|w}}<br />{{transl|sem|y}}
|-
! {{transl|sem|*y}}
| ''{{transl|sem|y}}''
| ي || {{transl|ar|DIN|y}} {{IPA|[j]}}
| י || {{transl|sem|y}}
|-
! | [[Proto-Semitic]]
! | Akkadian
! colspan="2" | [[Arabic language|Arabic]]
! colspan="2" | [[Tiberian Hebrew|Hebrew]]
|-
|}
{{reflist|group=t2}}
===Vowels===
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Akkadian vowels
! !! Front !! Central !! Back
|- align="center"
! Closed
| {{IPA|i}} || || {{IPA|u}}
|- align="center"
! Mid
| {{IPA|e}} || ||
|- align="center"
! Open
| || {{IPA|a}} ||
|}
Additionally, most researchers presume the existence of back mid vowel {{IPA|/o/}}, but the cuneiform writings give no good proof for this.<ref>Sabatino Moscati et al. "An Introduction to Comparative Grammar of Semitic Languages Phonology and Morphology". (section on vowels and semi-vowels)</ref>
All consonants and [[vowel]]s appear in long and short forms. Long consonants are represented in writing as double consonants, and long vowels are written with a macron (ā, ē, ī, ū). This distinction is [[phoneme|phonemic]], and is used in the grammar, for example ''iprusu'' ('that he decided') versus ''iprusū'' ('they decided').
===Stress===
Nothing is known of Akkadian [[stress (linguistics)|stress]]. There are however certain points of reference, such as the rule of vowel syncope (see the next paragraph), and some forms in the cuneiform that might represent the stressing of certain vowels; however, attempts at identifying a rule for stress have so far been unsuccessful.
A rule of Akkadian phonology is that certain short (and probably unstressed) vowels are dropped. The rule is that the last vowel of a succession of syllables that end in a short vowel is dropped, for example the declinational root of the verbal adjective of a root PRS is ''PaRiS-''. Thus the masculine singular nominative is ''PaRS-um'' (< ''*PaRiS-um'') but the feminine singular nominative is ''PaRiStum'' (< ''*PaRiS-at-um''). Additionally there is a general tendency of syncope of short vowels in the later stages of Akkadian.
==Grammar==
===Morphology===
====Overview====
Akkadian is an [[inflected language]]; and as a Semitic language, its grammatical features are highly similar to those found in [[Arabic language|Classical Arabic]]. And like all Semitic languages, Akkadian uses the system of [[Triliteral|consonantal roots]]. Most roots consist of three consonants (called the radicals), but some roots are composed of four consonants (so-called quadriradicals). The radicals are occasionally represented in transcription in upper-case letters, for example ''PRS'' (to decide). Between and around these radicals various [[infix]]es, [[suffix]]es and [[prefix]]es, having word generating or grammatical functions, are inserted. The resulting consonant-vowel pattern differentiates the original meaning of the root. Also, the middle radical can be geminated, which is represented by a doubled consonant in transcription (and sometimes in the cuneiform writing itself).
The consonants ''{{IPA|ʔ}}'', ''{{IPA|w}}'', ''{{IPA|j}}'' and ''{{IPA|n}}'' are termed "weak radicals" and roots containing these radicals give rise to irregular forms.
==== Case, number and gender ====
Akkadian has two [[grammatical gender]]s, masculine and feminine, with many feminine forms generated from masculine words by adding an ''-at'' suffix.
Formally, Akkadian has three numbers (singular, dual and plural) and three cases ([[Nominative case|nominative]], [[Accusative case|accusative]] and [[Genitive case|genitive]]). However, even in the earlier stages of the language, the dual number is vestigial, and its use is largely confined to natural pairs (eyes, ears, etc.), and adjectives are never found in the dual. In the dual and plural, the accusative and genitive are merged into a single [[oblique case]].
Akkadian, unlike [[Arabic language|Arabic]], has mainly regular plurals (i.e. no [[broken plurals]]), although some masculine words take feminine plurals. In that respect, it is similar to [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]].
The nouns ''šarrum'' (king), ''šarratum'' (queen) and the adjective ''dannum'' (strong) will serve to illustrate the case system of Akkadian.
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Noun and adjective paradigms
!
! Noun (masc.) !! Noun (fem.) !! Adjective (masc.) !! Adjective (fem.)
|-
! Nominative singular
| ''šarr-um'' || ''šarr-at-um'' || ''dann-um'' || ''dann-at-um''
|-
! Genitive singular
| ''šarr-im'' || ''šarr-at-im'' || ''dann-im'' || ''dann-at-im''
|-
! Accusative singular
| ''šarr-am'' || ''šarr-at-am'' || ''dann-am'' || ''dann-at-am''
|-
! Nominative dual
| ''šarr-ān'' || ''šarr-at-ān'' || colspan='2' rowspan='2' bgcolor="gray" |
|-
! Oblique dual <ref group=t3>The oblique case includes the accusative and genitive.</ref>
| ''šarr-īn'' || ''šarr-at-īn''
|-
! Nominative plural
| ''šarr-ū'' || ''šarr-āt-um'' || ''dann-ūt-um'' || ''dann-āt-um''
|-
! Oblique plural
| ''šarr-ī'' || ''šarr-āt-im'' || ''dann-ūt-im'' || ''dann-āt-im''
|}
{{Reflist|group=t3}}
As is clear from the above table, the adjective and noun endings differ only in the masculine plural. Certain nouns, primarily those referring to geography, can also form a locative ending in ''-um'' in the singular and the resulting forms serve as [[adverbial]]s. These forms are generally not productive, but in the Neo-Babylonian the ''um''-locative replaces several constructions with the preposition ''ina''.
In the later stages of Akkadian the [[mimation]] (word-final ''-m'') - along with [[nunation]] (dual final "-n") - that occurs at the end of most case endings has disappeared, except in the locative. Later, the nominative and accusative singular of masculine nouns collapse to ''-u'' and in Neo-Babylonian most word-final short vowels are dropped. As a result case differentiation disappeared from all forms except masculine plural nouns. However many texts continued the practice of writing the case endings (although often sporadically and incorrectly). As the most important [[Language contact|contact language]] throughout this period was [[Aramaic language|Aramaic]], which itself lacks case distinctions, it is possible that Akkadian's loss of cases was an areal as well as [[Phonology|phonological]] phenomenon.
====Noun States and Nominal Sentences====
As is also the case in other Semitic languages, Akkadian nouns may appear in a variety of "states" depending on their grammatical function in a sentence. The basic form of the noun is the ''status rectus'' (the [[Governed state]]), which is the form as described above, complete with case endings. In addition to this, Akkadian has the ''status absolutus'' (the [[Absolute state]]) and the ''status constructus'' ([[Construct state]]). The latter is found in all other Semitic languages, while the former appears only in Akkadian and some dialects of Aramaic.
