Sumerian Pronouns
Create Basic Sumerian Sentences with Independent and Possessive Sumerian Pronouns
Lesson Introduction
Now that you have a basic understanding of Sumerian words and sentences, it’s time to start putting your knowledge into practice.
In this lesson, we’ll:
Lesson Vocabulary
Here are the new vocabulary words you’ll encounter in this lesson. Remember, you can see the vocabulary for all lessons in the Online Sumerian Dictionary.
bi: 𒁉
- part., suff., its (sg./pl.) (abs.) (impers.).
e-na: 𒂊𒈾
- part., pron. suff., in his/her (loc.), of his/her (gen.) (OB).
e-ni: 𒂊𒉌
- pron., ind. prron./pron. suff., his/her (pers.) (abs.) (OB).
dumu-mí: 𒌉𒊩
- n., daughter.
dumu-munus: 𒌉𒊩
- n., daughter.
dumu-níta: 𒌉𒀴
- n., son.
im: 𒅎
- n.,
- clay, mud, loam
- rain, rainstorm, storm, wind, weather, cloud
- direction
im-ri-a: 𒅎𒊑𒀀
- n., family, clan, relatives.
máš: 𒈧
- n., goat, kid (masc.); sacrificial animal.
mí: 𒊩
- n., woman, female.
- adj., female, feminine.
nam: 𒉆
- n.,
- being, state
- fate, destiny, determined order, lot
- testament, will
- area of responsibility, office
- governor
- province
- sign
- manner, way
- part., (nam-) -ship, -ness
nin9: 𒎐
- n., sister.
níta: 𒀴
- n., male.
- adj., male, masculine.
ri: 𒊑
- v.,
- to lie (upon); to place (upon/against) (w/ -ši-); to press upon; to affix
- to be located; to touch; to moor
- to beget; to emit
- to accompany
- to be distant
- adj., distant, far.
- part., dem. pref., that/those (way over there).
zu-ne-ne: 𒍪𒉈𒉈
- part., pron. suff., your (abs., erg., gen.) (alt. zu-ne).
Sumerian Pronouns
Independent Personal Sumerian Pronouns—Review
Here are the independent pronouns we covered in Lesson Three.
REMEMBER: There are no attested forms of us/we or you (pl.). These can be expressed in other ways, or you can use the copulas me-en-dè-en 𒈨𒂗𒉈𒂗 or me-en-zé-en 𒈨𒂗𒍢𒂗 for us/we and you (pl.) respectively.
ĝe26(-e): 𒂷(𒂊) I/me (abs.); by me (erg.); I (am), (it is) me
ĝá: 𒂷 me, (dat., com., abl.); in me (loc.); of me (gen.)
zé(-e): 𒍢(𒂊) you (abs.); by you (erg.); you (are), (it is) you
za: 𒍝 you (dat., com., abl.); in you (loc.), of you (gen.)
(a/e)ni ((a/e)-ne before -àm 𒀀𒀭): (𒀀/𒂊)𒉌 he/she; him/her
(a/e)ne-ne: (𒀀/𒂊)𒉈𒉈 they/them
Possessive Singular Sumerian Pronouns
The 1st and 2nd person possessive pronouns in the absolutive and ergative cases are:
-ĝu10: 𒈬 my (abs.), by my (erg.)
-zu: 𒍪 your (abs.), by your (erg.)
When followed by the genitive case marker -ak 𒀝, and the locative case marker -a 𒀀, the /u/ of ĝu10 𒈬 and zu 𒍪 becomes /a/:
-ĝá: 𒂷 of my (gen.), in my (loc.)
-za: 𒍝 of your (gen.), in your (loc.)
The third person personal and impersonal possessive pronouns in the absolutive case are as follows.
Remember that (a)ni/ne/na is the older version, and (e)ni/ne/na is the later version. Also remember that the vowels /a/ and /e/ are often dropped with (a/e)ne is suffixed to a word ending in a vowel—ex. dumu-ne 𒌉𒉈.
Also notice the possessive pronoun for ‘his/her’ is the same as the independent pronoun (a/e)ni (𒀀/𒂊)𒉌.
-(a/e)ni: (𒀀/𒂊)𒉌 his/her (pers.) (abs.)
-bi: 𒁉 its (sg./pl. impers.)
-(a/e)ne: (𒀀/𒂊)𒉈 (it is) his/her; by his/her (erg.)
-bé: 𒁉 (it is) its, by its (erg.)
In most cases, when followed by the genitive case marker -ak 𒀝, and the locative case marker -a 𒀀, this final /e/ is replaced with the genitive or locative /a/, resulting in multiple meanings:
-(a/e)na: (𒀀/𒂊)𒈾 in his/her (loc.), of his/her (gen.)
-ba: 𒁀 in its (loc.), of its (gen.)
