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Babylonian Menologies and the Semitic Calendars

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Babylonian Menologies and the Semitic Calendars BABYLONIAN MENOLOGIES AND THE SEMITIC CALENDARS BY S. LANGDON, M.A. SHILUTO READER IN AND PROFESSOR OF ASSYRIOLOGY1 OXFORD FELLOW OF THE BRITISH ACADEMY MEMBRE CORRESPONDANT DE L'INSTITUT DE FRANCE THE SCHWEICH LECTURES OF THE BRITISH ACADEMY I933 LONDON PUBLISHED FOR THE BRITISH ACADEMY BY HUMPHREY MILFORD, OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS AMEN HOUSE, E.C. I935 OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS AMEN HOUSE, E.C, 4 LONDON EDINBURGH GLASGOW NEW YORK TORONTO MELBOURNE CAPETOWN BOMBAY CALCUTTA MADRAS SHANGHAI HUMPHREY MILFORD PUBLISHER TO THE UNIVERSITY PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN INTRODUCTION HE three lectures in this volume contain a general T survey of all the Semitic calendars with special refer­ ence to the Babylonian and Assyrian menologies. Although many articles have appeared on some aspects ofthe Sumerian and Babylonian calendars, there is no book on the subject with the exception of a very technical and learned investiga­ tion of the various month-lists of the Sumerian cities. 1 This work has not been completed and the part designed to cover the Babylonian and Assyrian Holy Year, the most impor­ tant part of the subject, remains unpublished. In recent years the texts of nearly the whole of the early Assyrian Church Calendar have been published, 2 and I have ready for press a critical edition of them as well as of the reformed calendar issued by Asurbanipal of Assyria in the seventh century. For the text of the latter menology I have copied all the known fragments in the British Museum together with all the fragments of the almanacs. My critical edition also includes a very large number of fragments and texts which deal with special days in each month and all the omen texts from Assur, Nineveh, and Babylonia which have to do in any way with the months and days. My Schweich Lectures are based upon thiseditionoftexts, at present almost entirely untranslated, and consequently this book is really an introduction to the philological edition. Since it will appear earlier than the edition of the texts, I have, so far as space allowed, given the reference to the sources on which the statements rest. It is obvious that with so much new material at my dis­ posal the history and influence of the Sumerian and Baby­ lonian calendars have been elucidated in a manner far more complete and satisfactory than was possible hereto- 1 Benno Landsberger, Der kultische Kalender der Babylonier und As.ryrer, Leipzig, 1915. 2 Eric Ebeling, Keilschrifttexte aus Assur religilisen Inhalts, Nos. 176--9· vi INTRODUCTION fore. The influence of Sumerian religion and culture upon the whole history of western Asia down to our era, and continued in the Jewish calendar to our day, in the Syriac Christian calendar, and in the religious year of the ~abeans of the Middle Ages, can be traced and proved. It was natural also that with this most fortunate addition to our knowledge, placing in our hands almost a complete text which gives details of the religious and civil rules imposed upon all Babylonians and Assyrians for every day in the year, an Assyriologist should carry his investigation beyond the culture which produced it and seek to trace its influence upon J udaism, Syrian religions, and parallels if not in­ fluences in Greece and Rome. The myths of the months have particularly attracted my attention, a subject which involved arduous study of astronomical texts. Here I must at once acknowledge the valuable assistance of my learned friend, J. K. Fotheringham, D.Litt., who is now, I am glad to say, also a Fellow of our Academy. The assistance I have received from Professor D. S. Margoliouth, Professor Jeffery of Cairo, and Mr. Beeston on the early Arabic calendars has been mentioned in its proper place. My thanks are also due to Mr.J. U. Powell for assistance on the Latincalendar, and to Mr. R. McKenzie on the Greek calendar. I must apologize for the brevity ofmyinvestigations on the months Kislev, Tebit, Shebat, and Adar. The size of the volumes permitted in this series restricted the continuation of the full history of the months after Arahsamna. S. LANGDON JESUS COLLEGE OXFORD 27 February 1934 CONTENTS LECTURE I. History of the Sumerian, Accadian, As- syrian, and West Semitic Calendars . I LECTURE 11. The Menologies and Almanacs for Nisan and Teshrit . 