kulān- or kulāna-

The word appears with a gloss marker in a LNS oracle (the text is booked in the Konkordanz under CTH 572, but Marcuson 2016a:423 argues that it actually belongs to CTH 578, a combination of KIN and SU oracles, pointing out that the liver oracles have been added to the text at a later stage).

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nom./acc. pl. n.	⸢ku-la⸣-na	KBo 13.76 rev. 3’	(LNS, CTH 572)
	ku[-	KBo 13.76 rev. 3’	(LNS, CTH 572)
	ku-la-⸢na⸣	KBo 13.76 rev. 10’	(LNS, CTH 572)
	ku-⸢la⸣-a-na[(-)	KBo 13.76 rev. 16’	(LNS, CTH 572)
gen. sg.	ku-la-na-aš	KBo 13.76 rev. 7’	(LNS, CTH 572)

The attestations follow CLL:114 (cf. Starke 1990a:234f., Poetto 1982b:102f., HEG A–K:622, Zorman 2016a:580). The transliterations have been checked against the photo of the Mainzer Fotoarchiv. For the attestation ku-la-na-aš in KBo 2.38 obv. ii 4’ cf. ^?kulan(a)- ‘(time of) completion’ (or sim.).

[A.B.]

It is usually assumed that this word means ‘army, military camp’ (cf. Laroche 1959a:60; CLL:114; Starke 1990a:234f.; Tischler 2008a:92, cf. 97; Tischler 2016a:173, 184; Ünal 2007a:358; Ünal 2016a:290). Differently, HEG A–K:622 cautiously considers an “Orakelterminus”, and likewise with regard to the oracular attestation HED K:238 assumes a meaning ‘outcome’ (cf. below).

The meaning ‘army, military camp’ is based on two main points: (1) the parallel use of an onomastic element kuwalan- and the Sumerogram karaš ‘army’ in cuneiform texts and the logogram EXERCITUS ‘army’ in HLuwian texts, respectively; and (2) on the assumption that the Glossenkeilwort attested as kulān- or kulāna- belongs to the same word that appears in names.

With regard to the first point, Laroche 1959a:60 lists a Luwian noun “kuwatna-” ‘armée, camp’ attested in the toponym “URUku-wa-at-na” and the personal name(s) Kuwatna-ziti and karaš-lú, referring to Götze 1954a:77 and Güterbock 1956b:91 who had already suggested that karaš can be equated with the element “kuwatna-” in these names. Bossert 1958a:115–117 showed that the name karaš-lú is to be read Ku(wa)lana-ziti (suggesting a meaning ‘Heeres-Mann’) and that the cuneiform cases should be read with the sign LA (as already done by Forrer 1926c:67, No. 41 obv. i 32) instead of AT (both signs have a similar shape in some texts), which is now generally accepted (cf. Starke 1990a:234, n. 798, Tischler 2008a:97; Tischler 2016a:184, cf. HEG A–K:620). Bossert furthermore claims (n. 1) that the name of the above-mentioned city was “Kuwalana”, and that this name was used because the place was a former army camp, also considering that karaš could stand for different words, not only Hitt. tuzzi- ‘army, camp’. Beal 1992a:18 n. 65 suggests that “kuwalana- may well be a (the?) Luwian word for karaš” because it appears in names and only “few names contain Hittite words”. As for the Hieroglyphic Luwian attestation, Bossert 1958a:115 points out the HLuwian logogram “KARAŠ-l(a)-ī” (he means the logogram EXERCITUS ‘army’, cf. under the lemma HLuw. /kwalan-/, EXERCITUS.LA/I/U-‘army’), and Laroche 1959a:60 compares the names “ARMÉE-ziti/muwa” (cf. Bossert 1958a:123–125) under the lemma “kuwatna-”. This assumed connection between the HLuwian and cuneiform attestations was confirmed by Poetto 1982b:101f. with the equation of the same name attested in cuneiform as ^mKu-la-na-lú and in hieroglyphic script as EXERCITUS.VIR.ZI (cf. Starke 1990a:234). Hence, the connection between the onomastic element and the meaning ‘army’ is assured. Bossert 1958a:118, 121 (assuming a Luwian word kula-/kulana- ‘Heer’) suggests furthermore that kūla-, which is attested in inventory texts, can also be written with the Sumerogram karaš and means ‘“Heer”-Hieroglyphen’ (made of gold). This can, however, not be confirmed since kūla- is a different word and instead means ‘pendant’ or sim., see the discussion in HEG A–K:620f., cf. Beal 1988b:178.