The status absolutus is characterised by the loss of a noun's case ending (e.g. ''awīl'' < ''awīlum'', ''šar'' < ''šarrum''). It is relatively uncommon, and is used chiefly to mark the predicate of a nominal sentence, in fixed adverbial expressions, and in expressions relating to measurements of length, weight, and the like.
(1) ''Awīl-um šū šarrāq''
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Align="center" | ''Awīl-um'' || Align="center" Colspan='3' | ''šū'' || Align="center" | ''šarrāq.''
|-
| Man (Masculine, nominative) || Align="center" Colspan='3' | he <small>(3rd masc. personal pronoun)</small> || Align="right" | thief (status absolutus)
|}
'''Translation:''' This man is a thief
(2) ''šarrum lā šanān''
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Align="center" | ''šarr-um'' || Align="center" Colspan='3' | ''lā'' || Align="center" | ''šanān.''
|-
| King <small>(Status rectus, nominative)</small> || Align="center" Colspan='3' | not <small>(negative particle)</small> || Align="right" | oppose <small>(verbal infinitive, status absolutus)</small>
|}
'''Translation:''' The king who cannot be rivaled
The Status Constructus is a great deal more common, and has a much wider range of applications. It is employed when a noun is followed by another noun in the genitive, a pronominal suffix, or a verbal clause in the subjunctive, and typically takes the ''shortest form of the noun which is phonetically possible''. In general, this amounts to the loss of case endings with short vowels, with the exception of the genitive -i in nouns preceding a pronominal suffix, hence:
(3) ''māri-šu''
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Align="center" | ''māri-šu''
|-
| Son (status constructus) + his <small>(3rd person singular possessive pronoun </small>
|}
'''Translation:''' His son, its (masculine) son
but
(4) ''mār šarr-im''
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Align="center" | ''mār'' || Align="center" | ''šarr-im''
|-
| Son (Status constructus) || king (genitive singular)
|}
'''Translation:''' The king's son
There are numerous exceptions to this general rule, usually involving potential violations of the language's phonological limitations. Most obviously, Akkadian does not tolerate word final consonant clusters, so nouns like ''kalbum'' (dog) and ''maḫrum'' (front) would have illegal construct state forms ''*kalb'' and ''*maḫr'' unless modified. In many of these instances, the first vowel of the word is simply repeated (e.g. ''kalab'', ''maḫar''). This rule, however, does not always hold true, especially in nouns where a short vowel has historically been elided (e.g. ''šaknum'' < ''*šakinum'' "governor"). In these cases, the lost vowel is restored in the construct state (so ''šaknum'' yields ''šakin'').
(5) ''kalab belim''
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Align="center" | ''kalab'' || Align="center" | ''bel-im''
|-
| dog (Status constructus) || master (genitive singular)
|}
'''Translation:''' The master's dog
(6) ''sakin ālim''
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Align="center" | ''šakin'' || Align="center" | ''āl-im''
|-
| Governor (Status constructus) || city (genitive singular)
|}
A genitive relation can also be expressed with the relative preposition ''ša'', and the noun that the genitive phrase depends on appears in status rectus.
(7) salīmātum ša awīl Ešnunna
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Align="center" | ''salīmātum'' || Align="center" Colspan='3' | ''ša'' || Align="center" | ''awīl''|| Align="center" | ''Ešnunna''
|-
| Alliances <small>(Status rectus, nominative)</small> || Align="center" Colspan='3' | which <small>(relative particle)</small> || Align="right" | man <small>(status constructus)</small> || Align="right" | Ešnunna <small>(genitive, unmarked)</small>
|}
'''Translation:''' The alliances of the Ruler of Ešnunna (literally "Alliances which man of Ešnunna (has)")
The same preposition is also used to introduce true relative clauses, in which case the verb is placed in the subjunctive mood.
(7) ''awīl-um ša māt-am i-kšud-Ø-u''
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Align="center" | ''Awīl-um'' || Align="center" Colspan='3' | ''ša'' || Align="center" | ''māt-am'' || Align="center" | ''i-kšud-Ø-u''
|-
| Man (Masculine, nominative) || Align="center" Colspan='3' | that <small>(relative pronoun)</small> || Align="center" | land (singular, accusative) || Align="center" | 3rd person - conquer (preterite) - singular, masculine - subjunctive
|}
'''Translation:''' The man who conquered the land
====Verbal morphology====
=====Verb aspects=====
The Akkadian verb has six [[Finite verb|finite]] [[Grammatical aspect|verb aspects]] ([[preterite]], [[Perfective|perfect]], [[present tense|present]], [[imperative (grammar)|imperative]], [[Irrealis mood#Precative|precative]] and [[vetitive]]) and three [[Non-finite verb|infinite]] forms ([[infinitive]], [[participle]] and [[Non-finite verb|verbal adjective]]). The preterite is used for actions that are seen by the speaker as having occurred at a single point in time. The present is primarily imperfective in meaning and is used for concurrent and future actions as well as past actions with a temporal dimension. The final three finite forms are [[Injunctive mood|injunctive]] where the imperative and the precative together form a paradigm for positive commands and wishes, and the vetitive is used for negative wishes. Additionally the [[Periphrasis|periphrastic]] [[Imperative mood#Indicative and prohibitive mood|prohibitive]], formed by the present form of the verb and the negative [[adverb]] lā, is used to express negative commands. The infinitive of the Akkadian verb is a [[verbal noun]], and in contrast to some other languages the Akkadian infinitive can be declined in [[grammatical case|case]]. The verbal adjective is an adjectival form and designates the state or the result of the action of the verb, and consequently the exact meaning of the verbal adjective is determined by the [[semantics]] of the verb itself. The participle, which can be active or passive, is another verbal adjective and its meaning is similar to the [[English language|English]] [[gerund]].
The following table shows the conjugation of the G-stem verbs derived from the root PRS ("to decide") in the various verb aspects of Akkadian:
{| class="wikitable" align="center"
!
