Scribe

In ancient Mesopotamia, as well as in Egypt and several other ancient societies, an individual who possessed the ability to read and write and usually used these skills in some professional capacity. The Sumerian word for scribe was dubsar; the Akkadian (Babylonian and Assyrian) version was tupsharru. Mesopotamian scribes worked in administrative and other key positions in palaces, on temple estates, and in some private businesses as well. They had a wide range of functions and duties. One of the most important was accounting, which included keeping track of monies collected and spent; any and all supplies gathered and stored; profits and losses, if any; and the numbers and names of workers employed by the government or temple. But some Mesopotamian scribes did much more. From a modern viewpoint, these specialists can be thought of as “scholars.” This is because they were the ancient equivalents of today’s linguists, geographers, mathematicians, astronomers, and teachers. In addition, they were the keepers and classifiers of knowledge. They not only taught younger scribes to read and write but also wrote and copied books for use in learning. Like the Christian monks of the Middle Ages, they set down in writing the ancient myths, oral traditions, and proverbs of their culture, thereby transmitting them to future generations. Finally, scribes wrote and translated letters for kings, governors, and other high-placed people.

Not surprisingly, in a society in which most people were illiterate, individuals who could do these crucial things enjoyed widespread respect and high social status. In the political arena, scribes could also be highly influential as advisers to kings and generals, and from time to time a scribe might actually become such a leader; the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal was trained as a scribe, for instance. The social prominence of Mesopotamian scribes was reflected in their background and schooling. With perhaps occasional exceptions, most novice scribes were the sons of well-to-do or prominent members of the community. Evidence shows that a few women scribes existed, but the vast majority were males.

The trainees attended a school called a tablet house (edubba in Sumerian and bit tuppi in Akkadian). The remains of such schools have been found in Sippar, Nippur, and Ur. The students first learned how to make clay tablets and how to press wedge-shaped instruments into the wet clay to produce cuneiform letters. Simply learning the cuneiform writing system, with its hundreds of signs, must have taken a considerable amount of time. Then the students had to master multiple lan-guages—not only Sumerian and Akkadian but also, depending on the time and place, sometimes Elamite, Hurrian, Persian, and others, too—in order to translate from one language to another. They also became familiar with the many Sumerian epic poems and traditional proverbs, perhaps in many cases memorizing them by heart.

Like a window into the past, a surviving text from a Sumerian edubba captures a teacher emphasizing to one of his students the importance of following the teacher’s instructions as closely as possible. The passage also shows the high level of respect that scribes had for their teachers, men who had devoted their lives to becoming literate and transmitting knowledge to others.

Like you, I was once a youth and had a mentor. The teacher assigned a task to me. It was a man’s work. Like a springing reed, I leapt up and put myself to work. I did not depart from my teacher’s instructions, and I did not start doing things on my own initiative. My mentor was delighted with my work on the assignment. He rejoiced that I was humble before him and he spoke in my favor. I just did whatever he outlined for me. ... Only a fool would have deviated from his instructions. He guided my hand on the clay and kept me on the right path. He made me eloquent with words and gave me advice. He focused my eyes on the rules which guide a man with a task. . . . He did not vaunt [show off] his knowledge. His words were modest. If he had vaunted his knowledge, people would have frowned. Do not... reject the pleasurable company of a mentor or his assistant. Once you have come into contact with such great brains, you will make your own words more worthy. . . . There, I have recited to you what my teacher revealed, and you will not neglect it. You should pay attention. Taking it to heart will be to your benefit!

See Also: cuneiform; education; writing