College of Archaeology

The Master’s thesis entitled “Names of Temples in the Sumerian Ages in Light of Cuneiform Texts – A Semantic Study” was defended in the Department of Archeology at the College of Archeology, University of Mosul, on Wednesday, April 17, 2024. And in the hall of Dr. Behnam Abu Al-Souf. Part of the viva was attended by Professor Dr. Abdullah Khurshid Qadir, Director of the Iraq Institute for the Conservation of Antiquities and Heritage in Erbil, the Dean of the College, Professor Dr. Yasmine Abdel Karim Muhammad Ali, Assistant Professor Dr. Yasser Jaber Khalil, Assistant Dean of the College for Scientific Affairs, and a number of college staff.
The thesis presented by the student (Abeer Ibrahim Saad Al-Jumaili) dealt with the role of the temple in ancient Iraq, and the distinguished position it represented in society in religious, economic, social and cultural terms. It was an established tradition in ancient Iraq to give names to sacred religious buildings, and these names have distinct meanings. Reflecting the spiritual and historical importance of each temple.
The thesis touched on the names of temples in the Sumerian era, from the ancient Sumerian era to the modern Sumerian era, which were mentioned in the cuneiform texts. The most prominent and important temples whose names were mentioned in the cuneiform texts were discussed. The thesis explained the meanings of the names of the temples and traced the reasons for giving them the name.
The thesis aims to highlight the role of the temple in Mesopotamian society, and that the process of building and rebuilding temples was carried out by order of the gods of Mesopotamia, and this matter came in more than one way, including dreams, predictions, and omens, and that when building temples, it is necessary to reach their ancient foundations and memorize them, and then Build on it.
The viva committee was chaired by Professor Dr. Nawala Ahmed Mahmoud, and the membership of Professor Dr. Muayyad Muhammad Suleiman and Assistant Professor Dr. Abu Dhar Rahi Saadoun from Al-Muthanna University / College of Arts / Department of Archaeology, and under the supervision and membership of Assistant Professor Dr. Khaled Haider Othman.