! Preterite
! Perfect
! Present
! Imperative
! [[Akkadian language#Stative|stative]]
! Infinitive
! Participle (active)
! Verbal adjective
|-
| align="left" | '''1st Person singular'''
|''aprus''||''aptaras''||''aparras''||rowspan=2 bgcolor='gray'| ||''parsāku''|| rowspan=8|''parāsum'' ||rowspan=8|''pārisum'' (masc.) <br /> ''pāristum'' (fem.) || rowspan=8|''parsum'' (masc.) <br /> ''paristum'' (fem.)
|-
| align="left" | '''1st Person plural'''
|''niprus''||''niptaras''||''niparras''||''parsānu''
|-
| align="left" | '''2nd Person singular masc.'''
|''taprus''||''taptaras''||''taparras''||''purus''||''parsāta''
|-
| align="left" | '''2nd Person singular fem.'''
|''taprusī''||''taptarsī'' (< *''taptarasī'')||''taparrasī''||''pursi''||''parsāti''
|-
| align="left" | '''2nd Person plural'''
|''taprusā''||''taptarsā''||''taparrasā''||''pursa''||''parsātunu'' (masc.) / ''parsātina''(fem.)
|-
| align="left" | '''3rd Person singular'''
|''iprus''||''iptaras''||''iparras''||rowspan=3 bgcolor='gray'| ||''paris'' (masc.) /''parsat'' (fem.)
|-
| align="left" | '''3rd Person plural masc.'''
|''iprusū''||''iptarsū'' (< *''iptarasū'')||''iparrasū''||''parsū''
|-
| align="left" | '''3rd Person plural fem.'''
|''iprusā''||''iptarsā''(< ''*iptarasā'')||''iparrasā''||''parsā''
|-
|}
The table below shows the different [[affix]]es attached to the preterite aspect of the verb root PRS "to decide"; and as can be seen, the [[grammatical gender]]s differ only in the second person singular and third person plural.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
!G-Stem
!D-Stem
!Š-Stem
!N-Stem
|-
| '''1st Person singular''' || ''a-prus-Ø'' || ''u-parris-Ø'' || ''u-šapris-Ø'' || ''a-pparis-Ø''
|-
| '''1st Person plural''' || ''ni-prus-Ø'' || ''nu-parris-Ø'' || ''nu-šapris-Ø'' || ''ni-pparis-Ø''
|-
| '''2nd Person singular masc.''' || ''ta-prus-Ø'' || ''tu-parris-Ø'' || ''tu-šapris-Ø'' || ''ta-pparis-Ø''
|-
| '''2nd Person singular fem.''' || ''ta-prus-ī'' || ''tu-parris-ī'' || ''tu-šapris-ī'' || ''ta-ppars-ī''
|-
| '''2nd Person plural''' || ''ta-prus-ā'' || ''tu-parris-ā'' || ''tu-šapris-ā'' || ''ta-ppars-ā''
|-
| '''3rd Person singular''' || ''i-prus-Ø'' || ''u-parris-Ø'' || ''u-šapris-Ø'' || ''i-pparis-Ø''
|-
| '''3rd Person plural masc.''' || ''i-prus-ū'' || ''u-parris-ū'' || ''u-šapris-ū'' || ''i-ppars-ū''
|-
| '''3rd Person plural fem.''' || ''i-prus-ā'' || ''u-parris-ā'' || ''u-šapris-ā'' || ''i-ppars-ā''
|-
|}
=====Verb moods=====
Akkadian verbs have 3 moods:
#[[Indicative]], used in independent clauses, is unmarked.
#[[Subjunctive]], used in dependent clauses. The subjunctive is marked in forms which do not end in a vowel by the suffix -u (compare Arabic and Ugaritic subjunctives), but is otherwise unmarked. In the later stages of most dialects, the subjunctive is indistinct, as short final vowels were mostly lost
#[[Ventive|Venitive]] or [[allative]]. The venitive is not a mood in the strictest sense, being a development of the 1st person dative pronominal suffix -am/-m/-nim. With verbs of motion, it often indicates motion towards an object or person (e.g. ''illik'', "he went" vs. ''illikam'', "he came"). However, this pattern is not consistent, even in earlier stages of the language, and its use often appears to serve a stylistic rather than morphological or lexical function.
The following table demonstrates the verb moods of verbs derived from the root PRS ("to decide","to separate"):
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
! Preterite.<ref group=t4 name=third-pm>Both verbs are for the 3rd person masculine singular.</ref>
! [[Akkadian language#Stative|Stative]].<ref group=t4 name=third-pm/>
|-
! [[Indicative]]
| ''iprus'' || ''paris''
|-
! [[Subjunctive]]
| ''iprusu'' || ''parsu''
|-
! [[Ventive|Venitive]]
| ''iprusam'' || ''parsam''
|}
{{reflist|group=t4}}
=====Verb patterns=====
Akkadian verbs have thirteen separate stems formed on each [[Triliteral|root]]. The basic, underived, stem is the G-stem (from the German Grundstamm, meaning "basic stem"). [[Causative]] or [[intensive]] forms are formed with the doubled D-stem, and it gets its name from the doubled middle radical that is characteristic of this form. The doubled middle radical is also characteristic of the present, but the forms of the D-stem use the secondary conjugational affixes, so a D-form will never be identical to a form in a different stem. The Š-stem is formed by adding a prefix ''š-'', and these forms are mostly causatives. Finally, the passive forms of the verb are in the N-stem, formed by adding a ''n-'' prefix. However the ''n-'' element is assimilated to a following consonant, so the original /n/ is only visible in a few forms.
Furthermore, [[reflexive verb|reflexive]] and [[iterative]] verbal stems can be derived from each of the basic stems. The reflexive stem is formed with an infix ''-ta'', and the [[derived stems]] are therefore called Gt, Dt, Št and Nt, and the preterite forms of the Xt-stem are identical to the perfects of the X-stem. Iteratives are formed with the infix ''-tan-'', giving the Gtn, Dtn, Štn and Ntn. Because of the [[Assimilation (linguistics)|assimilation]] of ''n'', the /n/ is only seen in the present forms, and the Xtn preterite is identical to the Xt [[Dynamic verb|durative]].
The final stem is the ŠD-stem, a form mostly attested only in poetic texts, and whose meaning is usually identical to either the Š-stem or the D-stem of the same verb. It is formed with the Š prefix (like the Š-stem) in addition to a doubled middle radical (like the D-stem).
An alternative to this naming system is a numerical system. The basic stems are numbered using [[Roman numeral]]s so that G, D, Š and N become I, II, III and IV, respectively, and the [[infix]]es are numbered using [[Arabic numeral]]s; 1 for the forms without an infix, 2 for the Xt, and 3 for the Xtn. The two numbers are separated using a solidus. As an example, the Štn-stem is called III/3. The most important user of this system is the Chicago Assyrian Dictionary.
There is mandatory congruence between the subject of the sentence and the verb, and this is expressed by [[prefix]]es and [[suffix]]es. There are two different sets of affixes, a primary set used for the forms of the G and N-stems, and a secondary set for the D and Š-stems.
