CDLI Literary 000781 (Drinking Song) composite (P478968)
Literary, Old Babylonian · c. 1900 BCE–1600 BCE
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| Designation | CDLI Literary 000781 (Drinking Song) composite |
|---|---|
| ID | P478968 |
| Language | Sumerian |
| Period | Old Babylonian · c. 1900 BCE–1600 BCE |
| Genre | Literary |
English translation
By check · Via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative · CDLI (reuse with citation)
| Line | English |
|---|---|
| surface a 1 | The gakkul (vat), the gakkul (vat)! |
| surface a 2 | The gakkul (vat), the lamsare (vat)! |
| surface a 3 | The gakkul (vat), that puts us in a happy mood! |
| surface a 4 | The lamsare (vat), that makes the stomach rejoice! |
| surface a 5 | The ugurbala (jar), glory of the house! |
| surface a 6 | The šagub (jar), filling with beer! |
| surface a 7 | The amam (jar), that carries the beer from the lamsare (vat)! |
| surface a 8 | The troughs of bur (grass) and the pails for kneading the dough! |
| surface a 9 | All the beautiful vessels are ready on their pot stands! |
| surface a 10 | May the stomach of your god be well disposed towards you! |
| surface a 11 | Let the eye of the gakkul (vat) be our eye, |
| surface a 12 | and let the stomach of the gakkul (vat) be our heart! |
| surface a 13 | What makes your stomach feel wonderful in itself |
| surface a 14 | also makes our stomachs feel wonderful in themselves! |
| surface a 15 | We are in a happy mood, our stomachs are joyful! |
| surface a 16 | You have poured a libation over the brick of fate, |
| surface a 17 | and you have laid the foundations in peace and prosperity— |
| surface a 18 | now may Ninkasi dwell with you! |
| surface a 19 | She should transfer, one to the other, beer and wine for you! |
| surface a 20 | Let the pouring of the sweet liquor resound pleasantly for you! |
| surface a 21 | In the troughs of bur (grass), there is sweet beer. |
| surface a 22 | I will have the cupbearers, the boys and the brewers stand by. |
| surface a 23 | As I spin around the lake of drinks, |
| surface a 24 | while feeling wonderful, feeling wonderful, |
| surface a 25 | while drinking beer, in a blissful mood, |
| surface a 26 | while drinking alcohol and feeling exhilarated, |
| surface a 27 | with joy in the stomach and a contented liver— |
| surface a 28 | my stomach is a heart stomach with joy! |
| surface a 29 | I clothe my contented liver in a garment fit for a queen! |
| surface a 30 | The stomach of Inanna is happy once again; |
| surface a 31 | the stomach of Inanna is happy once again! |
| surface a 32 | A ... to Ninkasi. |
Transliteration (ATF)
From Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative · CDLI: reuse of catalogue/transliteration data with citation of CDLI; images restricted (not fetched)
| Line | ATF | Machine English (draft) |
|---|---|---|
| surface a | ||
| 1 | {gi}gakkul-e {gi}gakkul-e | |
| 2 | {gi}gakkul-e {dug}lam-sa2-ri | |
| 3 | {gi}gakkul-e nig2 ur5 sa6-sa6-ge | |
| 4 | {dug}lam-sa2-ri nig2 sza3 hul2-hul2-e | |
| 5 | {dug}u-gur-bala nig2 e2-a me-te-bi | |
| 6 | {dug}sza3-gub-be2 nig2 kasz si-si-ge | |
| 7 | {dug}am-am lah5 {dug}lam-sa2-ra-ke4 | |
| 8 | {gi}bugin {u2}bur2 {gi}ba-an-du8 silag-ga2-ke4 | |
| 9 | dug sa6 dag-dug-e sa-gi4-a | |
| 10 | sza3 dingir-za hu-mu-ra-ab-hun-e | |
| 11 | igi {gi}gakkul-am3 igi-me na-nam | |
| 12 | sza3 {gi}gakkul-am3 sza3-me na-nam | |
| 13 | ag2 sza3-zu gur4-gur4-ru ni2-bi-a | |
| 14 | sza3-me-a gur4-gur4-ru ni2-bi-a | |
| 15 | ur5-me bi2-sa6 sza3-me bi2-hul2 | |
| 16 | sig4 nam-tar-ra a de2-zu | |
| 17 | silim-ma he2-gal2-e ki us2-sa-zu | |
| 18 | {d}nin-ka-si za-da hu-mu-u8-da-an-ti | |
| 19 | kasz gesztin hu-mu-ra-an-bala-bala-e | |
| 20 | kurun2 lal3-e gu3 nun ha-ra-ni-ib-be2 | |
| 21 | {gi}bugin {u2}bur2-a kasz ku7-ku7-dam | |
| 22 | sagi lu2-tur-ra lunga3 bi2-in-gub-en | |
| 23 | a-nigin2-e nigin-na-gu10-ne | |
| 24 | gur4-gur4-re-ga2 gur4-gur4-re-ga2-gu10-ne | |
| 25 | kasz nag-e me-e se3-ga-gu10-ne | |
| 26 | kurun2 nag-a ul ti-a-gu10-ne | |
| 27 | sza3 hul2-la ur5 sa6-ga-gu10-ne | |
| 28 | sza3-ga2 sza3 hul2-la gal2-la-bi | |
| 29 | ur5 sa6 {tug2}pala3-a sza-mur10-ra-gu10-ne | |
| 30 | sza3 {d}inanna ki-bi ba-ab-gi4 | |
| 31 | sza3 ga-sza-an-an-na-ke4 ki-bi ba-ab-gi4 | |
| 32 | [...] {d}nin-ka-si-kam | |
Sources & licences
- Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative · CDLI: reuse of catalogue/transliteration data with citation of CDLI; images restricted (not fetched) · Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI), https://cdli.earth/ ; cite CDLI and the P-number
Cite the original edition and translator. Page generated by Unread Atlas from the public corpus export of 2026-10-11.