Manuel Ceccarelli | Universität Leipzig (original) (raw)

Papers by Manuel Ceccarelli

In Nils Heeßel and Elyze de Ridder-Zomer (eds.), Legitimising Magic. Strategies and Practices in Ancient Mesopotamia (Ancient Magic and Divination). Leiden: Brill 2024..

Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions , 2021

Divine epithets are short nouns, adjectives, and participles which are in apposition to the actua... more Divine epithets are short nouns, adjectives, and participles which are in apposition to the actual name of a deity or which even replace it. Since incantations and incantation-prayers must be effective, they are enhanced by a variety of strategies. Divine epithets can be understood as strategies used to improve the effectiveness of ritual speeches. They evoke divine qualities that are relevant for a particular context and allow for a more effective interaction with the deities. Divine epithets may also refer to successful mythical deeds of the gods which provide positive analogies for the present situation and, therefore, guarantee the achievement of the supplicant’s request.

NABU 2020/1 Nr. 37, 85-86, 2020

137-170 -Während der redaktionellen Arbeit an meinem Aufsatz sind einige Änderungen übersehen wor... more 137-170 -Während der redaktionellen Arbeit an meinem Aufsatz sind einige Änderungen übersehen worden. Die Redaktion von WZKM hat die entsprechenden Korrigenda online zur Verfügung gestellt.

Zeitschrift für Assyriologie 108(2): 142-48, 2018

The article can be downloaded here: http://doi.org/10.1515/za-2018-0010

mu-zu an-za3-še3 kur-ur2-še3 ḫe2-gal2: Altorientalistische Studien zu Ehren von Konrad Volk (Dub-sar 17), Herausgegeben von Jessica Baldwin und Jana Matuszak unter Mitarbeit von Manuel Ceccarelli. Zaphon: Münster 2020, 29-47., 2020

In: C. Mittermayer / E. Jiménez (Eds): Disputation Literature in the Near East and Beyond (Studies in Ancient Near Eastern Records 25). Berlin: De Gruyter, 33-55.

The school that is portrayedinthe school disputes is the so-called e 2 -dub-ba-a, a Sumerian term... more The school that is portrayedinthe school disputes is the so-called e 2 -dub-ba-a, a Sumerian termw hich seems to mean "House in which tablets are assigned."¹ This institution wasa pparentlye stablished by Urnamma, the third dynasty Sumerian king of Ur (ca. 2112-2095) and it playedacentral role in the formation of scribes. As George (2005) has pointed out,weh avel ittle evidence about the Edubba'ao ft he Ur III Period, not even knowing which buildings mayh ave been used as schools, but we do know that the Edubba'aw as chargedw ith the production and transmission of literaryt extsi np raise of the king.T his is what King Sulgi, Urnamma'ss on, says in ah ymn whereh ep raises himself and his cleverness in the scribal art (Sulgi B 311-315):² 311. šudu 3 e 2 kur-ra ki he 2 -us 2 -sa-ĝu 10 -uš 312. dub-sar he 2 -du šu-ni he 2 -eb-dab 5 -be 2 313. nar he 2 -du gu 3 hu-mu-un-ni-ri-de 2 314. e 2 -dub-ba-a da-ri 2 hur nu-kur 2 -ru-dam 315. ki-umum da-ri 2 hur nu-silig-ge-dam 311.F or my prayers, which Ip lacei nt he Ekur-Temple, 312.S hould be as cribe responsible and he should hold them in his hand;

Fabula , 2019

Abstract: As in the fairy tales of various cultures, wise women and old wise women are found also... more Abstract: As in the fairy tales of various cultures, wise women and old wise women are found also in ancient Mesopotamian literature. Several goddesses are labelled as ‘old wise woman’. This designation is not just an indication of their age but implies the life experiences and wisdom that come with age. As ‘old wise woman’ a Goddess can help a ruler solve a riddle (Nisaba), explain the sexual act (Nunbaršegunu/Nisaba) and spinn a magic thread (Innana and Uttu). The aim of this article is to discuss the ancient Mesopotamian attestations of wise women and old wise women in a comparative perspective taking into account the central European fairy tales.

Wiener Zeitschrift für die Kunde des Morgenlandes, 2019

The aim of this article is to present a new edition of the Sumerian adab-composition Išme-Dagan B... more The aim of this article is to present a new edition of the Sumerian adab-composition Išme-Dagan B. This text was composed for a ritual concerning the king Išme-Dagan of Isin. In Isin the goddess BaU was syncretized with the healing goddess Ninisina, the city goddess of Isin. The syncretism involved also their consorts, Ninĝirsu/Ninurta and Pabilsaĝ. This theological operation intended to connect Ninisina with Enlil, father of Ninurta/Ninĝirsu, father in law of BaU and chief deity of the Mesopotamian pantheon.