The stems, their nomenclature and examples of the third-person masculine singular [[Akkadian language#Stative|stative]] of the verb ''parāsum'' (root PRS: 'to decide, distinguish, separate') is shown below:
{|class="wikitable" align="center"
! # || Stem || Verb || Description || Correspondence
|-
|I.1||G||''PaRiS''||the simple stem, used for [[Transitive verbs|transitive]] and [[intransitive verbs]]|| Arabic stem I (''fa‘ala'') and Hebrew ''qal''
|-
|II.1||D||''PuRRuS''||gemination of the second radical, indicating the intensive|| Arabic stem II (''fa‘‘ala'') and Hebrew ''pi‘el''
|-
|III.1||Š||''šuPRuS''||š-preformative, indicating the causative|| Arabic stem IV (''’af‘ala'') and Hebrew ''hiph‘il''
|-
|IV.1||N||''naPRuS''||n-preformative, indicating the reflexive/passive|| Arabic stem VII (''infa‘ala'') and Hebrew ''niph‘al''
|-
|I.2||Gt||''PitRuS''||simple stem with t-infix after first radical, indicating reciprocal or reflexive|| Arabic stem VIII (''ifta‘ala'') and Aramaic ''’ithpe‘al'' (tG)
|-
|II.2||Dt||''PutaRRuS''||doubled second radical preceded by infixed t, indicating intensive reflexive|| Arabic stem V (''tafa‘‘ala'') and Hebrew ''hithpa‘el'' (tD)
|-
|III.2||Št||''šutaPRuS''||š-preformative with t-infix, indicating reflexive causative|| Arabic stem X (''istaf‘ala'') and Aramaic ''’ittaph‘al'' (tC)
|-
|IV.2||Nt||''itaPRuS'' || n-preformative with a t-infix preceding the first radical, indicating reflexive passive || Hb. rare slang ''hitpu‘al'' (e.g. התפוטר = forced to resign){{#tag:ref|The ''hitpu‘al'' is not inherited in Hebrew, but is rather a recent analogical creation of a passive formed to ''hitpa‘el''.<ref>Mark Aronoff, ''Morphology by Itself: Stems and Inflectional Classes'', p. 190.</ref>|group=t5}}
|-
|I.3||Gtn||''PitaRRuS''||simple stem with tan-infix after first radical|| rowspan='5' bgcolor='gray' |
|-
|II.3||Dtn||''PutaRRuS''||doubled second radical preceded by tan-infix
|-
|III.3||Štn|| ''šutaPRuS'' ||š-preformative with tan-infix
|-
|IV.3||Ntn||''itaPRuS''||n-preformative with tan-infix
|-
|||ŠD||''šuPuRRuS''||š-preformative with doubled second radical
|}
{{reflist|group=t5}}
===Stative===
A very often appearing form which can be formed by [[noun]]s, [[adjectives]] as well as by [[predicative verb|verbal adjectives]] is the [[stative]]. [[Predicative (adjectival or nominal)|Nominal predicatives]] occur in the [[status absolutus]] and correspond to the verb "to be" in English. The stative in Akkadian corresponds to the [[Egyptian language|Egyptian]] pseudo-participle. The following table contains an example of using the noun ''šarrum'' (king), the adjective ''rapšum'' (wide) and the verbal adjective ''parsum'' (decided).
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
!''šarrum''
!''rapšum''
!''parsum''
|-
| '''1st Person singular''' || ''šarr-āku'' || ''rapš-āku'' || ''pars-āku''
|-
| '''1st Person plural''' || ''šarr-ānu'' || ''rapš-ānu'' || ''pars-ānu''
|-
| '''2nd Person singular masc.''' || ''šarr-āta'' || ''rapš-āta'' || ''pars-āta''
|-
| '''2nd Person singular fem.''' || ''šarr-āti'' || ''rapš-āti'' || ''pars-āti''
|-
| '''2nd Person plural masc.''' || ''šarr-ātunu'' || ''rapš-ātunu'' || ''pars-ātunu''
|-
| '''2nd Person plural fem.''' || ''šarr-ātina'' || ''rapš-ātina'' || ''pars-ātina''
|-
| '''3rd Person singular masc.''' || ''šar-Ø'' || ''rapaš-Ø'' || ''paris-Ø''
|-
| '''3rd Person singular fem.''' || ''šarr-at'' || ''rapš-at'' || ''pars-at''
|-
| '''3rd Person plural masc.''' || ''šarr-ū'' || ''rapš-ū'' || ''pars-ū''
|-
| '''3rd Person plural fem.''' || ''šarr-ā'' || ''rapš-ā'' || ''pars-ā''
|-
|}
Thus, the stative in Akkadian is used to convert simple stems into effective sentences, so that the form ''šarr-āta'' is equivalent to: "you were king", "you are king" and "you will be king". Hence, the stative is independent of time forms.
===Derivation===
Beside the already explained possibility of derivation of different verb stems, Akkadian has numerous nominal formations derived from verb [[triliteral|roots]]. A very frequently encountered form is the maPRaS form. It can express the location of an event, the person performing the act and many other meanings. If one of the root consonants is [[labial consonant|labial]] (p, b, m), the [[prefix]] becomes na- (maPRaS > naPRAS). Examples for this are: ''maškanum'' (place, location) from ŠKN (set, place, put), ''mašraḫum'' (splendour) from ŠRḪ (be splendid), ''maṣṣarum'' (guards) from NṢR (guard), ''napḫarum'' (sum) from PḪR (summarize).
A very similar formation is the maPRaSt form. The noun derived from this nominal formation is grammatically feminine. The same rules as for the maPRaS form apply, for example ''maškattum'' (deposit) from ŠKN (set, place, put), ''narkabtum'' (carriage) from RKB (ride, drive, mount).
The [[suffix]] - ūt is used to derive [[Noun#Concrete nouns and abstract nouns|abstract nouns]]. The nouns which are formed with this suffix are grammatically feminine. The suffix can be attached to nouns, adjectives and verbs, e.g. ''abūtum'' (paternity) from ''abum'' (father), ''rabutum'' (size) from ''rabum'' (large), ''waṣūtum'' (leaving) from WṢY (leave).
Also derivatives of verbs from nouns, adjectives and numerals are numerous. For the most part, a D-stem is derived from the root of the noun or adjective. The derived verb then has the meaning of "make X do something" or "becoming X", for example: ''duššûm'' (let sprout) from ''dišu'' (grass), ''šullušum'' (to do something for the third time ) from ''šalāš'' (three).
