Hammurabi's Laws: Text, Translation and Glossary.

• Author: Beckman, Gary
• Position: Brief Reviews of Books

Hammurabi's Laws: Text, Translation and Glossary. By M. E. J. RICHARDSON. The Biblical Seminar, vol. 73; Semitic Texts and Studies, vol. 2. Sheffield: SHEFFIELD ACADEMIC PRESS, 2000. Pp. 423. $90 (cloth); $35 (paper).

Because of the language's importance as the earliest attested member of the Semitic family and its role in the venerable civilization of Mesopotamia, a familiarity with Akkadian is of value to Semitists and students of later cultures of the Middle East. The present work was conceived as a "handbook" (p. 11) of Akkadian for those primarily interested in Arabic or Hebrew but without the time or inclination to learn the cuneiform writing system.

Based on his experience teaching at the University of Manchester, the author has produced a broad transcription and lightly annotated translation of the entirety of the "Code" of Hammurapi, including its prologue and epilogue. A glossary provides rather full discussions of all vocabulary found in the text, while the following section briefly identifies proper names and explains units of measure. The target audience will appreciate the listing of all verbal roots appearing in the "Code," as well as the collection of attested finite and nominal verbal forms grouped under the respective infinitives. English-Akkadian and Akkadian-English word lists complete the volume.

Richardson's remarks on the content of the legal paragraphs are rudimentary and...