Akkadian Influence on English

(September 27, 2023, Updated December 27, 2024) Many English words come from Akkadian as does the grammatical structures of "ongoing" or "continuous" tense and the  "do support" (Akkadian Y letter start) sentence constructions. (For a description of the problem see the section entitled "Supposed Celtic Syntax in English" at  https://www.arrantpedantry.com/2014/12/01/celtic-and-the-history-of-the-english-language/

The earliest English words came from both Latin and Old Norse/German. Latin speakers acquired their Akkadian words from their northern Akkadian speaking neighbors, the Etruscans. Many Old Norse words also derive from Etruscan whose writing spread north and ended up as the Elder Futhark Runes. This writing only ceased around by 500 CE. Significantly, Akkadian has never been considered as a word source in European etymological studies until now because no one imagined such a connection existed.  These Akkadian source words  include:

1. Anger: Akkadian agȗ meaning "anger" via Old Norse angra and Old English enge meaning some "narrowly focused emotions"

2. Atlantis, Atlantic: Akkadian phrase A.TL.NT meaning "That wind-manifested mound" via Latin atlanticus and Greek atlantikos. In Plato's Timaeus (360 BCE) which started the legend of Atlantis it is Ἀτλαντὶς νῆσος or "Atlantis Nesos" or "Atlantis the distant" where "nesu" is an Akkadian word meaning "distant." 

3. Bad: Akkadian bādu meaning “evening.” In Akkadian this word is also an epithet for the night time astrological powers of fate which usually bring “bad” events. It has no apparent relatives in other languages outside of English and appears in English as soon as English started being written during the 1200s.

4. Celestial: Akkadian šalu, šelû, sala’u meaning most generally the goddess "Selu/Selene," specifically the "Astrological-Selu/Selene" and "spiritual-places." From Old French celestial (celestial, heavenly, sky-blue), from Latin caelestis (heavenly, pertaining to the sky), and caelum (heaven, sky; abode of the gods) which is of uncertain origin. The Latin word is the source of the usual word for "sky" in most of the Romance languages, such as French ciel, Spanish cielo, Italian cielo, Portuguese céu. It is the source of ceiling in English as well.

5. Cinder: Akkadian phrase ŠN.TR šenû.taru meaning "ooze of transformation" as in what oozes out during a fire so this would also include smoke. Via Old English sinder "dross of iron, slag," Old Norse sindr, Middle Low German and Middle Dutch sinder, Dutch sintel, Old High German sintar, German Sinter). Conflated the Mediterranean lineage's Latin  cinerem (nominative cinis) "ashes," and Greek konis "dust." (Latin /c/ was initially pronounced more like a /k/) and later French cendre meaning "ashes," 

6. Dipper, Big Dipper [Akkadian dappu, dippu]  meaning “dip” or “dipper” as a ladle to get at a cistern of water.  This includes getting at the divine cistern as the source of fertility fluids from god Alu. This Alu connection makes it the source of the constellation “Big Dipper.” Comes to modern English via Old English dyppan "to plunge or immerse temporarily in water, to baptize by immersion," Old Norse deypa "to dip," Old Frisian depa, Dutch dopen, German taufen, Gothic daupjan "to baptize") 

7. Divine: Akkadian di’u meaning "divine" as in all the spiritual powers behind all the change on earth via Latin divus "of a god”

8. Educate: Akkadian phrase ED.K or edu.ku meaning "motivate involvement." Source of the word “educate” via Latin educare where the last letters are linguistic endings.

9. Elevate: Akkadian elȗ meaning "elevated powers" via Latin elevare

10. Emotion: Akkadian imu meaning "emotion powers" via Latin emovere

11. Energy: Akkadian gi meaning "emotional energy" via Greek energeia and late Latin energia. Energy is the emotional source of motion as opposed to the night sky's motion powers (fate from planets, all other kinds from dark new moon god Su). This is manifested on earth as "breath" (night sky manifestations are "winds" like the "winds of fate.") The word “Work” (wer) is Indo-European. The word “energy” is a combination of Akkadian enu meaning reassign and gi meaning “energy.” Gi is linguistically the same as the eastern "Chi" indicating this word goes back to the hunter-gatherers.