Possessive Singular Sumerian Pronouns
There are no attested pronouns for us, we, and you (pl.) in Sumerian. Demonstrating 1st or 2nd non-possessive plurality must be done in other ways, such as use of the copulas me-en-dè-en 𒈨𒂗𒉈𒂗 and me-en-zé-en 𒈨𒂗𒍢𒂗 respectively.
-me: 𒈨 our (abs.), by our (erg.), of our (gen.)
-zu-ne-ne: 𒍪𒉈𒉈 your (abs.), by your (erg.), of your (gen.)
-(a/e)ne-ne: (𒀀/𒂊)𒉈𒉈 their (abs.), by their (erg.)
NOTES: 1) -zu-ne-ne 𒍪𒉈𒉈 is sometimes simply -zu-ne 𒍪𒉈. 2) The (a/e)-ne-ne (𒀀/𒂊)𒉈𒉈 can mean ‘his/her noun(pl.)’ or their noun(sg.) Determining which is the correct interpretation must be gleaned via the surrounding context.
The /a/ of the locative suffix -a 𒀀 does not contract to the preceding vowel.
-me-a: 𒈨 𒀀 in our (loc.)
-zu-ne-ne-a: 𒍪𒉈𒉈 𒀀 in your (loc.)
-(a/e)ne-ne-a: (𒀀/𒂊)𒉈𒉈𒀀 in their
Basic Copular Phrases
Talking about Me and You
Remember, -me-en 𒈨𒂗 can mean I am or you are. Determining which will be up to you and the context!
nin-me-en: 𒎏𒈨𒂗 I am/you are queen
lugal-me-en 𒈗𒈨𒂗 I am/you are king
Of course, a preceding independent pronoun will make things clear.
ĝe26 nin-me-en: 𒂷𒎏 𒈨𒂗 it is I who am queen
zé lugal-me-en 𒍢𒈗𒈨𒂗 it is you who are king
Now that we have our nam-lugal 𒉆𒈗 (kingship) established, let’s talk about who we’re with.
ĝe26 za-da-me-en: 𒂷𒍝 𒁕 𒈨𒂗 it is I who am with you
zé ĝá-da-me-en: 𒍢 𒂷 𒁕 𒈨𒂗 it is you who are with me
Now, let’s talk about our possessions. Remember, we don’t necessarily need an independent pronoun if the context is clear.
(zé) lugal-ĝu10-me-en: (𒍢)𒈗𒈬 𒈨𒂗 [it is] you [who] are my king
(ĝe26) nin-zu-me-en: (𒂷)𒎏𒍪 𒈨𒂗 [it is] you [who] are my queen
Talking About Him and Her
Now let’s talk about someone else—him and her. Remember -àm 𒀀𒀭 can refer to him or her. Determining which can be gleaned through the context.
lú-àm: 𒇽𒀀𒀭 he is a/the man/male
munus-àm: 𒊩𒀀𒀭 she is a/the woman/female
Now that we have that out of the way, it might be helpful to learn:
šeš-a-ne-àm: 𒋀𒀀𒉈𒀀𒀭 he is his/her brother
nin9-a-ne-àm: 𒎐𒀀𒉈𒀀𒀭 she is his/her sister
ĝá-da-me-eš: 𒂷𒁕𒈨𒂠 they are with me
Generally speaking, the word dumu 𒌉 usually means son, but is can just as easily refer to a daughter. For clarity, you might suffix one of the following adjectives to create specific words for son and daughter.
munus or mí: 𒊩 female, feminine
níta: 𒀴 male, masculine
Now we can tell if the child is a girl or a boy.
dumu-munus-àm: 𒌉𒊩𒀀𒀭 she is a/the daughter
dumu-níta-àm: 𒌉𒀴𒀀𒀭 he is a/the son
ama-ne-ne-me-en: 𒂼𒉈𒉈𒈨𒂗 I am their mother
zé a-a-ne-ne-me-en: 𒍢𒀀𒀀𒉈𒉈𒈨𒂗 it is you who are their father
Unless we’re talking about someone else’s children, in which case:
dumu-munus-àm: 𒌉𒊩𒀀𒀭 she is a/the daughter
dumu-níta-àm: 𒌉𒀴𒀀𒀭 he is a/the son
ama-ne-ne-me-en: 𒂼𒉈𒉈𒈨𒂗 I am their mother
zé a-a-ne-ne-me-en: 𒍢𒀀𒀀𒉈𒉈𒈨𒂗 it is you who are their father
Notice how in the last example, the singular noun dumu 𒌉is used, as we know from the 3rd person copula -me-eš 𒈨𒂠 that child is plural.
Talking About Them and Us
nin9-me-en-dè-en: 𒎐 𒈨𒂗𒉈𒂗 we are sisters
šeš-me-en-zé-en: 𒋀 𒈨𒂗𒍢𒂗 you are brothers
dumu-me-eš: 𒌉𒈨𒂠 they are children
Whose siblings and children are they?
