The Corpus of Hittite Divinatory Texts (HDivT)

Digital Edition and Cultural Historical Analysis

Andrea Trameri (Hrsg.)

Citatio: Andrea Trameri (Hrsg.), hethiter.net/: CTH 581.21 (transcr. 2024-10-10; TRde 2025-08-04)


CTH 581.21

Fragment(s) of letter with bird oracles concerning ‘daughters’ and other members of a family

transcriptio



Abschnitt 1ID=1: (Fragment KUB 49.4) obv. §1´

1ID=1 --

[… …]‑nina […]

[…] … […]

2ID=2 --

[…] … kipi‑[… …]

[…] … […]

3ID=3 --

[… …]‑āll[i‑… …]

[…] … […]

Abschnitt 2ID=2: obv. §2´

4ID=4 --

[… I‑N]A? U[D?Tag:D/L.SG …]

O[n the second] day […]

5ID=5 --

[… I‑NA] UDTag:D/L.SG 3K[AM?drei:QUANcar …]

[… on] the third day […]

6ID=6 --

[…] TI₈MUŠENAdler:NOM.SG(UNM) …[… …]

[…] An eagle […]

7ID=7 --

[…] araḫza(nach) draußen:ADV IṢ‑B[AT(?)packen:3SG.PST …]

[…] it seized it outside1 […

8ID=8 --

[… …]‑iedi EGIRhinter:PREV …[… …]

[…] … back […]

9ID=9 --

[…] šarāhinauf:ADV S[IG₅gute (Seite):ADV …]

[…] up [from the] favor[able side …]

Abschnitt 3ID=3: obv. §3´

10ID=10 --

uniya=ma=mujener, der da:=CNJadd=CNJctr=PPRO.1SG.DAT} ku[itwelcher:REL.NOM.SG.N;
welcher:REL.ACC.SG.N
…] ḫatrāešmitteilen:2SG.PST

But also that [matter2 …] about wh[ich] you wrote to me,

11ID=11 --

2?‑[… …]

Two […]

12ID=12 --

ammukich:PPROa.1SG.DAT/ACC;
ich:PPROa.1SG.NOM
ašt[a‑… …]

I/to me … […]

13ID=13 --

URUparmin[a‑… …]

Parmin[assa …]

14ID=14 --

… …[… …]

[…] … […]

obv. breaks off

Abschnitt 4ID=4: rev. §4´

15ID=15 --

[…] … […]

[…] … […]

16ID=16 --

I‑NA EG[IR?hinter:D/L.SG …]

in … […]

17ID=17 --

SIG₅‑ingut:ADV u[šketteni(?)sehen:2PL.PRS.IMPF …]

[you keep see]ing positively/well […]

18ID=18 --

kuwapiirgendwo:INDadv pidd[a‑… …]

anywhere run[n- …]

19ID=19 --

DUMU.MUNUSMEŠTochter:NOM.PL(UNM) MA‑ḪARvor:D/L.SG_vor:POSP;
vor:D/L.PL_vor:POSP
…[… …]

the daughters, in the presence of […]

20ID=20 --

nuCONNn MUŠENḪI.AVogel:NOM.PL(UNM) ḫa[ndāndu]ordnen:3PL.IMP

let the birds con[firm (it) (by oracle)].

Abschnitt 5ID=5: rev. §5´

21ID=21 --

[a]nda=madarin:ADV=CNJctr mānwenn:CNJ […]

Moreover, if […]

22ID=22 --

[ḫa]ndaittaordnen:3SG.PST.MP;
ordnen:2SG.PST.MP
[…]

[it was co]nfirmed.

23ID=23 --

[… …]… Ú‑ULnicht:NEG MA‑ḪARvor:D/L.PL_vor:POSP DUMU.MUN[USMEŠTochter:D/L.PL(UNM);
Tochter:ACC.PL(UNM)
…]

[…] … not in the presence of the daughte[rs].

Abschnitt 6ID=6: rev. §6´

24ID=24 --

[an]da=madarin:ADV=CNJctr DINGIRMEŠGott:NOM.PL(UNM) kuw[apiirgendwo:INDadv …]

Moreover, anywhere the gods […]

25ID=25 --

[n]=an=šanCONNn=PPRO.3SG.C.ACC=OBPs […]

[and …] him/her […]

26ID=26 --

[… …]… EGIR‑a[ndanach:ADV …]

back […]

27ID=27 --

[… …]… URUk[i‑… …]

the town of K[i-…]

28ID=28 --

[… …]…[… …]

[…]

rev. breaks off

Abschnitt 7ID=7: (Fragment KUB 49.6; indirect join?) §1´

29ID=29 --

[… …]… …[… …]

[…]

30ID=30 --

[… …]…‑iš na‑[… … …]… …[… …]

[…]

31ID=31 --

[… …]… taruyalliš(Orakelterminus):NOM.SG.C [ ]

[…] taruyalli- [ ].

