Publication Information The main body of the Publication Information page contains all the metadata that HRAF holds for that document.
Author: Author's name as listed in Library of Congress records
Kramer, Samuel Noah, 1897-
Title:
The Sumerians: their history, culture, and character
Published By: Original publisher
Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 1963. xiv, 355 p., plates ill.
By line: Author's name as appearing in the actual publication
Samuel N. Kramer
HRAF Publication Information: New Haven, Conn.:
Human Relations Area Files, 2003. Computer File
Culture: Culture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC) with the alphanumberic OWC identifier in parenthesis.
Early Dynastic Mesopotamia (MH64)
Subjects: Document-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
Traditional history (173);
Acculturation and culture contact (177);
Vocabulary (192);
Writing (212);
Verbal arts (5310);
Ethics (577);
Chief executive (643);
External relations (648);
Mythology (773);
Spirits and gods (776);
Prayers and sacrifices (782);
Liberal arts education (873);
Texts translated into english (902);
Abstract: Brief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This book is a good overview of the Sumerians from about 5000 B.P. to the start of the Babylonian Period in 3750 B.P. (3000 B.C. to 1750 B.C.). Kramer discusses, translates, and presents many original Sumerian texts. Included are texts of myths, laments, disputations, the Sumerian King List, a farmer's almanac, records of court judgements, votive inscriptions, etc. Most Sumerian documents were written after the end of the Early Dynastic Period. The sections of the book that are outside the time period were indexed with Outline of Cultural Materials (OCM) codes that pertained to subjects that might have occurred during the Early Dynastic Mesopotamia Period. Kramer also covers Sumerian history (which consists mainly of kings and a list of their battles and what cities they ruled); their society (dress, available occupations, family relationships, how a city was arranged, land tenure and ownership, etc.) and religion; their education system or the EDUBBA; what drives motivated the Sumerians; and what were their values and ethical ideals. Indeed, the first reform movement in recorded history occurred under the leadership of king Urukagina of Lagash around 4350 B.P. (2350 B.C.). The tablets record abuses by the king and the rich and powerful and how the balance of power was restored in favor of the temple and the ordinary citizen.
Document Number: HRAF's in-house numbering system derived from the processing order of documents
4
Document ID: HRAF's unique document identifier. The first part is the OWC identifier and the second part is the document number in three digits.
mh64-004
Document Type: May include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs or chapters/parts of monographs.
Monograph
Language: Language that the document is written in
English
Note:
Includes bibliographical references (p. 343-346)
Field Date: The date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
no date
Evaluation: In this alphanumeric code, the first part designates the type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigene, and so on. The second part is a ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data
Archaeologist - 4
Analyst: The HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection.
Sarah Berry ; 2001
Coverage Date: The date or dates that the information in the document pertains to (often not the same as the field date).
5th millenium BP or 5000 BP-4000 BP (3rd millennium B.C. or 3000 B.C.-2000 B.C.)
Coverage Place: Location of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
Sumer; Iran and Iraq
LCSH: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Iraq--Civilization--To 634
