EN (cuneiform)
Encyclopedia
EN is the Sumerian cuneiform
Cuneiform
Cuneiform can refer to:*Cuneiform script, an ancient writing system originating in Mesopotamia in the 4th millennium BC*Cuneiform , three bones in the human foot*Cuneiform Records, a music record label...

 for "lord
Lord
Lord is a title with various meanings. It can denote a prince or a feudal superior . The title today is mostly used in connection with the peerage of the United Kingdom or its predecessor countries, although some users of the title do not themselves hold peerages, and use it 'by courtesy'...

" or "priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...

". Originally, it seems to have been used to designate a high priest or priestess of a Sumerian city-state
City-state
A city-state is an independent or autonomous entity whose territory consists of a city which is not administered as a part of another local government.-Historical city-states:...

's patron-deity - a position that entailed political power as well. It may also have been the original title of the ruler of Uruk. See Lugal, ensi and en for more details.

deities:
  • DEN.LÍL
    Enlil
    Elizabeth Barrett Browning was one of the most prominent poets of the Victorian era. Her poetry was widely popular in both England and the United States during her lifetime. A collection of her last poems was published by her husband, Robert Browning, shortly after her death.-Early life:Members...

  • DEN.KI
    Enki
    Enki is a god in Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea in Akkadian and Babylonian mythology. He was originally patron god of the city of Eridu, but later the influence of his cult spread throughout Mesopotamia and to the Canaanites, Hittites and Hurrians...

  • DEN.GURUN
  • DEN.ZU
    Sin (mythology)
    Sin or Nanna was the god of the moon in Mesopotamian mythology. Nanna is a Sumerian deity, the son of Enlil and Ninlil, and became identified with Semitic Sin. The two chief seats of Nanna's/Sin's worship were Ur in the south of Mesopotamia and Harran in the north.- Name :The original meaning of...

  • En-hedu-ana, Akkadian 2285 BC - 2250 BC was the first known holder of the title, "En Priestess."


See also: NIN "lady", LUGAL
Lugal
Lugal is the Sumerian cuneiform sign for leader from the two signs, LÚ.GAL , and was one of several Sumerian titles that a ruler of a city-state could bear . The sign eventually became the predominant Sumerian term for a King in general. In the Sumerian language, lugal is used to mean an owner...

 "king", bêlu
Belu
Belu is a UK based company selling environmentally friendly bottled water.Belu is a bottled water company committed to sustainable development...

.

Amarna letters: bêlu

The 1350 BC Amarna letters
Amarna letters
The Amarna letters are an archive of correspondence on clay tablets, mostly diplomatic, between the Egyptian administration and its representatives in Canaan and Amurru during the New Kingdom...

 uses EN for bêlu, though not exclusively. The more common spelling is mostly 'be' + 'li', to make "bêlí", or its equivalent. Some example letters using cuneiform 'EN' are letters EA (for 'El Amarna') 152, EA 254, and EA 282, titled: "A demand for recognition", by Abi-Milku
Abi-Milku
Abi-Milku was the only mayor/ruler of Tyre, Lebanon , during the period of the Amarna letters correspondence .He is the author of ten letters , EA 146-155 ....

; "Neither rebel or delinquent (2)", by Labayu; and "Alone", by Shuwardata.

Most of the uses are in the letter introduction, formulaic addresses to the pharaoh
Pharaoh
Pharaoh is a title used in many modern discussions of the ancient Egyptian rulers of all periods. The title originates in the term "pr-aa" which means "great house" and describes the royal palace...

, stating typically to effect:
"To the King (pharaoh), Lord-mine, (speaking) thus...."


Bodies of the letters also repeat the phraseology of "King, my Lord", sometimes doubly as in letter EA 34, (using be-li, as bêlu), "The pharaoh's reproach answered", by the King of Alashiya
Alashiya
Alashiya or Alasiya was a state which existed in the Middle and Late Bronze Ages, and was situated somewhere in the Eastern Mediterranean. It was a major source of goods, especially copper, for Ancient Egypt and other states in the Ancient Near East. It is referred to in a number of the surviving...

.
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