12. Game, Gamete: Akkadian phrase Gu.Mu meaning energizing the fertility-fluids. This phrase always had something to do with fun and sex. From Greek gamos "marriage," gamete "a wife," gametes "a husband, gamein "to take to wife, to marry. Also the seventh month of the ancient Attic calendar (corresponding to late January and early February) was Gamelion, "Month of Marriages." By 1200 CE Old English gamen "joy, fun; game, amusement," Old Norse gaman "game, sport; pleasure, amusement," Old Saxon gaman, Old High German gaman "sport, merriment," Danish gamen, Swedish gamman "merriment"), Gothic gaman "participation, communion."

13. Gas: [Akkadian gisȗ, gasu] mealning blessing  or spiritual-gift as in an especially pure breath or spirit. First used by Flemish chemist J.B. van Helmont (1577-1644) who defined it as: Hunc spiritum, incognitum hactenus, novo nomine gas voco ("This vapor, hitherto unknown, I call by a new name, 'gas.'") [Helmont, Ortus Medicinae] 

14. Good: Akkadian banû meaning "good" via Latin bonus, source of Romance language’s bueno and bien meaning "good."

15. Hazing: Akkadian ḥazu meaning “sigh” or “to make sigh.” Traditional  etymology has no information on this word.

16. Heal: Akkadian ḫelû meaning physical healing from the ancient life class of powers (not the emotion/motion class). It comes to English via Old Norse heila and Old Frisian hela. It is also an epithet for the sun god Hu which became “Helios” in Greek. Compare to Akkadian ASu which is celestial/astrological healing and MaGu which is magical or spiritual/emotional healing.

17. Hit, Join: Akkadian ḥittu via Old English hyttan, hittan and Old Norse hitta. Originally having the broad meaning of "coming together" either socially or physically. An epithet which gave the Hittites their name. Also an epithet for the lintel of a doorway which is a head hitter.

18. Hollow, Hallow: Akkadian phrase Hu'u-Liwa meaning "astrological-owl love." These owls were omens of change because they influence the flow rate of life-powers through the life network. This owl connection is seen in Middle English of the late 1300's in the word holowen  meaning "to make hollow" because owls live in hollowed out tree trunks. The date of Oct. 31 is described as alle halwe eue or all hallow's eve by c. 1300 as in it was an omened day of change. "Hallow" became associated with "good omens" or "holy omens." Consequently the Christian church tried to coopt Halloween by associating it with the honoring holy persons or saints. Hallow-day for "All-Saints Day" is from 1590s.

19. Horoscope: Akkadian ḫarû means "liver" as one of the motion change power sources. These sources were the astrological night sky and inner emotions (liver). This is reflected in Latin horoscopum/horoscopus and Greek hōroskopos meaning "night-sky.vision-diviner" and Haruspicy meaning "liver.aroma-diviner."

20. Hound: Akkadian ḥanṭu, ḥamṭu meaning “quick, urgent-one” via Old Norse/Germanic conversion of /ṭ/ to /d/ as Old Saxon and Old Frisian hund, Old High German hunt, Old Norse hund.

21. Howl: Akkadian ḫawȗ meaning “to howl.” Earliest record related to English is 13th century Germanic houlen.

22. Juniper: Akkadian phrase Inu.Paru via Latin word for juniper: iuniperus. In Akkadian it means "Moon-Eye's sweat" where "moon-Eye" is an epithet for the full moon god Su who was the source of astrological motion powers, that is, all motion powers not generated by emotions. 

23. Lack: Akkadian la, lu via Old Norse lakr meaning “lacking”

24. Lackey: Akkadian lakȗ meaning “emotionally-meek, weak-willed.” In traditional etymology this word’s origin is unknown. Originally a compound Akkadian word Lu.Ku meaning “Involving lack.” 

25. Lid: Akkadian lâṭu, līṭu, lētu meaning “lid” via Old English hlid meaning "covering, opening, gate," from Proto-Germanic *hlidan "a cover," literally "that which bends over" (source also of Old Norse hlið "gate, gap," Swedish lid "gate," Old French hlid, Middle Dutch lit, Dutch lid, Old High German hlit "lid, cover")

26. Lay, Ley, Ley Line: Akkadian la’u, le’ȗ, lēyu meaning “lay, layout” and "plan" as in to check out the “lay of the land” which is to check out its powers. It comes from Old English leah "open field, meadow, piece of untilled grassy ground," earlier læch, preserved in place names, from Proto-Germanic *lauhaz (source also of Old High German loh "clearing," and probably also Flemish -loo, which forms the second element in Waterloo). 

