[00:00.00]Listen to part of a lecture in an ancient history class. The professor has been discussing the Sumerians and the Arcadians, two ancient peoples from an area that is in modern day Iraq.
[00:13.74]Professor: So far, we've been focusing on the written record of the Sumerians and the Arcadians, like the cuneiform inscriptions we saw in those slides last week to see how historians work with archaeologists and linguists to put together the pieces of the puzzle. [00:30.61]What do these ancient symbols mean? What do they tell us about ancient peoples? [00:37.07]We've seen how these ancient texts shed light on social institutions, such as legal systems, like code or practical aspects of everyday life, such as farming and irrigation methods, as well as religious and artistic texts.
[00:54.68]Now we'll be discussing ancient texts when we move to Egypt to see how the hieroglyphics, the Egyptians first weighting system reveal to us the foundations of their civilization. [01:07.21]But before we leave Arcadians, I want to take a minute to let you hear what some of their texts sounded like in the original language, which obviously is no longer spoken,or at least what linguists think it sounded like. [01:23.95]Now this is based on somewhat speculative and fairly recent research,but it should give you some idea of what the ancient language sounded like. [01:35.21]OK.So I bought this really interesting tape. [01:38.95]It's a recording of Arcadians texts, mostly fragments of myths and poetry, but also practical topics like a but let's see, the first reading is okay. This one's about agriculture. [01:52.88]It’s actually from a four-thousand-year-old farmers manual with advice on growing barley. [02:00.19]And then yes, George, but did you have a question?
[02:04.39]George: I uh, I was just wondering, um, I mean, It's really cool that you guys have figured out what it sounds like and all, but I don't get why, why would you all care so much about a language nobody speaks anymore? [02:17.39]It's not like you have to learn how to say, oh, I don't know. Uh, which way to the airport?
[02:25.27]Professor: Okay, George, I see where you're going with that. [02:27.85]And that's a really good question, especially since that selection from the farmers manual is probably not the best example of why all this should interest you. [02:36.79]Of course, I'm fascinated, but then that's my profession. [02:39.61]I guess the more important reason has to do with our appreciation of ancient literature, the myths and poetry. [02:47.39]Now, that's something that really is important to hear, as well as read since, well, for the Arcadians, as for most early civilizations, the literature was mainly an oral tradition. [03:00.56]You have to understand that back then, writing like engraving into stone was an expensive and laborious process. [03:08.50]With no formal system of education,most people were illiterate. [03:13.61]In fact, the few people who could read and write the professional scribes formed a separate class. [03:19.67]Well, ancient peoples nevertheless had literature, but it was an oral literature, a spoken body of legends, myths, poems, which were occasionally written down, but mostly memorized and passed down from generation to generation.
[03:36.73]So OK, let's go to the recording of part of the story of Gilgamesh. [03:42.48]Now, this is one of the oldest myths ever told. [03:46.89]While this story was meant to be re cited aloud even chanted or sung. [03:52.65]So to appreciate how Arcadians experienced the legend, we should really hear it not just look at the translation. [04:00.46]And then right after that, there are some poems now, most poets even today craft their poetry, thinking about how it sounds to their readers, the rhymes, the rhythms of the language, that kind of thing, so that even if you're just reading it on the page, you're still hearing it in your head. Right? [04:19.64]So George, you’re right, the part of the tape about laws and practical stuff, that probably wouldn't be much interest anyone but a specialist, but I hope I've convinced you that to appreciate ancient literature, you really need to know what it sounded like. [04:36.51]Now, this is someone outside the scope of this class, but I know several of you are studying ancient languages and literature. [04:44.68]So this could even be a topic for a research paper. [04:49.13]Okay. Here let me first read to you in English, of course, the part you're gonna hear this is from the end of the story were Gilgamesh, the hero is offered the chance to become immortal, but then loses that opportunity. [05:04.38]So he weeps and says, for whom have I labored? For whom have I journeyed? For whom have I suffered? I have gained absolutely nothing for myself. [05:20.58]You hear that repetition of for whom this really brings home the character sadness, and by contrast emphasizes that nothing in the next line. [05:32.47]Now, the English translation does preserve the repetition of the original Akkadian words. [05:38.73]But what about other types of aural effects, like repetition of a syllable or other sounds within a word, that kind of thing gets lost when you translate into a modern language.
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