67 LEcTURE Ill. The Tammuz-lshtar Cycle ofMonths: Ayar, Sivan, Tammuz, Ab, Elul. The months Arahsamna, Kislev, Tebit, Shebat, and Adar . I IO ADDENDUM: The Pre-Sargonic Calendar at Ur . I57 ABBREVIATIONS. • • • • • I59 INDEX • • • . • • . I62 LECTURE I HISTORY OF THE SUMERIAN, ACCADIAN, ASSYRIAN, AND WEST SEMITIC CALENDARS N these lectures I do not deal in detail with the Sumerian I calendars of the pre-Sargonic period except in those cases where the month-name can be definitely fixed in the series or can be used to throw light upon the monthly festivals of the Nippurian calendar, whose series is certain. My object in these lectures has been to trace the myths and festivals of the Nippurian calendar which finally prevailed over all other Sumerian, Accadian, Assyrian, and West Semitic calendars, and became the monthly series of the Jewish Church. The great menologies of Assyria which were promulgated about 1 ooo B.c. and are clearly copies from Babylonian originals reveal traces of the myths of the old Sumerian months. To understand the rules and myths of the Babylonian and Assyrian menologies, which finally issued in the form of the great series enbu bel ar!Jim, 'The fruit, lord of the month', promulgated by ASurbanipal in the seventh century (on the basis ofBabylonian originals) in fifteen tablets (twelve months and three intercalary months), it is necessary to study first of all the Sumerian calendar of Nippur on which they are based. The myths of the Sumerian months gave rise to the association of cer­ tain constellations, principally signs of the zodiac, with those myths, and in principle those constellations, which rose heliacally at the time of the monthly festivals, are those which became associated with the months. It is obvious that the process of discovering figures in the constellations to suit the monthly myths began as early as 3000 B.c., that is, when Taurus and the Pleiades were rising heliacally soon after the spring equinox. If it can be proved that the stars of this constellation are woven into the myth and festival of the first Sumerian month it proves that the B 2 HISTORY OF THE CALENDARS Sumerians connected the myth with that constellation when it was rising heliacally in the first month. It follows presum­ ably that the other signs of the zodiac, if they were dis­ covered in the early Taurus period, correspond to months in each case one month earlier than in the Aries period, when Aries was rising in the first month, that is after 500 B.c. (A date anywhere between I Ioo-soo B.c. can be assumed for the beginning of the Aries period.) In the discussion of the monthly festivals and legends connected with each month I have presumed an ideal year beginning with the rising of Pleiades and Aldebaran in Taurus in the month Barazaggar of the Nippurian calendar, that is Nisan of the Babylonian. For the Aries period there are several sources (not always in agreement), which give the decans or three principal stars governing each month after about I 100 B.c. The following table, obtained by combining the various sources, is used throughout my dis­ cussion. As a general principle, to ascertain the stars and constellations rising in a month 3000-2000 B.c., when the myths of the months were associated with them, it is neces­ sary to shift the entries for any given month one place earlier. For example, the decans of Ayar after uoo B.c. would be those of Nisan in the Sumerian period 3000 to 2300 B.c. when the calendars, feasts, and myths were finally fixed. I use as a basis the Astrolabe Pinches. I This is con­ trolled by Thureau-Dangin, Uruk, 14 Obv. 14-19, which gives the twelve regents of the ba-la (divisions) of the path of the sun and moon. 1 Published in transcription only from two tablets, with no informa­ tion as to their dates, JRAS. I goo, 5 73-5. It was reproduced by Kugler, Sternkunde, I 229-30 and Ergiin;:ungen, 20I with identifications of each decan with stars of Accad, Elam, and Amurru; Kugler omits the figures after each decan, but Weidner, Handbuch, 65-6, reproduced Pinches' copy with figures. For Weidner's explanation of the figures see my Epic of Creation, I53; for Fotheringham's theory see ibid. I 54· The same figures occur on the fragmentary astrolabes, CT. 33, I I-I2. REGENTS OF THE MONTHLY DECANS 3 ARIES PERIOD (after I xoo B.c.) NISAN Iku, 'Field star', Aries+Cetus. Way of Ea. I Dil-bat, Venus, as constellation, N.E. Pisces. 2 Way of Anu. Apin, Plough star, Triangulum. Way of Enlil.l In Taurus period stars of Adar. AYAR Mul-mul, 'The stars', Pleiades, called 'Seven gods'. Ea way.4 [Gud-an-na, Bull ofHeaven, Taurus, 85-4-30, 15.]s 1 KAV. p. I 23, x; CT. 33, 2, 40, first of Anu stars and !u-bat 4·Anim, KAV. p. ug, I; but CT. 33, 2, 40 called .fu-bat 4-E-a, abode of Ea; Vir. Isht. XXVI I; but CT. 33, 3, 36, the star lu-KU-MAL rises Nisan I, and BM. 85-4-30, I5 =Brown, Researches, II 46, makes lu-KU-MAL the regent ofNisan, see Kugler, Ergiin;:.
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