27.  Liberty, Lord: Akkadian  lābu, lebu meaning lord, landlord, lordship, liberty (noun) as in to have liberty oneself and lord over others. The lion was the archetypal example of this power. Its howling was the prime example of “lording over” something. From Old French liberte "freedom, liberty, free will" via Latin libertatem (nominative libertas) "civil or political freedom, condition of a free man; absence of restraint; permission," from liber meaning "free." 

28. Lipid: Akkadian lēpu, līpu meaning “fat-of-the land.” Via Greek lipos meaning "fat" 

29. Lute: Akkadian luṭu (luth). Stringed musical instrument also meaning harmony. Traditional etymology only goes back to 1200’s Old French lut, leut (Modern luth)

30. Mold, Made (Make): Akaddian medû, madû, mudû meaning “molder” and maker. The word “Mold” derives from Old French modle which in turn derives from Latin modulum  meaning ”model” as in “the reference against which things are measured."  The words “Made” and “Make” derive from Old English macod (Akkadian sourced) and macian (Indo-European sourced). Other examples are Old Saxon makon, Old Frisian makia "to build, make," Middle Dutch and Dutch maken, and German machen. 

31. Magic: Akkadian mugu and magu meaning “magic” via Latin magus meaning “magical/emotional/spiritual healer.”

32. Man: Akkadian mȃnu meaning "supporter" via  from Old English man, Proto-Germanic *mann and Old Frisian mon. This word is also considered sourced from proto-Indo-European but that word has an MZ root as evidenced from Old Church Slavonic mozi and Russian muzh.

33. Mobilize: Akkadian mūbû meaning “mobilize” via Latin mobilis

34. Mother, Mom, Ma: Akkadian ma meaning “fertility fluid provider.” "Mother" is a classic Indo-European word being found in Latin as māter, Greek mētēr, Sanskrit matar, Old Norse moðir. Yet all these are similar to Akkadian "ma." This similarity indicates that this word goes back farther then even Akkadian and Proto-Indo-European.

35. Muse: Akkadian mušu meaning "night powers" is the source of the English word "muse" via Old French "muser" from the 1100's CE meaning "to ponder, dream, wonder; loiter, waste time."

36. Naked: Akkadian nēku, niku  meaning illicit sex via Old English nacod, Old Frisian nakad, Middle Dutch naket, German nackt, Old Norse nökkviðr, Old Irish nocht, Welsh noeth. Not to be confused with "Nude" having a /d/ or /g/ which is Indo-European as evidenced by Old Church Slavonic nagu and Russian nagoi

37. Nature-Gifts, Nature: Akkadian nātu, naṭû, nêtu, nūtu. An prime example of nature's gift is a “nut” which also derives from this word. From Old English hnutu, from Proto-Germanic *hnut, and from Latin natus meaning "birth." “Nature” from Akkadian naṭû (having a theta) also has the broader meaning represented by Latin natura which includes  a non-divine inherent character, constitution, and quality.

38. Pig: Akkadian pegu, pigu meaning scavenger. Pigs are characterized by their destructive scavenging. Existing etymology knowledge From Middle English pigge "a young pig" (mid-13c., late 12c. as a surname), probably from Old English *picg, found in compounds, https://www.etymonline.com/word/pig

39. Pit: Akkadian patu, pitu meaning "pit." This is an epithet for both "grave" and "wellspring." The comes via Old English pytt (Kentish *pet) meaning "natural or man-made depression in the ground, water hole, well; grave," from Proto-Germanic *putt- "pool, puddle" (source also of Old Frisian pet, Old Saxon putti, Old Norse pyttr, Middle Dutch putte, Dutch put, Old High German pfuzza, German Pfütze "pool, puddle"), an early borrowing from Latin puteus meaning "well, pit, shaft."

40. Pray: Akkadian phrase PaRu-AYu meaning "To emotionally-coerce Ayu" in which Ayu is the goddess who directs the life powers to earth through the life network. Found in 1400's English as preien, meaning "to ask earnestly, beg (someone). This is actually the Akkadian phrase "To emotionally-coerce Ayu's reassignments" as in reassigning the network connections. Latin has precari meaning "to ask earnestly, beg, entreat." This is the Akkadian phrase "To emotionally-coerce involvement with the controllers (Su, Selene, Kate/Hekate)

41. Query, Inquire, Quarry: Akkadian qarȗ, qariu, qerȗ meaning "query, inquire,  astrologer, astrology-divinations, fate" via Latin quaere “meaning to ask, to seek.” This is a diviner of fate-driving astrological motion powers as opposed to a diviner of inner emotion powers. The word “inquire” is from N.QR meaning “revelations of a query.” The two words were conflated around late Roman times.

