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Component Position correlations between Uruk and later Cuneiform

This page tabulates Cuneiform signs whose components are at least adjacent in the archaic Uruk stage, or touching, to explore whether there are predictabilities between earlier and later arrangements. Signs which showed infixation already in earliest cuneiform are not included here. Examples in which the "extrusion" of infixed material is observable as a historical change across time are on a separate page. Please click here for examples of Extrusion. Examples with later variation between infixation and sequence of components as signs are also on a separate page. Please click here for fluctuation involving infixation.

A Summary, showing that Uruk Fused or Nested or even touching components correspond to later cuneiform single signs, while Uruk non-touching components and parallel glyphs (glyphs side-by-side as viewed before the rotation) do not normally continue into later Cuneiform as single signs, thus presumably were not single signs in archaic Uruk usage either. More details on the correspondences of component arrangements, together with the individual signs across time, are in two following tables. For discussion of these patterns and their implications, please click here. Since the positions of the components may vary, instead of the symbol "x" for infixation we use here the symbol "w" for "with", also for other physical arrangements (without, on this particular web page, thereby implying single-sign status).

			Component combinations which DO NOT continue into later Cuneiform					Component combinations which CONTINUE into later Cuneiform
	Uruk			Uruk	Neo-Assyrian		UTC
	Fused	1	EN x NUN	Nested above	Fused	2	12098 12293	EL = SIKIL ?< sign w SAL RA ?< SI w UDU
	Nested inside	2	RU w NI SI w GUD	Nested inside	Infixed	1	12297	RU w KUR
	Nested	1	MURUB2 = SAL x ?LAGAR?	Nested or touching below	Infixed	3	12167 12184 12036	GU7 = KA x GAR, TUKUR2 = KA w SHE ARAD2 = IR3 w KUR
				Nested below or above; or simply below?	Adj. (counts as touching?)	3	no no no	UZ = HU w SHE MUD = HU w HI E3 = DU w UD
				Nested above right, or simply below	Nested above right, or resolved to Adj. forms	1	1209C	EN w ME
				Touching inside	Adj. (counts as touching?)	2	no no	PAD3 = RU w IGI ERIM2 = RU w NE
	Attached above right	3	SIGN x SHE (list below)	Attached above right	Fused	1	12308	TU = SHA3 or LAGAR x SHE
	Attached above	4	SIGN x SHE (list below)	Above Touching	Fused / touching	1	121FE	LI = SHA w SHE
	Attached above	1	ARINA = Z379 w two BU	Above Touching	Fused / touching	2	1221E no	LUGAL = LU2 w GAL SHU w NIGIN2
	Above or Attached above	1	NAMESHDA	Touching or Above	Touching	3	no no 12109	SAL w NAM2 SAL w KUR GIG = MI w NUNUZ
	Above left nesting or touching	6	(The first two also have components touching.) AB w SHESH IB w SHESH UNUG w SHESH = URI2 AB w MUSH3 = ZABALA UNUG w MUSH3 ERIN w MUSH3 (this one may persist till later)	Nesting above	Fused	1	1214E	IL2 = SAG w GA etc.

	Above left	6	UNUG w SHESH = URI2 MUD3 w SHITA USHUM w GAL PA w AL PI w NAGA NITA w ALIM
	Above	6	LU2 w LAM? UR3 w HU AB w UD AB w ALIM NI w GAL = SANDANA E2 w (SHU2 x AN)

Uruk IV	Uruk III
Below right	Above	1	Z753 w GA
Parallel	Above left or Above	2	SHAB = IB w PAP SHAB = IB x PA
Parallel	Parallel	4	GIBIL w GI KA w GI AGRUN = E2 w NUN ILDUM = NAGAR w BU

Archaic multi-component signs which CONTINUE into later cuneiform.

	ZATU	Uruk IV	Uruk III	UET II	Fara LAK	Rosen- garten	Ur III KWU	Borger	Labat	UTC
EL = SIKIL	add	nested above	nested above	touching & adj. 399	touching 518	adj. 155	touching 792	fused	fused	fused 12098
RA ?< SI w UDU	431	if related, nested above	if related, nested above	nested or fused 273	fused 710	nested touching or fused 295	fused 763	fused 511	fused 328	fused 12293
RU w KUR	544a		inside touching; Shuruppak							infix 12297

GU7 = KA x GAR	235	nested below	nested below or below	nested touching 231	super- imposed 330	super- imposed 200	infixed 425	infixed 65	infixed 36	infix 12167
TUKUR2 = KA x SHE	274		nested below or attached upper right		nested lower right 322	nested lower right 205		infix 50	infix 27	infix 12184
ARAD2 = IR3 w KUR	268	touching below	touching below	touching 52	touching below, or infixed 59	fused 416	infixed 65	infixed 19	?51	infix 12036

UZ = HU w SHE	611a	below	nested below	below 35	adj. 201	nested below 408	adj. 639	adj. 583		no
MUD = HU w HI	364	nested below	nested above	nested below 37	nested below 65	below, nested below 407	adj. 112	adj. 137	adj. 81	no
E3 = DU w UD	132	super- imposed	below to right	below or above 198a		above 326 (touching?)		adj. 596b		no

