aššatum

Akkadian

Etymology

From Proto-Semitic *ʔanθ-at-. Cognate with Ugaritic 𐎀𐎘𐎚 (ảṯt /ʔaṯṯatu/), Aramaic אִנְתְּתָא‎ (ʾintəṯā), אִיתְּתָא‎ (ʾittəṯā), Biblical Hebrew אִשָּׁה‎ (ʔiššɔ́) and Arabic أُنْثَى‎ (ʾunṯā).

Pronunciation

(Old Babylonian) IPA^(key): /ˈaʃ.ʃa.tum/

Noun

aššatum f (construct state aššat, plural aššātum)

wife
- 1755–1750 BCE, King Hammurabi of Babylon, OMNIKA Foundation, transl., Hammurabi Code‎, The Louvre, Law 128:
  𒋳𒈠 𒀀𒉿𒈝 𒀸𒊭𒌓 𒄿𒄷𒊻𒈠 𒊑𒅅𒊓𒋾𒊭 𒆷 𒅖𒆪𒌦 𒊩 𒅆𒄿 𒌑𒌌 𒀸𒊭𒀜
  šum-ma a-wi-lum aš-ša-tam i-ḫu-uz-ma ri-ik-sa-ti-ša la iš-ku-un MUNUS ši-i u₂-ul aš-ša-at
  šumma awīlum aššatam īḫuz-ma riksātīša lā iškun sinništum šī ul aššat
  If a free man took a wife but did not conclude her contracts, that woman is not a wife.
𒁮 𒀀𒄩𒍪𒌝 ― DAM a-ḫa-zu-um /aššatam aḫāzum/ ― to get married (literally, “to take a wife”)
𒁮 𒂊𒍣𒂊𒁍𒌝 ― DAM e-ze-e-bu-um /aššatam ezēbum/ ― to get divorced (literally, “to leave a wife”)

Alternative forms

aššatu (non-mimated)
ašti (construct state, Old Babylonian, Standard Babylonian)
alti (construct state, Standard Babylonian, Neo-Babylonian)

Cuneiform spellings
Logograms	Phonetic
𒁮 (DAM) 𒊩 (SAL) (rarely in Old Akkadian and Old Babylonian) 𒊩𒁮 (SAL.DAM) (Mari, Alalakh)	𒀾𒃻𒌈 (aš₂-ša₂-tum) 𒀾𒃻𒌓 (aš₂-ša₂-tu₂) 𒀾𒊭𒌅 (aš₂-ša-tu) 𒀀𒊭𒁮 (a-ša-tam₂) (accusative) 𒀸𒊭𒋫 (aš-ša-ta) (accusative) 𒀸𒊭𒁴 (aš-ša-tim) (genitive) 𒀸𒊭𒀀𒌈 (aš-ša-a-tum) (plural)

Derived terms

aššūtum (“marriage”)

References

“aššatu”, in The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago (CAD), Chicago: University of Chicago Oriental Institute, 1956–2011
Black, Jeremy; George, Andrew; Postgate, Nicholas (2000), “aššatu(m)”, in A Concise Dictionary of Akkadian, 2nd corrected edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz Verlag