42. Quit: Akkadian qatû meaning "to quite or to end" via Latin quietus meaning to end or be free of debt.

43. Remonstrate: Akkadian ramû, remû meaning “emotional release” via Latin remonstrare meaning "to emotionally demonstrate"

44. Sack: Akkadian saku meaning “cloth pounder” or “cloth sacker” which was a process to fluff and fill out cloth. From Latin saccus and secondarily Old Norse sekkr.

45. Sad: Akkadian sādu, sêdu means "to care about." If you have to care about someone then something is wrong with them. The other sad meaning comes from Akkadian ṣadû, ṣâdu meaning "to feast" having the following lineage: Old English sæd "sated, full, having had one's fill (of food, drink, fighting, etc.), Old Norse saðr, Middle Dutch sat, Dutch zad, Old High German sat, German satt, Gothic saþs "satiated, sated, full."

46. Same: Akkadian ša, še, ši meaning “to be the same” via Old Norse samr

47. Sin: Akkadian ṣinu, ṣēnu meaning “to sin” via the Greek translation of the Bible (Septuagint)

48. Size: [Akkadian šizu] meaning size and measurements via Celtic. First found in Old English around 1300 and just prior to that in Old French as sise.

49. Summer:  Akkadian ṣummu meaning “dehydration” and "dehydration time" via Old English sumor, Old Saxon, Old Norse, Old High German sumar, Old Frisian sumur, Old Irish sam. 

50. Super: Akkadian šūpu, šāpu meaning “to amplify” and ”to make super” via Latin prefix super- which is analogous to Greek hyper-

51. Tease: Akkadian taṣû meaning “to tease or push apart” via Old English tæsan "pluck, pull, tear; pull apart, comb" (fibers of wool, flax, etc.) and from Proto-Germanic *taisijan. Originally, to "tease" someone was to straighten them out.

52. Tit: Akkadian tittu meaning "fruit" and "tit" via Proto-Germanic *titta and Old English titt. 

53. Turn, Trans: Akkadian târu meaning “to turn into” and “to trans” (to change the state of something):  via Latin tornare meaning “turn on a lathe,” Greek tornus meaning “lathe,” and Latin trans meaning “change state” as in the words transform and transport.

54. Ugly: Akkadian ugu meaning “ugly” as in a “frightful appearance” enough to cause extreme fear as in “frightened to death” via Old Norse uggligr meaning "dreadful, fearful," and from uggr meaning "fear, apprehension, dread." Its meaning was softened to "very unpleasant to look at" during the late 1300’s.

(April 1, 2023)

1. 279 CE - Romans begin retreat from the Rhine delta lands

2. 400 CE - Land mostly depopulated

3. 500 CE - Repopulation by people defined as Anglo-Saxon coming from coastal Denmark, Germany, and possibly Norway.  Word "Angle" seems to come from the Akkadian phrase A.NaG meaning "those of the coast."

4. 670 CE - Pagan Frisian kingdom ruled by kings Aldgils and Redbad enters the Christian historical record when they come into conflict with the Christian Frankish kingdom which is trying to expand northwards. This is the beginning of the Northern Christian Pagan War.

5. 719 CE - Death of king Redbad. Franks conquer most of Frisia and start forcible Christian conversions. This is when Elder Futhark ceases to be written in favor Younger Futhark which is in their native language (Earliest Old Frisian/Norse/German)

6. 754 CE - Death of Saint Boniface after he cut down a Druid sacred oak called Thunar's Oak. This was an oak representing the boundary crossing power of the hermaphrodite deity Thu or more specifically the magical motion "powers of Thu" written as Thunu.

7. 805 CE - Christian conquest complete. Conquerors record of existing law codes in the Lex Frisionum dated to 800 CE.

8. 810 CE - First Viking raids which at first seems to be a continuation of the Pagan/Christian religious war.

9. 920 CE - Christianity victorious

10. 1100 CE - Local monks begin writing in Latin