Language | Ancient North Arabian » Oasis North Arabian » Dadanitic |
Alphabet | Ancient North Arabian |
Script typology | Monumental writing |
Writing technique | Incision |
Textual typology | Dedicatory text |
Line 3. Line 3. We would suggest that the sequence grʿwlh could represent gr ʿwl -h ‘the [farming] partner of her family’. This is based on taking gr as having a similar implication to Arabic ǧār one of the meanings of which is ‘a partner, or sharer in immovable property, such as land’ (Lane), and on interpreting ʿwl as related to Arabic ʿīyāl ‘family, household’ which is derived from the root ʿ-W-L. The fact that there is no word-divider between the 2 elements of the construct might be because it was taken a single concept. Line 4. Both in Sima's photograph and in Abū l-Ḥasan's copy there is no a word-divider between grʿw and lh. For discussion, see Déroche. For the place name, see Hidalgo-Chacón Díez. |
1 | The verb in line 2 shows that the subject was a woman even though the carver omitted the t of bnt. Abū l-Ḥasan copied and read the last letter in this line as d. However, it is clear from the photograph that it is a r, as read by Stiehl followed by al-Qudra, Sima, and Farès-Drappeau. |
2 | Abū l-Ḥasan reads ʾṭllt h-ṭll for ʾẓllt h-ẓll. |
4 | Stiehl followed by al-Qudra and Farès-Drappeau reads mrʿm for grʿw. Abū l-Ḥasan reads ms²ʿw. |
4-5 | It is not possible to see the q of Tqmm on the photographs and Sima thought that the mason had accidentally omitted it. Stiehl followed by al-Qudra and Farès-Drappeau reads Tymm for Tqmm. |
English | |
1 ʾmtlh daughter [of] Ḍmr 2 performed the ẓll-ceremony 3 for the sake of the [farming] partner of her family (?) in T- 4 [q]mm and so favour her and 5 reward her. |
3 | We would suggest that the sequence grʿwlh could represent gr ʿwl-h ‘the [farming] partner of her family’. This is based on taking gr as having a similar implication to Arabic ǧār one of the meanings of which is ‘a partner, or sharer in immovable property, such as land’ (Lane, p. 483c), and on interpreting ʿwl as related to Arabic ʿīyāl ‘family, household’ which is derived from the root ʿ-W-L. The fact that there is no word-divider between the 2 elements of the construct might be because it was taken a single concept. |
For other translations and commentaries see the bibliography. |
Stiehl 1971: 32 (D 04), pl. 38 | Stiehl, Ruth 1971. Neue liḥyānische Inschriften aus al-‛Uḏaib. Pages 3-40 in Altheim, Franz and Stiehl, Ruth (ed.). Christentum am Roten Meer I. Berlin, New York: de Gruyter. |
Lane 1980 | Lane, Edward W. 1980. Arabic-English Lexicon. Beirut: Librairie du Liban. |
Déroche 1987: 236 | Déroche, François 1987. Recherches sur l’oasis de Dedan/Al-‘Ulā. (2 Mikrofiches), (PhD). |
al-Qudra 1993: 25 (L 037) | al-Qudra, Ḥusayn M. 1993. Dirāsa muʿǧamīya li-ʾalfāẓ an-nuqūš al-liḥyānīya fī ʾiṭār al-luġāt as-sāmīya al-ǧanūbīya. (MA). |
Abū l-Ḥasan 1418/1997: 91-93 (AH 016), pl. 3 (facsimile) | Abū l-Ḥasan, Ḥusayn 1418/1997. Qirāʾa li-kitābāt liḥyānīya min ǧabal ʿIkma bi-minṭaqat al-ʿUlā. ar-Riyāḍ: maktabat al-malik Fahd al-waṭanīya. |
Farès-Drappeau 2005: 209 (D 128) | Farès-Drappeau, Saba 2005. Dédan et Liḥyân. Histoire des Arabes aux confins des pouvoirs perse et hellénistique (IVe-IIe s. avant l'ère chrétienne). (Travaux de la Maison de l'Orient et de la Mediterranée, 42). Lyon: Maison de l'Orient et de la Méditerranée; J. Pouilloux. |
Support type | Rock inscription |
Link to object record |
Modern site | al-ʿUlā |
Ancient site | Ddn |
Geographical area | Ḥijāz |
Country | Saudi Arabia |
Notes | The inscription is incised on one of the rock faces in the gorge al-ʿUḏayb (Ǧabal ʿIkmah). |
Link to site record |
Stiehl 1971: 32 (D 04), pl. 38 | Stiehl, Ruth 1971. Neue liḥyānische Inschriften aus al-‛Uḏaib. Pages 3-40 in Altheim, Franz and Stiehl, Ruth (ed.). Christentum am Roten Meer I. Berlin, New York: de Gruyter. |
al-Qudra 1993: 25 (L 037) | al-Qudra, Ḥusayn M. 1993. Dirāsa muʿǧamīya li-ʾalfāẓ an-nuqūš al-liḥyānīya fī ʾiṭār al-luġāt as-sāmīya al-ǧanūbīya. (MA). |
Abū l-Ḥasan 1418/1997: 91-93 (AH 016), pl. 3 (facsimile) | Abū l-Ḥasan, Ḥusayn 1418/1997. Qirāʾa li-kitābāt liḥyānīya min ǧabal ʿIkma bi-minṭaqat al-ʿUlā. ar-Riyāḍ: maktabat al-malik Fahd al-waṭanīya. |
Sima 1999c: 23 (U 070), pl. 17a | Sima, Alexander 1999. Die lihyanischen Inschriften von al-ʿUḏayb (Saudi-Arabien). (Epigraphische Forschungen auf der Arabischen Halbinsel, 1). Rahden/Westf.: Leidorf. |
Farès-Drappeau 2005: 209 (D 128) | Farès-Drappeau, Saba 2005. Dédan et Liḥyân. Histoire des Arabes aux confins des pouvoirs perse et hellénistique (IVe-IIe s. avant l'ère chrétienne). (Travaux de la Maison de l'Orient et de la Mediterranée, 42). Lyon: Maison de l'Orient et de la Méditerranée; J. Pouilloux. |
Lane 1980: 483c | Lane, Edward W. 1980. Arabic-English Lexicon. Beirut: Librairie du Liban. |
Déroche 1987: 236 | Déroche, François 1987. Recherches sur l’oasis de Dedan/Al-‘Ulā. (2 Mikrofiches), (PhD). |
Hidalgo-Chacón Díez 2014 | Hidalgo-Chacón Díez, María del Carmen 2014. Place Names in the Dadanitic Inscriptions of al-'Uḏayb. Adūmātū, 30: 15-30. |