| The subject of this dissertation is the use of supplemental graphic conventions (scribal auxiliary marks) in the Amarna corpus and in the cuneiform alphabetic texts discovered at Ugarit.;Following an overview of the purpose of supplemental graphic conventions in written communication and a summary of line-based and cuneiform wedge-based scribal auxiliary marks in Mesopotamian texts, the scribal auxiliary marks in the Amarna corpus and in the cuneiform alphabetic texts discovered at Ugarit are identified and analyzed. Specifically, the scribal auxiliary marks in these texts are catalogued in detail and analyzed vis-a-vis their function within each individual text. Secondly, this data is sorted in order to consider the full range of functions for each given scribal auxiliary mark within the full gamut of texts from Ugarit and Amarna. Thirdly, further breakdown analysis is presented vis-a-vis genre and geographic area of origin. In addition, limited discussion is devoted to (1) the syntactical usage of the vertical wedge in the Ugaritic corpus; (2) the usage of the Glossenkeil in the Akkadian texts from Ugarit; and (3) the function(s) of the red dots found on three Mesopotamian myths discovered at Amarna.;This analysis of the scribal auxiliary marks used in the Amarna corpus and the texts from Ugarit demonstrates that these auxiliary marks were developed by scribes to structure writing, clarify syntactical relationships, denote emphasis, provide punctuation-like information, and the like; in other words, to facilitate understandability. Moreover, this study shows that the employment and function of individual scribal auxiliary marks varies in light of the particular syntactical and structural needs of a given genre. In addition, this study illustrates that certain scribal auxiliary marks were utilized in similar ways across the spectrum of geographic areas of origin represented by these texts while others reflect regional (or city-state) scribal auxiliary mark conventions.;Lastly, the background, training, and functions of scribes from the various geographic regions treated in this study will be surveyed, including the Sumerian scribe, the Babylonian scribe, the Hittite scribe, the Ugaritic scribe, the Syro-Canaanite scribe, and the Egyptian scribe. |