šeš-zu-me-en-dè-en: 𒋀 𒍪𒈨𒂗𒉈𒂗 we are your (sg.) brothers
šeš-zu-ne-ne-me-en-dè-en: 𒋀 𒍪𒉈𒉈 𒈨𒂗𒉈𒂗 we are your (pl.) brothers
nin9-a-ne-me-en-zé-en: 𒎐 𒀀𒉈 𒈨𒂗𒍢𒂗 you (pl.) are his/her sisters
nin9-a-ne-ne-me-en-zé-en: 𒎐 𒀀𒉈𒉈 𒈨𒂗𒍢𒂗 you are their (pl.) sisters
dumu-ĝu10-me-eš: 𒌉𒈬 𒈨𒂠 they are my children
Talking About It
Now that we’ve talked about people, let’s talk about something inanimate: the é 𒂍, the household, or im-ri-a 𒅎𒊑𒀀, the family/clan.
é-gal-àm: 𒂍𒃲 𒀀𒀭 it is a large household
im-ri-a-tur-àm: 𒅎𒊑𒀀𒌉𒀀𒀭 it is a small family/clan
We can also talk about these in relation to possession.
é-gal-ĝu10-àm: 𒂍𒃲 𒈬 𒀀𒀭 it is my large household
im-ru-a-tur-zu-àm: 𒅎𒊑𒀀𒌉 𒍪𒀀𒀭 it is your small family/clan
NOTE: é-gal 𒂍𒃲 is also the word for palace, which means é-gal-àm 𒂍𒃲 𒀀𒀭, can also be read ‘it is a palace’.
But what if we want to talk about the family goat?
máš-àm: 𒈧𒀀𒀭 it is a/the goat
màš-ĝu10-àm: 𒈧𒈬 𒀀𒀭 it is my goat
ga-àm: 𒂵𒀀𒀭 it is milk
ga-bé-àm: 𒂵𒁉𒀀𒀭 it is its milk
babbar ga-àm: 𒌓𒂵𒀀𒀭 it is white milk
babbar ga-ba: 𒌓𒂵𒁀 in/of its white milk
Lesson Four Summary
Great job! You’re well on your way to mastering Sumerian!
To recap, in this lesson, we:
Sumerian Pronouns in Summary
ĝe26(-e): 𒂷(𒂊) I (am), me, by me
ĝu10: 𒈬 my, by my
ĝá: 𒂷 me, in me, of me, my, of my, in my
zé(-e): 𒍢(𒂊) you (are), by you
zu: 𒍪 your, by your
za: 𒍝 you, in you, of you, your, of your, in your
zu-ne-ne: 𒍪𒉈𒉈 your, by your, of your
zu-ne-ne-a: 𒍪𒉈𒉈 𒀀 in your
me: 𒈨 our, by our, of our
me-a: 𒈨𒀀 in our
(a/e)ni: (𒀀/𒂊)𒉌 he/she, his/her
(a/e)ne: (𒀀/𒂊)𒉈 (it is) he/she, by his/her
(a/e)na: (𒀀/𒂊)𒈾 his/her, in his/her, of his/her
(a/e)ne-ne: (𒀀/𒂊)𒉈𒉈 they/them, their, by their, of their
(a/e)ne-ne-a: (𒀀/𒂊)𒉈𒉈𒀀 in their
bi: 𒁉 its (sg./pl.)
bé: 𒁉 (it is) its, by its
ba: 𒁀 in its, of its
Exercises
Complete the exercises using information and vocabulary from this and previous lessons. Remember, you can see the full list of vocabulary words are listed in the Sumerian dictionary, and all of the helpful terms can be found here.
True or False
- There are no attested pronouns for us, we, and you (pl.) in Sumerian.
- The word dumu 𒌉 means son, daughter, and child.
- Of the two words for his and her, (a)ni/ne/na is the older version, and (e)ni/ne/na is the later version.
Fill in the Blank
Use one of the options to complete the sentences:
__ lugal-me-en: ___𒈗𒈨𒂗 it is I who am king
- ĝe26: 𒂷
- ĝá: 𒂷
- zé: 𒍢
- za: 𒍝
- a-ni: 𒀀𒉌
- e-ne-ne: 𒂊𒉈𒉈
__ nin-me-en ___𒎏𒈨𒂗 it is you who are queen
- ĝe26: 𒂷
- ĝá: 𒂷
- zé: 𒍢
- za: 𒍝
- a-ni: 𒀀𒉌
- e-ne-ne: 𒂊𒉈𒉈
__ dumu-níta-ne-àm: ___𒀴𒉈𒀀𒀭 it is he who is his/her son
- ĝe26: 𒂷
- ĝá: 𒂷
- zé: 𒍢
- za: 𒍝
- a-ni: 𒀀𒉌
- e-ne-ne: 𒂊𒉈𒉈
Translate Sumerian into English
NOTE: Don’t worry too much about the word order in the English translation.
