ܓܠܓܡܫ

Assyrian Neo-Aramaic

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Akkadian 𒀭𒄑 (/⁠Gilgameš⁠/), from Sumerian 𒀭𒄑𒉋𒂵𒎌 (^dgilgameš₂ /⁠Gilgameš⁠/, “Gilgameš”, literally “the ancestral hero”). Native folk etymology explains this as ܓܸܠܕ (gild, “skin of”) +‎ ܓܵܡܘܿܫܵܐ (gāmōšā, “buffalo bull”); compare Classical Syriac ܓܠܝܓܡܘܣ (glīgmōs), Arabic جِلْجَامِش (jiljāmiš) and Hebrew גִּלְגָּמֶשׁ (gīlgámēš).

Pronunciation

• (Standard) IPA^(key): [ɡɪl.ɡɑːmɪ.ʃ]

Proper noun

ܓܸܠܓܵܡܝܼܫ • (gilgāmīš) f

1. Gilgamesh (legendary king of Uruk)
2. a male given name

Derived terms

• ܗܘܼܡܵܣܵܐ ܕܓܸܠܓܵܡܸܫ (hummāsā dgilgāmiš, “the epic of Gilgamesh”)