As for the second point mentioned above, Starke 1990a:235 (and before him already Poetto 1982b:102) connects the Glossenkeilwort kulān- or kulāna- to the onomastic attestations and translates it as ‘Heer’, pointing out that it appears in a text “der sich mit militärischen Operationen befaßt” (cf. also Warbinek 2018a:78). According to obv. 8’–9’, the text KBo 13.76 includes an oracular inquiry regarding crossing a border and entering into a certain area. Starke 1990a:235 assumes that the Glossenkeilwort “wechselt hier z.T. mit dem Sumerogramm karaš(ḪI.A)”. But while it does appear in connection with karaš, it is not clear if it is actually used as an equivalent of this Sumerogram (an alternation of these words is also rejected by HED K:238), the context does not really clarify the meaning of the Glossenkeilwort (cf. below). KBo 13.76 rev. 2’–18’ shows the following (the transliteration is based on the photo of the Mainzer Fotoarchiv, in addition, the hand copy as well as the transliterations, restorations and translations of Marcuson 2016a:436–438, Torri & Barsacchi 2018a:91f., Starke 1990a:235 and Warbinek 2018a:38f., 18 have been taken into account):

^(2’)[… k]u-it a-⸢na⸣ LÚkúr sig₅[…] ^(3’)⸢ku-la⸣-na nu-⸢u-wa⸣ uš-ke-ši ku[- …] ^(4’)nu-u-wa e-eš-zi a-na LÚkúr x[...] ^(5’)LÚkúr-za ⸢gùb⸣-tar inim ninda.gur₄.ra iš-pa-d[u- ...] ^(6’)nu-kán dingirMEŠ-aš ni.^? zag pé-še-et zag-za [...]

^(2’)[… wh]ich for the enemy favourabl[e ...] ^(3’)the kulan(a), (do) you still see the ku[- ...] ^(4’)is (it^?) still there – for the enemy [...] ^(5’)the enemy (for^?) himself […] the disadvantageousness, the matter, the thick-bread (and) the libat[ion ...] ^(6’)and there for the gods, the nipasuri (=part of the liver cf. Schuol 1994a:248–251) (he^?) threw to the right side; the right [...].

^(7’)ku-la-na-aš-ma nu.sig₅-du lugal-za zag-tar a-dám-ma ^(8’)inim me-aš nu-kán ⸢dingirMEŠ-ni⸣ da-pí zi-ni ⸢sig₅⸣

^{(7’–8’)}But the (matter of the) kulan(a) shall be unfavourable. The king took the advantageousness, the blood and the matter and gave it there, for the deity the whole soul (is^?) favourable.

^(9’)[... ka]raš gi[m-an] ina kur ugu nu sig₅-ri ^(10’)[… LÚk]úr ku-la-⸢na na⸣-a-wi₅ ⸢karašḪI.A⸣-ma ^(11’)[...]x pa-iz-zi nu-uš-ma-⸢aš⸣ dingir-lu₄ ke-da-ni ⸢muKAM⸣ ^(12’)[...]x uš-ke-ši nu.še-du ^(13’)[…]x-ma-aš zag-tar sig₅ lugal-aš ⸢igiḪI.A⸣-aš ⸢igi.lá me-er⸣ [...] ^{(14’ small script)}[…] i[š-t]u LÚḫal ni. nu.gál zé-ḫi[- ...]