- ĝá-da-me-eš: 𒂷𒁕𒈨𒂠
- dumu-níta-ĝu10-ám: 𒌉𒀴𒈬𒀀𒀭
- babbar ur-a-ne-ne-àm: 𒌓𒌨𒀀𒉈𒉈𒀀𒀭
- im-ru-a-tur-zu-àm: 𒅎𒊑𒀀𒌉𒍪𒀀𒀭
- šeš-a-ne-me-en-zé-en: 𒋀 𒀀𒉈 𒈨𒂗𒍢𒂗
Translate English into Sumerian
Spot the Mistake
HINT: You may have to refer to the section on Verbal Prefixes in Lesson 2.
- màš-àm-ĝu10: it is my goat
- dumu-mí-ne-àm: he is his/her son
- ĝá-ra-me-eš: they are with me
- dumu-ne-me-eš: they are children
- ur-gal-àm: 𒂍𒃲𒀀𒀭 it is a large household
Translate Cuneiform
- 𒀀𒀭
- 𒈗
- 𒌉
- 𒈨𒂗
- 𒍢
Multiple Choice
Which of the options is a correct reading of the 𒁉 sign?:
- ba
- bi
- bé
- all of the above
- none of the above
Bring it All Together
Step 1: Transliterate the Cuneiform: 𒈗𒈨𒂗 | 𒎏𒈬𒀀𒀭 | 𒀀𒉌𒆠𒉘𒈬𒀀𒀭
Step 2: Translate the Sumerian into English:
Hint: 𒆠𒉘 is transliterated as ki aĝ.
Answer Key
True or False
- There are no attested pronouns for us, we, and you (pl.) in Sumerian.—TRUE
- The word dumu 𒌉 means son, daughter, and child. —TRUE
- Of the two words for his and her, (a)ni/ne/na is the older version, and (e)ni/ne/na is the later version.—TRUE
Fill in the Blank
Use one of the options to complete the sentences:
ĝe26 lugal-me-en: 𒂷𒈗𒈨𒂗 it is I who am king
1) ĝe26 𒂷
zé nin-me-en: 𒍢 𒎏𒈨𒂗 it is you who are queen
3) zé 𒂊
a-ni dumu-níta-ne-àm: 𒀀𒉌𒀴𒉈𒀀𒀭 it is he who is his/her son
5) a-ni 𒀀𒉌
Translate Sumerian into English
- ĝá-da-me-eš: 𒂷𒁕𒈨𒂠 they are with me
- dumu-níta-ĝu10-ám: 𒌉𒀴𒈬𒀀𒀭 he his my son
- babbar ur-a-ne-ne-àm: 𒌓𒌨𒀀𒉈𒉈𒀀𒀭 it is their white dog
- im-ru-a-tur-zu-àm: 𒅎𒊑𒀀𒌉𒍪𒀀𒀭 your family is small (alt. it is your small family)
- šeš-a-ne-me-en-zé-en: 𒋀 𒀀𒉈 𒈨𒂗𒍢𒂗 you (pl.) are his/her brothers
Translate English into Sumerian
Spot the Mistake
- màš-àm-ĝu10: it is my goat
- màš- ĝu10-àm—the copula comes after the possessive pronoun.
- dumu-mí-ne-àm: he is his/her son
- dumu-níta-ne-àm—dumu-mí is daughter and dumu-níta is son.
- ĝá-ra-me-eš: they are with me
- ĝá-da-me-eš—da means with, whereas -ra means to/toward.
- dumu-ne-me-eš: they are children
- dumu-me-eš—the additional -ne after dumu is unnecessary because we know from the plural copula me-eš that dumu (child) is plural.
- ur-gal-àm: 𒂍𒃲 𒀀𒀭 it is a large household
- é-gal-àm—ur means dog.
Translate Cuneiform
- 𒀀𒀭—àm (A.AN)—he/she/it is
- 𒈗—lugal—king
- 𒌉—dumu, tur—child, small, young
- 𒈨𒂗—me-en—I am, you are
- 𒍢—zé—I, me
Multiple Choice
Which of the options is a correct reading of the 𒁉 sign?:
4) all of the above (ba/bi/bé)
Bring It All Together
Transliterate the Cuneiform and translate the Sumerian in to English:
𒈗𒈨𒂗 | 𒎏𒈬𒀀𒀭 | 𒀀𒉌𒆠𒉘𒈬𒀀𒀭
lugal-me-en | nin-ĝu10-àm |a-ni ki aĝ-ĝu10-àm
I am king | she is my queen | it is she who is my beloved
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