Elamite
Elamite is an ancient language of southwestern Iran, attested in inscriptions and administrative texts across multiple periods. It’s a great choice if you want to read primary sources from the Elamite and Persian imperial worlds.
Family: Unclassified (possibly isolate)Period: c. 2600 BCE → 330 BCE (varies by stage)
Region: Southwestern Iran (Elam/Susa and neighboring regions)
c. 2600 BCE → 330 BCE (varies by stage)
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Dictionaries
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- Notes: In German, but this is considered the best dictionary available for the language.
Grammars
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The phonology and morphology of royal Achaemenid Elamite
- Notes: Available online from the Hathi Trust.
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Overview of Elamite grammar (in German)
- Format: DOC
- Notes: This is a Word document.
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- Notes: If you don’t read Spanish, machine translation can help.
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- Notes: A shorter description than either of the above.
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Cambridge Encyclopedia of Ancient Languages
- Format: TXT
- Notes: This is a text file taken from a .djvu file; the transcription of the text is pretty good, and there is some useful information here, though it is a bit technical.
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- Notes: A quick overview.
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- Notes: This is a brief summary of the script.
Charts & Aids
(nothing available)
Texts
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- Notes: Also check the site navigation for additional texts; this is a substantial collection.
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- Notes: Look for “browse lexicon”. The interface is dated but usable.
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Persepolis Fortification Archive
- Access: Java
- Notes: You’ll have to install a Java-based program in order to access this resource.
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- Notes: Some basic information about the script.
Other Resources
- On the Genetic Affiliation of the Elamite Language
- Format: PDF
- Notes: This is interesting because Elamite appears unrelated to other languages; it’s considered a “language isolate.”
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