===Pronouns===
====Personal pronouns====
=====Independent personal pronouns=====
Independent [[personal pronouns]] in Akkadian are as follows:
{| class="wikitable"
! colspan=2 | || colspan=2 | Nominative || colspan=2 | Oblique || colspan=2 | [[Dative]]
|-
! colspan=2|Person || [[Singulative number|singular]] || [[Plural]] || Singular || Plural || Singular || Plural
|-
! colspan=2|1st
| anāku "I" || nīnu "we" || yāti || niāti || yāšim || niāšim
|-
! rowspan=2|2nd
!<small>masculine</small>
| atta "you" || attunu "you" || kāti (kāta) || kunūti ||kāšim || kunūšim
|-
!<small>feminine</small>
| atti "you" || attina "you" || kāti || kināti || kāšim || kināšim
|-
! rowspan=2|3rd
!<small>masculine</small>
| šū "he" || šunu "they" || šātilu (šātilu) || šunūti ||šuāšim (šāšim) || šunūšim
|-
!<small>feminine</small>
| šī "she" || šina "they" || šiāti (šuāti;šāti) || šināti || šiāšim (šāšim, šāšim) || šināšim
|-
|}
=====Suffixed (or enclitic) pronouns=====
[[Suffix]]ed (or [[enclitic]]) pronouns (mainly denoting the [[genitive]], [[accusative]] and [[dative]]) are as follows:
{| class="wikitable"
! colspan=2 | || colspan=2 | Genitive || colspan=2 | Accusative || colspan=2 | [[Dative]]
|-
! colspan=2|Person || [[Singulative number|singular]] || [[Plural]] || Singular || Plural || Singular || Plural
|-
! colspan=2|1st
| -i, -ya <ref group=t5>-ni is used for the nominative, i.e. following a verb denoting the subject.</ref> || -ni || -ni || -niāti || -am/-nim || -niāšim
|-
! rowspan=2|2nd
!<small>masculine</small>
| -ka || -kunu || -ka || -kunūti || -kum || -kunūšim
|-
!<small>feminine</small>
| -ki || -kina || -ki || -kināti || -kim || -kināšim
|-
! rowspan=2|3rd
!<small>masculine</small>
| -šū || -šunu || -šū || -šunūti || -šum || -šunūšim
|-
!<small>feminine</small>
| -ša || -šina || -ši || -šināti || -šim || -šināšim
|-
|}
{{reflist|group=t5}}
====Demonstrative pronouns====
[[Demonstrative pronoun]]s in Akkadian differ from the [[West Semitic languages|Western Semitic]] variety. The following table shows the Akkadian demonstrative pronouns according to near and far [[deixis]]:
{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan=2 |
! colspan=2 | [[Deixis]]
|- align="center"
| Proximal ||Distal
|-
| '''Masc. singular'''||''annū'' "this"||''ullū'' "that"
|-
| '''Fem. Singular'''||''annītu'' "this"||''ullītu'' "that"
|-
| '''Masc. plural'''||''annūtu'' "these"||''ullūtu'' "those"
|-
| '''Fem. plural'''||''annātu'' "these"||''ullātu'' "those"
|}
====Relative pronouns====
[[Relative pronouns]] in Akkadian are shown in the following table:
{| class="wikitable"
!
! [[Nominative]]
! [[Accusative]]
! [[Genitive]]
|-
| '''Masc. singular'''||align="center"|''šu''||align="center"|''ša''||align="center"|''ši''
|-
| '''Fem. Singular'''||align="center"|''šāt''||align="center" colspan=2|''šāti''
|-
| '''Dual'''||align="center" colspan=3|''šā''
|-
| '''Masc. plural'''||align="center" colspan=3|''šūt''
|-
| '''Fem. plural'''||align="center" colspan=3|''šāt''
|-
|}
Unlike plural relative pronouns, singular relative pronouns in Akkadian exhibit full declension for case. However, only the form ''ša'' (originally accusative masculine singular) survived, while the other forms disappeared in time.
====Interrogative pronouns====
The following table shows the [[Interrogative pronouns]] used in Akkadian:
{| class="wikitable"
! Akkadian
! English
|-
| ''mannu''||who?
|-
| ''mīnū''||what?
|-
| ''ayyu''||which?
|-
|}
===Prepositions===
Akkadian has [[preposition]]s which consist mainly of only one word. For example: ''ina'' (in, on, out, through, under), ''ana'' (too, for, after, approximately), ''adi'' (to), ''aššu'' (because of), ''eli'' (up, over), ''ištu/ultu'' (of, since), ''mala'' (in accordance with), ''itti'' (also, with). There are, however, some compound prepositions which are combined with ''ina'' and ''ana'' (e.g. ''ina maḫar'' (forwards), ''ina balu'' (without), ''ana ṣēr'' (up to), ''ana maḫar'' (forwards). Regardless of the complexity of the preposition, the following noun is always in the [[genitive]] [[case ending|case]].
Examples: ''ina bītim'' (in the house, from the house), ''ana dummuqim'' (to do good), ''itti šarrim'' (with the king), ''ana ṣēr mārīšu'' (up to his son).
===Numerals===
Since [[Numeral system|numeral]]s are written mostly as a number sign in the [[cuneiform]] script, the [[transliteration]] of many numerals is not well ascertained yet. Along with the counted noun, the [[cardinal number|cardinal numeral]]s are in the [[status absolutus]]. Because other cases are very rare, the forms of the [[status rectus]] are known only by isolated numerals. The numerals 1 and 2 as well as 21–29, 31–39, 41–49 correspond with the counted in the [[grammatical gender]], while the numerals 3–20, 30, 40 and 50 show gender polarity, i.e. if the counted noun is masculine, the numeral would be feminine and vice versa. This polarity is typical of the [[Semitic language]]s and appears also in [[Arabic language|classical Arabic]] for example. The numerals 60, 100 and 1000 do not change according to the gender of the counted noun. Counted nouns more than two appear in the plural form. However, body parts which occur in pairs appear in the [[dual (grammatical number)|dual]] form in Akkadian. e.g. ''šepum'' (foot) becomes ''šepān'' (two feet).
The [[ordinal number|ordinal]]s are formed (with a few exceptions) by adding a [[case ending]] to the nominal form PaRuS (the P, R and S. must be substituted with the suitable consonants of the numeral). It is noted, however, that in the case of the numeral "one", the ordinal (masculine) and the cardinal number are the same. A [[Metathesis (linguistics)|metathesis]] occurs in the numeral "four". The following table contains the masculine and feminine forms of the status absolutus of some of the Akkadian cardinal numbers, as well as the corresponding ordinals.