Abschnitt 8ID=8: §2´

32ID=32 --

[… …] kiššanin dieser Weise:DEMadv arḫaweg-:PREV ariya‑[… …]

[… it was] determi[ned] by oracle as follows:

33ID=33 --

[… …]… ḫandāntešordnen:PTCP.NOM.PL.C MUŠENḪI.AVogel:NOM.PL(UNM) Ú‑U[Lnicht:NEG …]

[…] the birds ‘of confirmation’ not […]

34ID=34 --

[…] DINGIRMEŠGöttlichkeit:NOM.PL(UNM) A‑NA DUMU.MUNUSTochter:D/L.SG zilatiyain Zukunft:ADV i[dālu(?)böse:NOM.SG.N … …]…

[If you] gods, for the daughter in the future [see no]3 e[vil …]

35ID=35 --

nuCONNn MUŠENḪI.AVogel:NOM.PL(UNM) ḫandānduordnen:3PL.IMP

[…] let the birds confirm (it).

Abschnitt 9ID=9: §3´

36ID=36 --

[… …]…=ma A‑NA DUMU.MUNUSTochter:D/L.SG SIG₅‑ingut:ADV;
gut:ACC.SG.C
uškett[enisehen:2PL.PRS.IMPF …]

[…] but [if] for the daughter you keep seeing positively […]

37ID=37 --

[… …]… … A‑BI‑ŠUVater:D/L.SG(UNM)_DEM2/3.GEN.SG Ùund:CNJadd A‑NA AMA.AM[AGroßmutter:D/L.SG …]

[… for] her father and for [her] grandmother […]

38ID=38 --

[…] DGUL‑š=aGULš-Gottheiten:DN.NOM.SG.C=CNJctr DUMU.MUNUS!?)Tochter:NOM.SG(UNM);
Tochter:ACC.SG(UNM);
Tochter:GEN.SG(UNM);
Tochter:D/L.SG(UNM);
Tochter:ABL(UNM)
DINGIR.MAḪMuttergöttin:NOM.SG(UNM);
Muttergöttin:ACC.SG(UNM);
Muttergöttin:GEN.SG(UNM);
Muttergöttin:D/L.SG(UNM);
Muttergöttin:ABL(UNM)
… […]

[…] the Fate goddess, the daughter, the Mother goddess […]

39ID=39 --

[…] piyanzageben:PTCP.NOM.SG.C

[…] (is) given,

40ID=40 --

nuCONNn ḫaššaš=kanEnkel:NOM.SG.C=OBPk ariankommen:3SG.PRS […]

and (there) the grandchild comes […]

41ID=41 --

[…] arḫaweg-:PREV kittaruliegen:3SG.IMP.MP

[…] shall be put away.

42ID=42 --

nuCONNn laḫla[ḫḫimaš]Erregung:GEN.SG MUŠENḪI.A]Vogel:NOM.PL(UNM) arḫaweg-:PREV peššeyanduwerfen:=;
werfen:3PL.IMP=

Let the [birds] of conc[ern] exclude (it).

Abschnitt 10ID=10: §4´

43ID=43 --

[… …]‑aš GUN(Orakelterminus):ADV

[A … bird (was)] GUN;

44ID=44 --

n=aštaCONNn=OBPst pattarpal[ḫi‑… …] …

a ‘wide-win[g’ bird …]

45ID=45 --

[n]=aštaCONNn=OBPst aliyašOrakelvogel:SG.NOM.C pattarpa[lḫi‑… … IK‑Š]U?‑UDerreichen:3SG.PST

An aliya- bird [m]et a ‘wide-win[g’ bird …]4

46ID=46 --

n=at=kanCONNn=PPRO.3PL.C.NOM=OBPk EGIRhinter:PREV kattaunten:ADV […]

They [came] in the back down [from the unfavorable side]5

47ID=47 --

[… …‑i]š GUN(Orakelterminus):ADV

[A … bird (was)] GUN,

48ID=48 --

n=aštaCONNn=OBPst [… kuštay]ativom/im ungünstigen (Bereich):LUW.A/I

and [a … bird came … from the unfavor]able side.

49ID=49 --

nuCONNn pattarp[alḫi‑… … G]UN(Orakelterminus):ADV

A ‘wide-wi[ng’ bird … (was) G]UN,

50ID=50 --

nuCONNn š[u‑… … G]UN(Orakelterminus):ADV […]

and [… G]UN.

breaks off

The exact meaning or araḫza ep- is unclear. Based on the context of another attestation, it is possible that the bird “grasps, seizes” another one only metaphorically (i.e. “reached”?), and that the sentence is idiomatic (see KUB 18.5+, obv. II 3). This formulation is attested in very few texts (other than KUB 18.5+, the fragment KBo 71.19).
Based on the following lines.
For another analysis, see Sakuma Y. 2009b, II 668, where these are interpreted as two distinct sentences: “An alliya- bird [and] a ‘wide-win[g’ bird …] | [And … it m]et […]”.
Likely content, based on the standard formulary.
Editio ultima: Textus 2024-10-10; Traductionis 2025-08-04

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