bēlum

Akkadian

Etymology

From Proto-Semitic *baʕl-. Cognate with Arabic بَعْل (baʕl, “lord”) and Biblical Hebrew בַּעַל (báʕal, “master”).

Pronunciation

• (Old Babylonian) IPA^(key): /ˈbeː.lum/

Noun

bēlum m (construct state bēl or bēli, plural bēlū, feminine bēltum) (from Old Akkadian on)

1. lord
   • 1755–1750 BCE, King Hammurabi of Babylon, translated by CDLI, Hammurabi Code‎^[1], The Louvre, Prologue, lines 3-5:

     𒀭𒂗𒆤 𒁁𒂖 𒊭𒈨𒂊 𒅇 𒅕𒍢𒁴

     [Enlil bēl šamê u erṣetim]

     ^den-lil₂ be-el ša-me-e u₃ er-ṣe-tim

     Enlil, lord of heaven and earth

2. proprietor, owner

   𒁁𒂖 𒀠𒁉𒉎 𒈤𒊒𒌑𒌝

   [bēl alpim maḫrûm]

   be-el al-pi₂-im maḫ-ru-u₂-um

   the former owner of the ox

3. Bel, a Babylonian deity related to the Semitic Baal
4. An epithet of other deities, particularly Marduk

Alternative forms

• bēlu (non-mimated)

Cuneiform spellings

Logograms	Phonetic
𒂗 (EN) (rare) 𒀭𒂗 (dEN) 𒌋 (UMUN)	𒁁𒇻𒌝 (be-lu-um) 𒁁𒂊𒈝 (be-e-lum) 𒁁𒈝 (be-lum) 𒁁𒂊𒇻 (be-e-lu) 𒁁𒇻 (be-lu)

Related terms

• bēl awātim
• bēl aššatim
• bēl dīnim
• bēl lā ilim
• bēl niqîm
• bēl pīḫatim/pāḫatim
• bēl ḫubullim

Descendants

• → Ancient Greek: Βῆλος (Bêlos)
• → Classical Mandaic: ࡁࡉࡋ (/⁠bīl⁠/)
• → Classical Syriac: ܒܹܝܠ (/⁠bēl⁠/, “Bel, Jupiter, tin”)
• → Old Armenian: Բէլ (Bēl)

References

• “bēlu”, in The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago (CAD)‎^[2], Chicago: University of Chicago Oriental Institute, 1956–2011
• Black, Jeremy, George, Andrew, Postgate, Nicholas (2000) “bēlu(m)”, in A Concise Dictionary of Akkadian, 2nd corrected edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, via the electronic Babylonian Library