EN w ME	add part of ENSI	nested = upper right	nested = upper right						as infix, resolved as ME.EN	no
infixed EN x ME							nested above 77 ~ ME.EN			1209C
ENDIB = EN w ME w MU	139		below (w MU parallel)							no
ENGIZ = EN w ME w GI	140		below (w GI parallel)							no

PA(D)3 = RU w IGI	add	inside adj.	inside adj.	touching 243	inside 423 touching	adj. 74	inside 558 touching	adj. 725	adj. 450	no
ERIM2 = RU w NE	144	inside	inside			adj. 363			adj. 172b	no

TU = SHA3 or LAGAR w SHE	554	SHA3 with SHE attached	SHA3 with SHE attached	fused 133	fused 211	fused or touching 443	fused or touching 635	fused 86	fused 58c	fused 12308
LI = SHA w SHE	330		parallel or above attached	above 131	attached above 206	attached above 445	touching above 640	fused 85	fused 59	121FE
GA2 x (SHA w SHE)				above 131 or outside of container GA2 !!	693 above
LUGAL = LU2 w GAL	334	adj.	above touching		above touching 165	above, most touching 130	fused 313	fused 266	fused 151	fused 1221E
SHU + NIGIN2	542	touching	touching		adj. 140		ligatured or fused 328	ligature 567		no

SAL w NAM2	400a	touching or adj.?	touching or adj.?	touching 401	touching 522	touching 190	touching 796	touching 886	touching 556	no
SAL w KUR	201	touching or adj.?	touching or adj.?	touching 398	(not listed?)	touching 173	touching 793	touching 890	touching 558	no
GIG = MI w ? NUNUZ	add	below touch	below touch	below 175 (may touch)	fused 394	below touching 121	fused 508	fused 705	below touching 446	12109

IL2 = SAG w GA etc.	add		nesting? above	nesting? above 412	touching 172	fused 432	fused many variants 319	adj. 493 touching GA.GIN2	adj. 320 touching GA.GIN2	fused 1214E
NANNA NA w SHESH (later KI w ...)	388		parallel, below, below ligatured	fused SHESH x NA 12	fused SHESH x NA 33	SHESH + NA below left + parallel KI 92	fused SHESH x KI 33		adj. 331b	no

UTUL = AB2 w Z755	610	parallel (turned vertical)	below or above			adj. 160 AB2 x KU			infix Ell.L.426n alt adj.	no
GUD w Z755	add	below	below							no
	ZATU	Uruk IV	Uruk III	UET II	Fara LAK	Rosen- garten	Ur III KWU	Borger	Labat	UTC

Archaic multi-component signs (also some multi-sign compounds) which DO NOT continue into later cuneiform.

	ZATU	Uruk IV	Uruk III	UET II	Fara LAK	Rosen- garten	Ur III KWU	Borger	Labat	UTC
EN x NUN	135	fused	fused
SI w GUD	448		nested touching
MURUB2 = SAL x (?LAGAR?)	371	nested touching	nested touching
RU w NI	add	inside touching	inside touching
PI w SHE	add		attached above right
LAGAB (circle) w SHE	265	attached above right
GISH w SHE	265	attached above right	attached above right
ARINA = Z379 w two BU	58	attached above	attached above
(SHUSH Krebernik =) NAM2 w SHE	513	attached above	attached above
Z158 (EZINU) w SHE	add	attached above	attached above
"SHELU" = LU3 w SHE	520		attached above
KIN2(?) w SHE	512	attached above	attached above or above
NAMESHDA = NAM2 w ESHDA	387	attached above or above	attached above or above	attached above or above 391	attached above, or fused 489b

ERIN w MUSH3	499		nesting left			below 100			adj. 103
IB w SHESH	add	above touching	above touching	above touching 13
AB w SHESH	596		above left touching	above touching 14
AB w MUSH3 = ZABALA	613a		nesting left
UNUG w MUSH3	613b		nesting left

UNUG w SHESH = URI2	add	above left	above left
LAHTAN2 = MUD3 w SHITA	324		above left
USHUMGAL = USHUM w GAL	607		above left
SHABRA = PA w AL	505		above left
PI w NAGA	231		above left
NITA w ALIM	507	above left

LU2 w LAM(?)	333	above	above
UR3 w HU	377	above	above
ARARMA = AB w UD	34	above	above	touching above 201
NERGALx = AB w ALIM	392		above
E2 w (SHU2 x AN) above	add	above	above		above 358
NI w GAL above	add	above	above

Z753 w GA	161	below right	above
SHAB = IB w PAP	504b	parallel	above left
SHAB = IB w PA	504a	parallel	above

KA w GI	272	parallel	parallel
GIBIL w GI	215	parallel	parallel
AGRUN = E2 w NUN	413	parallel	parallel
ILDUM = NAGAR w BU	263		parallel

UNUG w A	584	attached below
AB w A	8	attached below				infix Lagash

NUN x ME (in ABRIG)	16		grouping ???

	ZATU	Uruk IV	Uruk III	UET II	Fara LAK	Rosen- garten	Ur III KWU	Borger	Labat	UTC

Copyright © 2003. All Rights Reserved. Much of the analytical material on this web site will be included in an etymological study and concordance to cuneiform signs, to be published shortly, and may be used to validate the sign list, but should not be cited in any detail until it is published (guaranteed 2004 probably spring). Permission is granted for others to use the information on these web pages for preparation of a proposal to Unicode for a standard encoding of Cuneiform. The proposed sign list itself is free of any restrictions.

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