^(9’)[...] wh[en] [the ar]my (is) in the upper land, it is favourable ^(10’)[… the ene]my the kulan(a) not yet, but the armies ^(11’)[...] goes and (for) you/them^(pl.) the deity in this year ^(12’)[...] you keep seeing, it shall not be favourable ^(13’)[…] the advantageousness, the well-being, the eyesight/observation of the king th[ey] took […] ^{(14’ small script)}with the priest nipasuri is not present, the gallblad[der ...]

^(15’)[… kara]š-ma gim-an a-na LÚkúr (erasure) nu s[ig₅ ...] ^(16’)[... ding]ir-lu₄ ḫar-kán-na-aš ku-⸢la⸣-a-na[(-) ...] ^(17’)[... -k]e-ši an-za-a-aš-ma-kán an-da da-l[i- ...] ^(18’)⸢an-da⸣ da-⸢li⸣-u-wa-an-zi nu.sig₅-du […]

^(15’)[…] but when [the arm]y to the enemy [erasure], then it is fav[ourable …] ^(16’)[... dei]ty (to?) the dying the kulana[...] ^(17’)[...] you keep […]ing, but […] le[t …] us inside [...] ^(18’)let inside – it shall not be favourable […]

Warbinek 2018a:37, who follows Starke’s proposal, entertains the possibility that in this text “ku(wa)lana-” and karaš(ḪI.A) could have been used to differentiate the army of the Hittite king and the army of the enemy. But this cannot be proved (also Warbinek 2018a:37 admits that the historical context of the oracle inquiry remains unclear). With regard to his proposal, Starke 1990a:235 refers in particular to line 10’ [… LÚk]úr ku-la-⸢na na⸣-a-wi₅ ⸢karašḪI.A⸣-ma. However, the text just shows the co-occurrence of the Glossenkeilwort with karaš and that it appears also in nom./acc. pl. like karašḪI.A. But an actual alternation that would justify an equation with the Sumerogram karaš cannot be confirmed based on this context.

HEG A–K:622 remarks that kulān- or kulāna- might be an oracular term. HED K:238 considers a connection to the similar noun ^?kulan(a)- ‘(time of) completion’ (or sim.) and with regard to the attestation in line 7’ ku-la-na-aš-ma nu.sig₅-du suggests a meaning ‘outcome’. But such an important oracular term would probably appear more frequent in similar oracular texts and this is the only text in which the word is attested.

Although the Glossenkeilwort is not attested in writing with -wa-, it is often assumed that kulān- or kulāna- (which is frequently not separated from the onomastic element) goes back to *kuwalan- (cf. Poetto 1982b:103, Starke 1990a:234f., CLL:114, Tischler 2008a:92, 97, cf. Tischler 2016a:173, cf. 184).

It is possible that a form kulan(a)- is syncopated from a form kuwalan(a)- (cf. Poetto 1982b:103), since according to Rieken 2001a:376f. Hittite and Luwian show syncope of (u)wa > u before liquids, and hence a change *kuwalan(a)- >kulan(a)- was possible in both languages. The form *kuwalan(a)- is also attested in Luwian and as a Glossenkeilwort as part of the derivative kuwallanalli(ya)- ‘military’ (or sim.). It is possible that the Glossenkeilwort goes back to the same stem as well, but there is no compelling evidence that it must be the same word as *kuwalan-, which is e.g. attested in HLuw. /kwalan-/, EXERCITUS.LA/I/U-‘army’, hence the stem remains equally uncertain. To conclude, the meaning of this kulān- or kulāna- remains unknown due to its unknown affiliation and the fragmentary context.

[A.B.]

The word is generally assumed to be of Luwian origin, mainly because it is assumed to belong to the same word as the assuredly Luwian onomastic element ku(wa)lan(a)-, which can be connected to HLuw. /kwalan-/, EXERCITUS.LA/I/U-‘army’. If this is the case, the Glossenkeilwort kulān- or kulāna- is of Luwian origin. But as explained above, this connection remains uncertain without further evidence. Nevertheless, a Luwian origin is possible, considering e.g. the use of the gloss marker (although it does not necessarily indicate a Luwian origin, cf. Schwartz 1938a:75, 78 and Melchert 2005a:445).

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