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Akkadian language facts for kids

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Akkadian
𒀝𒅗𒁺𒌑
akkadû
Native to Assur and Babylon
Region Mesopotamia
Era mid-3rd millennium BC–8th centuries BC; academic or liturgical use until 100 AD
Language family
Writing system Sumero-Akkadian cuneiform
Official status
Official language in initially Akkad (central Mesopotamia); lingua franca of the Middle East and Egypt in the late Bronze and early Iron Ages.
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Akkadian (llišānum akkadītum) was a very old language. It was spoken in ancient Mesopotamia, which is now mostly modern-day Iraq. It was the first known language from the Semitic family. This family also includes languages like Arabic and Hebrew. Akkadian used a special writing system called cuneiform. This writing system came from the ancient Sumerian people.

Different Kinds of Akkadian

Akkadian changed over time. It also had different forms depending on where it was spoken. Here are the main periods of the Akkadian language:

  • Old Akkadian: This was spoken from about 2500 BC to 1950 BC.
  • Old Babylonian/Old Assyrian: This period lasted from 1950 BC to 1530 BC.
  • Middle Babylonian/Middle Assyrian: This form was used from 1530 BC to 1000 BC.
  • Neo-Babylonian/Neo-Assyrian: People spoke this from 1000 BC to 600 BC.
  • Late Babylonian: This was the last form, used from 600 BC until about 100 AD. After this, it was mostly used for special religious texts.

The First Akkadian Writings

The very first known writing in Akkadian was found on a bowl. This bowl was discovered in a city called Ur. The message on the bowl was for an early king of Ur. It was from his queen, Gan-saman. People think she came from the city of Akkad.

How Akkadian Became Important

The Akkadian Empire was a powerful kingdom. It was started by a famous ruler named Sargon of Akkad. When Sargon created his empire, he made Akkadian an important written language. They used the Sumerian cuneiform writing style for it.

During the middle Bronze Age, Akkadian became even more important. It slowly took over from Sumerian as the main language. Sumerian probably stopped being a spoken language around 1800 BC.

Images for kids

  • AkkadischLand

    Cuneiform writing (Neoassyrian script) (1 = Logogram (LG) "mix"/syllabogram (SG) ḫi, 2 = LG "moat", 3 = SG aʾ, 4 = SG aḫ, eḫ, iḫ, uḫ, 5 = SG kam, 6 = SG im, 7 = SG bir)

  • Cuneiform script

    An Akkadian inscription

  • Georg Friedrich Grotefend

    Georg Friedrich Grotefend

  • GilgameshTablet

    The Deluge tablet of the Gilgamesh epic in Akkadian.

  • AO 5477 (photograph and transcription)

    The first known Sumerian-Akkadian bilingual tablet dates from the reign of Rimush. Louvre Museum AO 5477. The top column is in Sumerian, the bottom column is its translation in Akkadian.

  • Inscription in Babylonian, in the Xerxes I inscription at Van, 5th century BCE

    Inscription in Babylonian, in the Xerxes I inscription at Van, 5th century BCE

  • Nebuchadnezzar II bronze step inscription

    Neo-Babylonian inscription of king Nebuchadnezzar II, 7th century BCE

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Idioma acadio para niños

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Akkadian language Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.