uwalla

The only attestation of the word appears in a NS letter.

[E.R.]

adverb (?)

ú-wa-al-la

KUB 40.1 rev.! 7

(CTH 203, NS)

The attestation follows HEG U-Z:173f. (not yet in Laroche 1959a or CLL). The classification as an adverb is only provisional.

[A.B.] [E.R.]

Checked against the photographs in the Mainzer Fotoarchiv and the 3D-scan of the Mainzer 3D-Archiv.

[A.B.] [E.R.]

The passage containing uwalla is part of a self-justification of a Hittite official toward the king. He claims not to have bemoaned his situation rashly, but to have a real reason for his worries: ⁽⁷⁾... [kiš-šu-w]a^?-an-mu zi-ni a-ra-an kiš-šu-an-mu ú-wa-al-la ⁽⁸⁾[                  ] kiš-šu-wa-an ḫa-at-re-eš-kán-zi ú-ul-⸢at^?⸣ úš-tar “... [Suc]h (a thing) has arisen in my mind/soul. Such (a thing) uwalla [...] Such a thing they are writing. Is it not death?” (KUB 40.1 rev.^! 7f., after Hoffner 2009a:359; see also Hagenbuchner 1989a:69, 71, Marizza 2009a:151, HEG U-Z:173f., all without attempt to translate uwalla). The participle a-ra-an (line 7) is interpreted as belonging to arāi-/i(ya)-^(ḫi) ‘to rise’ (instead of ar- ‘(med.) to stand’, ar-^(ḫi) ‘to arrive’), which makes sense in view of other contexts mentioning the rise of evils such as the enemy, wind, locusts, anger, and slander. The form occurs also ibid. 6 as a-ra-a-an. Though not decisive, the plene spelling offers further evidence. If correct, nothing precludes that uwalla represents an adverb with a similar meaning modifying a verb broken off in the beginning of line 8, e.g. ‘in high, risen manner’, and therefore belongs to the word family derived from the root wall- ‘raise’ (see CLuw. walli-^(ti)). Still, one must await more positive evidence.Outdated Kühne 1972a:239 n. 10 linking uwalla to walant- ‘dead’ in view of úš-tar in the same line (considered possible also in HEG U-Z:173f.). However, Melchert (pers. comm.) points out that the spelling with geminate -ll- precludes any etymological relationship between the two.

[E.R.]

The provisional analysis as an adverb implies a petrified dat./loc. sg. or nom./acc. pl. n. of an unattested noun *uwalla- c. ‘highness’ or more likely an adjective *uwalla/i- ‘high’, but see under Meaning for the limited evidence.

[E.R.]

uwalla- appears in the lists of Luwianisms by Melchert 2005a:451 and van den Hout 2006a:203. It is also assumed to be of Luwian origin by Marizza 2009a:151 n. Since the word is marked by gloss wedges and at least allows a semantic interpretation based on the known Luwian lexicon, a Luwian origin is more probable than not.

[A.B.] [E.R.]