{| class="wikitable" align="center"
|-
!#
!Cardinal numeral <small>(masc.)</small>
!Cardinal numeral <small>(fem.)</small>
!Congruence <small>(Gender agreement of the cardinal numeral)</small>
!Ordinal <small>(masc.)</small>
!Ordinal <small>(fem.)</small>
|-
| align='left' | 1 || ''ištēn'' || ''išteʾat'',<br />''ištāt'' || Congruent (no gender polarity) || ''ištēn'' || ''išteʾat''
|-
| align='left' | 2 || ''šinā'' || ''šittā'' || Congruent || ''šanûm'' || ''šanītum''
|-
| align='left' | 3 || ''šalāš'' || ''šalāšat'' || Gender polarity || ''šalšum'' || ''šaluštum''
|-
| align='left' | 4 || ''erbē'' || ''erbēt'' || Gender polarity || ''rebûm'' || ''rebūtum''
|-
| align='left' | 5 || ''ḫamiš'' || ''ḫamšat'' || Gender polarity || ''ḫamšum'' || ''ḫamuštum''
|-
| align='left' | 6 || ''šediš'' || ''šiššet'' || Gender polarity || ''šeššum'' || ''šeduštum''
|-
| align='left' | 7 || ''sebē'' || ''sebēt'' || Gender polarity || ''sebûm'' || ''sebūtum''
|-
| align='left' | 8 || ''samānē'' || ''samānat'' || Gender polarity || ''samnum'',<br />''samnûm'' || ''samuntum''
|-
| align='left' | 9 || ''tešē'' || ''tišīt'' || Gender polarity || ''tišûm'',<br />''tešûm'' || ''tišūtum'',<br />''tešūtum''
|-
| align='left' | 10 || ''ešer'' || ''ešeret'' || Gender polarity || ''ešrum'' || ''ešurtum''
|-
| align='left' | 60 || colspan='2' align='center' | ''šūš'' || No gender distinction || rowspan='3' colspan='2' bgcolor='gray' |
|-
| align='left' | 100 || colspan='2' align='center' | ''meʾat'', ''māt'' || No gender distinction
|-
| align='left' | 1000 || colspan='2' align='center' | ''līm'' || No gender distinction
|-
|}
Examples: erbē aššātum (four wives) (male numeral), meʾat ālānū (100 towns).
===Syntax===
====Nominal phrases====
[[Adjectives]], [[relative clauses]] and [[apposition]]s follow the noun.
While [[Numeral (linguistics)|numerals]] precede the counted noun.
In the following table the nominal phrase ''erbēt šarrū dannūtum ša ālam īpušū abūya'' 'the four strong kings who built the city are my fathers' is analyzed:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Word
!Meaning
!Analysis
!Part of the nominal phrase
|-
| ''erbēt'' || four || feminine (gender polarity) || Numeral
|-
| ''šarr-ū'' || king || [[nominative]] [[plural]] || Noun (Subject)
|-
| ''dann-ūtum'' || strong || nominative masculine plural || Adjective
|-
| ''ša'' || which || relative pronoun || rowspan='3' valign='middle' | Relative clause
|-
| ''āl-am'' || city || [[accusative]] singular
|-
| ''īpuš-ū'' || built|| 3rd person masculine plural
|-
| ''[[ab (cuneiform)|ab]]-ū-ya'' || my fathers || masculine plural + possessive pronoun || Apposition
|-
|}
====Sentence syntax====
Akkadian sentence order was Subject+Object+Verb (SOV), which sets it apart from most other ancient Semitic languages such as [[Arabic language|Arabic]] and [[Biblical Hebrew language|Biblical Hebrew]], which typically have a [[Verb–subject–object|verb–subject–object (VSO)]] word order. (Modern [[South Semitic]] languages in [[Ethiopia]] also have SOV order, but these developed within historical times from the classical [[Verb–subject–object|verb–subject–object (VSO)]] language [[Ge'ez language|Ge'ez]].) It has been hypothesized that this word order was a result of influence from the [[Sumerian language]], which was also SOV. There is evidence that native speakers of both languages were in intimate language contact, forming a single society for at least 500 years, so it is entirely likely that a [[sprachbund]] could have formed. Further evidence of an original VSO or SVO ordering can be found in the fact that direct and indirect object pronouns are suffixed to the verb. Word order seems to have shifted to SVO/VSO late in the 1st millennium BC to the 1st millennium AD, possibly under the influence of [[Aramaic language|Aramaic]].
==Vocabulary==
The Akkadian vocabulary is mostly of [[Semitic]] origin. Although classified as '[[East Semitic]]', many elements of its basic vocabulary find no evident parallels in related Semitic languages. For example: ''māru'' 'son' (Semitic *bn), ''qātu'' 'hand' (Semitic *yd), ''šēpu'' 'foot' (Semitic *rgl), ''qabû'' 'say' (Semitic *qwl), ''izuzzu'' 'stand' (Semitic *qwm), ''ana'' 'to, for' (Semitic *li).
Due to extensive contact with Sumerian and [[Aramaic]], the Akkadian vocabulary contains many loan words from these languages. Aramaic loan words, however, were limited to the 1st centuries of the 1st millennium BC and primarily in the north and middle parts of [[Mesopotamia]], whereas Sumerian loan words were spread in the whole linguistic area. Beside the previous languages, some nouns were borrowed from [[Hurrian]], [[Kassite language|Kassite]], [[Ugaritic]] and other ancient languages.
Since Sumerian and Hurrian, two non-Semitic languages, differ from Akkadian in word structure, only nouns and some adjectives (not many verbs) were borrowed from these languages. However, some verbs were borrowed (along with many nouns) from Aramaic and Ugaritic, both of which are Semitic languages.
The following table contains examples of loan words in Akkadian:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Akkadian
!Meaning
!Source
!Word in the language of origin
|-
| ''dû'' || hill || Sumerian || ''du''
|-
| ''erēqu'' || flee || Aramaic || ''ʿRQ'' ([[Triliteral|root]])
|-
| ''gadalû'' || dressed in linen || Sumerian || ''gada lá''
|-
| ''isinnu'' || firmly || Sumerian || ''ezen''
|-
| ''kasulatḫu'' || a device of copper || Hurrian || ''kasulatḫ-''
|-
| ''kisallu'' || court || Sumerian || ''kisal''
|-
| ''laqāḫu'' || take || Ugaritic || ''LQḤ''( [[Triliteral|root]])
|-
| ''paraššannu'' || part of horse riding gear || Hurrian || ''paraššann-''
|-
| ''purkullu'' || stone cutter || Sumerian || ''bur-gul''
|-
| ''qaṭālu'' || kill || Aramaic || ''QṬL'' ([[Triliteral|root]])
|-
| ''uriḫullu'' || conventional penalty || Hurrian || ''uriḫull-''
|-
|}
Akkadian was also a source of borrowing to other languages, above all [[Sumerian language|Sumerian]]. Some examples are: Sumerian ''da-ri'' ('lastingly', from Akkadian ''dāru''), Sumerian ''ra gaba'' ('riders, messenger', from Akkadian ''rākibu'').