Revue d'assyriologie et d'archéologie orientale, 2018

DREI NEUE TONTAFELN AUS DEM 3. JAHRTAUSEND V.CH. VON

Altorientalische Forschungen , 2018

The Old Babylonian schoolmasters used the literary form of the dialogue to compose texts that wer... more The Old Babylonian schoolmasters used the literary form of the dialogue to compose texts
that were conceived as didactic material to improve the Sumerian speaking skills of their
pupils and to teach them specific moral values. Some of these compositions can be labeled as
school-disputes based on to their content and were probably performed at school. The end of
the school-disputes Enkiḫeĝal and Enkitalu and Ĝirinisa and Enkimanšum is particularly
interesting because it provides some insight into how the schoolmasters dealt with quarreling
students. In this respect Enkiḫeĝal und Enkitalu stands out for its challenge of corporal
punishment. In Ĝirinisa and Enkimanšum one can note that school discipline implies a
fraternal attitude between students. This fraternal attitude presupposed and reinforced the
scribe’s self-confidence to form a cohesive cultural community.

Altorientalische Forschungen, 2018

The aim of this article is to study the verb valency of the Sumerian expression ni r ĝal2. The at... more The aim of this article is to study the verb valency of the Sumerian expression ni r ĝal2. The attestations point to two different meanings that are related to different arguments. It is suggested that the basic meaning of nir ĝal2 is „to give off an aura of authority; show authority“. The comitative argument indicates thanks to whom, the ablative argument by means of what someone shows authority. The meaning „to trust“ would result from a valency expansion, which can be traced to at least the beginning of the second millennium and could have been influenced by the construction of the Akkadian verb takālu „to trust“. The object of trust is expressed by means of the terminative (things) and dative (persons) arguments. The locative is mostly used as a peripheral argument expressing the place or situation in which someone shows authority.

In: O. Lubrich / R. Schrott (Hrsg.): Kulturtransfer. (im Druck)

Die biblische Sintflutgeschichte ist eine der weltbekanntesten Erzählungen überhaupt. Ihr Ursprun... more Die biblische Sintflutgeschichte ist eine der weltbekanntesten Erzählungen überhaupt. Ihr Ursprung lag allerdings im alten Mesopotamien, dem heutigen Irak, mindestens 1500 Jahre vor der Redaktion des Buches Genesis. Hinsichtlich des Themas dieses Sammelbandes verdient die Sintfluterzählung nun besondere Aufmeksamkeit, denn sie stellt ein relevantes Beispiel für einen literarischen Kulturtransfer dar. Rezeption und Adaption der mesopotamischen Sintfluterzählung in der hebräischen Bibel stehen im Zentrum dieses Beitrages.

In: Pascal Attinger, Antoine Cavigneaux, Catherine Mittermayer, Mirko Novák (Hg), Text and ImageProceedings of the 61e Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale, Geneva and Bern, 22–26 June 2015, 2018

Fabula, 2017

The widespread belief in the existence of witches who can steal cow milk can also be traced in t... more The widespread belief in the existence of witches who can steal cow
milk can also be traced in the ancient Sumerian literary text Enmerkara und Ensukukešdana.
A sorcerer bewitches the cows and the goats of a goddess so that
they cannot give milk and cream anymore: the cream moves up to the horns and
the milk retreats to the back of the animals. The story also shows an interesting
similarity with some European traditions according to which dry cows have milk
in their horns. Moreover, we find in some Mesopotamian incantations the belief
that the evil eye and demons can mar milk and cheese, a belief that survives to
this day in the folklore of many European countries, Syria and Iraq.

Altorientalische Forschungen, 2017

The Babylonian Enūma eliš opens with the well-known motif of the primeval waters covering the wor... more The Babylonian Enūma eliš opens with the well-known motif of the primeval waters covering the world. Although this motif is very important in Enūma eliš itself and in other cosmogonies of the Ancient Near East, it is not attested in identified Mesopotamian creation accounts older than Enūma eliš and it can be found just in the old Babylonian divine name dama- TU-an-ki „Mother, creator of heaven and earth“, a byname of the goddess Namma, the personified ground waters. This paper provides a brief overview of the motifs of personified waters in Mesopotamian texts of the third and second millennia. The sources argue for the existence of a southern Mesopotamian tradition with the personified ground waters and a western tradition
with the personified sea. These traditions were combined together in Enūma eliš, where the male god Apsû embodied the ground waters. Abzu/Apsû doesn’t appear to have been personified until the second half of the second millennium. The paper closes with a critique of Lambert’s etymology of the name Namma.

Studi e materiali di storia delle religioni 82/2 (2016) 952-975. The present study explores the “... more Studi e materiali di storia delle religioni 82/2 (2016) 952-975.
The present study explores the “Biglino phenomenon”, namely the reception of the works of Mauro Biglino. His interpretation of the Old Tes-tament can be labelled as an ancient astronauts hypothesis. According to Biglino, JHWH is not a god. The Old Testament doesn’t speak of deities; it is a reliable chronicle about some ancient astronauts who visited the earth. Moreover, there is no monotheism at all in the Old Testament and in the religious history of the ancient Israel. What we call "monotheism” is just the product of a later interpretation of the Old Testament made by a «monotheistic theology». The theologians use false translations and intentionally distorted interpretations of the Old Testament to legitimate the Jewish and Christian religions and to gain political and social «control of the consciousness». Like every ancient astronauts hypothesis, also Biglino’s one is based on a pseudo-scientific method. Despite his secular character, his work finds a place in the processes of religious individuali zation and is absorbed by many spiritually oriented people. In some cases the “Biglino phenomenon” shows features of a quasi-religion.

Michaela Bauks, Klaus Koenen, Stefan Alkier (Hrsg.): Das wissenschaftliche Bibellexikon im Internet (WiBiLex)

Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft, 2016