College of Archaeology

The Department of Ancient Iraqi Languages is one of the main departments in the College of Archeology – University of Mosul. Its counterpart in Iraq is the Department of Cuneiform Studies in the College of Archeology at Al-Qadisiyah University. This department is concerned with studying the Ancient Iraqi languages (Sumerian and Akkadian with their Babylonian and Assyrian dialects) which were found written on archaeological remains and finds with marks resembling the heads of nails. These written marks were called the Cuneiform Script. In addition to other languages, namely Aramaic and Hebrew. The study curricula in the department include teaching the students how to copy these cuneiform signs, analyze their phonetic and symbolic values, and methods for distinguishing their shapes, as well as how to reproduce them on clay figures, in addition to studying the grammar of the Sumerian and Akkadian languages and methods for verifying and analyzing cuneiform texts. After four years of study, the student is granted a bachelor’s degree in Ancient Iraqi languages.

The Department of Ancient Iraqi Languages was established in 1999 as one of the departments of the College of Arts – University of Mosul. This was based on the vision of the faculty members in the Department of Archaeology – College of Arts – University of Mosul at that time to shed light on the special importance to teaching the Ancient Iraqi languages and the types of scripts in which those languages were written. The name of the Department of was Cuneiform Studies. After the establishment of the College of Archaeology in 2008, this department became one of the main departments in this college. In 2011, the department’s name was changed into “Department of Ancient Iraqi Inscriptions and Languages” in order to be more diverse and specialized in the study of Ancient Iraqi languages. In addition to the Sumerian and Akkadian languages, the Aramaic and Hebrew languages were among the department’s main curricula, and in 2016 the department’s names was changed into “Ancient Iraqi Languages” to give a clearer meaning to applicants who are graduates of high school in its scientific and literary branches. The department is currently including (27) teaching staff, ranging from the rank of professor to the rank of assistant lecturer. The department awards Master’s and Doctoral degrees to applicants for postgraduate studies.