==Example text==
The following text is the 7th section of the [[Code of Hammurabi|Hammurabi law code]], written in the mid-18th century BC:
{| cellspacing="0" cellpadding="4" style="margin:1em 1em 2em 0; empty-cells:show"
|-
! width=10% Align="left" | Akkadian
| width=10% | ''šumma''
| width=10% | ''awīl-um''
| width=10% | ''lū''
| width=10% | ''kasp-am''
| width=10% | ''lū''
| width=10% | ''ḫurāṣ-am''
| width=10% | ''lū''
| width=10% | ''ward-am''
| width=10% | ''lū''
| width=10% | ''amt-am''
|-
! Align="left" | English
| if
| Man (nominative)
| or
| silver (accusative)
| or
| gold (accusative)
| or
| slave (masculine, accusative)
| or
| Slave (feminine, accusative)
|-
| colspan='10' |
|-
! Align="left" |Akkadian
| ''lū''
| ''alp-am''
| ''lū''
| ''immer-am''
| ''lū''
| ''imēr-am''
| ''ū lū''
| colspan='2' | ''mimma šumšu''
| ''ina''
|-
! Align="left" | English
| or
| Cattle, oxen (accusative)
| or
| sheep (accusative)
| or
| donkey (accusative)
| and or
| colspan='2' | something
| from
|-
| colspan='10' |
|-
! Align="left" | Akkadian
| ''qāt''
| ''mār''
| ''awīl-im''
| ''ū lū''
| ''warad''
| ''awīl-im''
| ''balum''
| colspan='2' | ''šīb-ī''
| ''u''
|-
! Align="left" | English
| hand (status constructus)
| son (status constructus)
| man (genitive)
| and or
| slave (status constructus)
| man (genitive)
| without
| colspan='2' | witnesses (genitive)
| and
|-
| colspan='10' |
|-
! Align="left" | Akkadian
| colspan='2' | ''riks-ātim''
| colspan='2' | ''i-štām-Ø''
| ''ū lū''
| ''ana''
| colspan='2' | ''maṣṣārūt-im''
| colspan='2' | ''i-mḫur-Ø''
|-
! Align="left" | English
| colspan='2' | contracts (genitive)
| colspan='2' | bought (3rd person singular, perfect)
| and or
| for
| colspan='2' | safekeeping (genitive)
| colspan='2' | received (3rd person singular, preterite)
|-
| colspan='10' |
|-
! Align="left" | Akkadian
| colspan='2' | ''awīl-um''
| colspan='2' | ''šū''
| colspan='2' | ''šarrāq''
| colspan='5' | ''i-ddāk''
|-
! Align="left" | English
| colspan='2' | man (nominative)
| colspan='2' | (3rd person masculine singular independent pronoun)
| colspan='2' | stealer (status absolutus)
| colspan='5' | is killed (3rd person singular in passive present tense)
|-
|}
Translation: ''If a man bought silver, gold, a slave (masculine), a slave (feminine), an ox, a sheep, a donkey or something other from the hand of another man or a slave of a man without witnesses or contract, or accepted (them) for safekeeping (without same), then this man is a thief; he is to be killed.''
==Akkadian literature==
{{Portal|Ancient Near East}}
{{Main|Assyro-Babylonian literature}}
*[[Atrahasis Epic]] (early 2nd millennium BC)
*[[Enûma Elish]] (ca. 18th century BC)
*[[Amarna letters]] (14th century BC)
*[[Epic of Gilgamesh]] ([[Sin-liqe-unninni]]' "standard" version, 13th to 11th century BC)
*[[Ludlul bēl nēmeqi|Ludlul Bel Nemeqi]]
==Notes==
{{Reflist}}
==References==
{{refbegin}}
*Aro, Jussi (1957). ''Studien zur mittelbabylonischen Grammatik''. Studia Orientalia 22. Helsinki: Societas Orientalis Fennica.
*Buccellati, Giorgio (1996). ''A Structural Grammar of Babylonian''. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz.
*Buccellati, Giorgio (1997). "Akkadian," ''The Semitic Languages''. Ed. Robert Hetzron. New York: Routledge. Pages 69–99.
*Bussmann, Hadumod (1996). ''Routledge Dictionary of Language and Linguistics''. New York: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-20319-8
*Caplice, Richard (1980). ''Introduction to Akkadian''. Rome: Biblical Institute Press. (1983: ISBN 88-7653-440-7; 1988, 2002: ISBN 88-7653-566-7) (The 1980 edition is partly available [http://www.gatewaystobabylon.com/introduction/ita/start.htm online].)
*{{Cite book|last = Dolgopolsky|first = Aron| title = From Proto-Semitic to Hebrew| year = 1999 | publisher = Centro Studi Camito-Semitici di Milano | location = Milan}}
*Gelb, I.J. (1961). ''Old Akkadian Writing and Grammar''. Second edition. Materials for the Assyrian Dictionary 2. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
*Huehnergard, John (2005). ''A Grammar of Akkadian (Second Edition)''. Eisenbrauns. ISBN 1-57506-922-9
*Marcus, David (1978). ''A Manual of Akkadian''. University Press of America. ISBN 0-8191-0608-9
*Mercer, Samuel A B (1961). ''Introductory Assyrian Grammar''. New York: F Ungar. ISBN 0-486-42815-X
*{{Cite book|author=Sabatino Moscati|title=An Introduction to Comparative Grammar of Semitic Languages Phonology and Morphology|publisher=Harrassowitz Verlag|year=1980|isbn=3-447-00689-7}}
*[[Wolfram von Soden|Soden, Wolfram von]] (1952). ''Grundriss der akkadischen Grammatik''. Analecta Orientalia 33. Roma: Pontificium Institutum Biblicum. (3rd ed., 1995: ISBN 88-7653-258-7)
*Woodard, Roger D. The Ancient Languages of Mesopotamia, Egypt and Aksum. Cambridge University Press 2008. ISBN 978-0-521-68497-2
{{refend}}
==Further reading==
===General description and grammar===
* Gelb, I. J. (1961). ''Old Akkadian writing and grammar''. Materials for the Assyrian dictionary, no. 2. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0-226-62304-1
* Hasselbach, Rebecca. ''Sargonic Akkadian: A Historical and Comparative Study of the Syllabic Texts''. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag 2005. ISBN 978-3-447-05172-9
* Huehnergard, J. ''A Grammar of Akkadian'' (3rd ed. 2011). Harvard Semitic Museum Studies 45. ISBN 978-1-57506-922-7
* Huehnergard, J. (2005). ''A Key to ''A Grammar of Akkadian'' ''. Harvard Semitic Studies. Eisenbrauns.
