“ARGENTUM?”(-)˹(m)u?˺-zi-x-za-wa/i

The phonological interpretation of this lexeme remains out of grasp for several reasons. Thus, the reading of the first two signs, i.e. the logogram ARGENTUM and the syllabic sign <mu>, is uncertain. In the case of the logogram, this is due to an unusual sign form, whereas the following sign can be read <mu> only tentatively because it is mostly broken off (Hawkins 2000a:374). In addition to that, the sign after <zi>, here symbolised by <x>, seems to be perfectly preserved, but has yet to be identified, its shape bearing no resemblance to any of the known signs. Moreover, it cannot be ascertained if the logogram ARGENTUM should be read as a determinative or as part of the phonological structure of the word. Finally, though analysed as the final syllable of the word here, <wa/i> may in fact be the demarcational clitic /=wa/ and the following word <wa/i-na> not the start of another clause, but the adverb /wan/ ‘hither’. However, the context is too fragmented to permit giving preference to either analysis over the other.

[AH.B.]