* [[Wolfram von Soden|Soden, Wolfram von]]: ''Grundriß der Akkadischen Grammatik''. Analecta Orientalia. Bd 33. Rom 1995. ISBN 88-7653-258-7
* Streck, Michael P. ''Sprachen des Alten Orients''. Wiss. Buchges., Darmstadt 2005. ISBN 3-534-17996-X
* Ungnad, Arthur: ''Grammatik des Akkadischen.'' Neubearbeitung durch L. Matouš, München 1969, 1979 (5. Aufl.). ISBN 3-406-02890-X
*Woodard, Roger D. ''The Ancient Languages of Mesopotamia, Egypt and Aksum''. Cambridge University Press 2008. ISBN 978-0-521-68497-2
===Textbooks===
* Rykle Borger: ''Babylonisch-assyrische Lesestücke.'' Rom 1963.(3., revidierte Auflage, 2006 Teil. I-II)
**Part I: ''Elemente der Grammatik und der Schrift. Übungsbeispiele. Glossar.''
**Part II: ''Die Texte in Umschrift.''
**Part III: ''Kommentar. Die Texte in Keilschrift.''
* Richard Caplice: ''Introduction to Akkadian.'' Biblical Institute Press, Rome 1988, 2002 (4.Aufl.). ISBN 88-7653-566-7
* Kaspar K. Riemschneider: ''Lehrbuch des Akkadischen.'' Enzyklopädie, Leipzig 1969, Langenscheidt Verl. Enzyklopädie, Leipzig 1992 (6. Aufl.). ISBN 3-324-00364-4
* Martin Worthington: "Complete Babylonian: Teach Yourself" London 2010 ISBN 0-340-98388-4
===Dictionaries===
* Jeremy G. Black, Andrew George, Nicholas Postgate: ''A Concise Dictionary of Akkadian.'' Harrassowitz-Verlag, Wiesbaden 2000. ISBN 3-447-04264-8
* Wolfram von Soden: ''Akkadisches Handwörterbuch.'' 3 Bde. Wiesbaden 1958-1981. ISBN 3-447-02187-X
* Martha T. Roth, ed.: ''[[Chicago Assyrian Dictionary|The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago.]]'' 21 vols. in 26. Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, Chicago 1956-2010. ([http://oi.uchicago.edu/research/pubs/catalog/cad/ available free online])
===Akkadian cuneiform===
*Cherry, A. (2003). ''A basic neo-Assyrian cuneiform syllabary''. Toronto, Ont: Ashur Cherry, York University.
*Cherry, A. (2003). ''Basic individual logograms (Akkadian)''. Toronto, Ont: Ashur Cherry, York University.
*Rykle Borger: ''Mesopotamisches Zeichenlexikon.'' Alter Orient und Altes Testament (AOAT). Bd 305. Ugarit-Verlag, Münster 2004. ISBN 3-927120-82-0
*René Labat: ''Manuel d'Épigraphie Akkadienne.'' Paul Geuthner, Paris 1976, 1995 (6.Aufl.). ISBN 2-7053-3583-8
===Technical literature on specific subjects===
* Ignace J. Gelb: ''Old Akkadian Writing and Grammar.'' Materials for the Assyrian dictionary. Bd 2. University of Chicago Press, Chicago 1952, 1961, 1973. ISBN 0-226-62304-1 {{ISSN|0076-518X}}
* Markus Hilgert: ''Akkadisch in der Ur III-Zeit.'' Rhema-Verlag, Münster 2002. ISBN 3-930454-32-7
* Walter Sommerfeld: ''Bemerkungen zur Dialektgliederung Altakkadisch, Assyrisch und Babylonisch.'' In: ''Alter Orient und Altes Testament'' (AOAT). Ugarit-Verlag, Münster 274.2003. {{ISSN|0931-4296}}
==External links==
{{commons category|Akkadian language}}
{{OldWikisource|Akkadian}}
{{wiktionary category}}
*[http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/saao/knpp/cuneiformrevealed/ Introduction to Cuneiform Script and the Akkadian language] on [http://oracc.org/ The Open Richly Annotated Cuneiform Corpus (Oracc)]
*[http://www.omniglot.com/writing/akkadian.htm Akkadian cuneiform on Omniglot (Writing Systems and Languages of the World)]
*{{cite news|last=Wilford|first=John Noble|title=After 90 Years, a Dictionary of an Ancient World|work=The New York Times|page=2|date=7 June 2011|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/07/science/07dictionary.html}}
*[http://www.language-museum.com/encyclopedia/a/akkadian-cuneiform.php Akkadian Language Samples]
*[http://www.sron.nl/~jheise/akkadian/ A detailed introduction to Akkadian]
*[https://archive.org/details/assyriangrammarw00mercuoft ''Assyrian grammar with chrestomathy and glossary (1921)'' by Samuel A B Mercer]
*[http://www.assyrianlanguages.org/akkadian Akkadian-English-French Online Dictionary]
*[http://www.klinopis.cz/ Old Babylonian Text Corpus (includes dictionary)]
*[http://oi.uchicago.edu/research/pubs/catalog/cad/ The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago (CAD)]
*[http://oi.uchicago.edu/pdf/mad2.pdf Old Akkadian Writing and Grammar, by I. J. Gelb, 2nd Ed. (1961)]
*[http://oi.uchicago.edu/pdf/mad3.pdf Glossary of Old Akkadian, by I. J. Gelb (1957)]
*[http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/doc/builder/linganno/AKK/akk-roots/#Index_of_Akkadian_roots List of 1280 Akkadian roots, with a representative verb form for each]
*[http://www.speechisfire.com Recordings of Assyriologists Reading Babylonian and Assyrian]
*[http://packages.ubuntu.com/natty/ttf-ancient-fonts Unicode Fonts for Ancient Scripts]{{dead link|date=January 2014}} and Akkadian font for Ubuntu Linux-based operating system (ttf-ancient-fonts)
*[http://www.aina.org/cad.html The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago (CAD)]
{{Ancient Mesopotamia}}
{{Semitic languages|expanded=East}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Akkadian Language}}
[[Category:Akkadian language| ]]
[[Category:Fertile Crescent]]