Euphrat und Tigris im Alten Orient

This volume is a revised Ph.D. dissertation submitted to Leipzig University in 2017 and guided by Michael P. Streck. It seeks to write a “river history,” focusing on the use of the names Idigna/Idiglat (“Tigris”) and Buranuna/Purattu (“Euphrates”) in cuneiform literature. Some of the questions Blaschke sought to answer touch on etymology, chronology (Which genres, periods, and regions refer to the river the most?), geography (Is it possible to deduce information about the geography of the region by reading the texts?), mental mapping (Which topics did people associate with these river names?), and the self-understanding of people living in Mesopotamia (see p. 6).The massive volume contains 12 chapters, the longest of which deals with the geographical description of the Euphrates and Tigris (ch. 5, pp. 227–411), while the shortest lists (in German thoroughness) 13 short passages from texts that were too fragmentary or unclear to be used in the research (ch. 11, pp. 581–82).Chapter 1 focuses on the methodology and structure of the study (pp. 1–8). Blaschke then describes in a very detailed manner the physical geography of the river system apart from historical questions, including the watercourse of the Tigris and Euphrates, geological conditions, and water levels (pp. 9–83). She notices the gradual westward move of the riverbed of the Euphrates, possibly due to the interaction of natural and human forces shaping the environment. Chapter 3 discusses the ANE names of the Euphrates and Tigris in different languages and different writing systems (syllabic and logographic; pp. 85–167). Blaschke also includes in this chapter a robust discussion of the etymology of the names. Chapter 4 offers a review of the occurrences of the two river names in ANE texts (pp. 169–225). This chapter is a gold mine of information for researchers looking at the occurrences of both the Euphrates and Tigris in ANE texts as it contains tables, organized by canonical texts (subdivided into different genres and time periods) and monumental texts (organized historically). Chapter 5, the most extensive chapter in the volume (pp. 227–411), contains a summary of all the relevant geographical information about the Euphrates and Tigris that can be gleaned from the cuneiform texts. It has information regarding the origins of the rivers, their sources, their watercourses, the different names and characteristics of the lands touching the rivers, their fauna and flora, other rivers and canals flowing into them, and geographical descriptions of each of their subsections. The chapter contains two appendixes, listing the names of settlements located near the rivers and the type of fields adjacent to the rivers.Chapter 6 focuses on river crossings and the Euphrates and Tigris as borders (pp. 413–46). The texts suggest that the rivers were clearly understood as borders—between individuals and communities, but the documents never seem to refer to water rights per se (p. 442). Very often (and also due to the seasonal changes of the rivers), these borders were more “fluid” (in the true sense of the word and also in terms of limiting ownership). Chapter 7 discusses the use of the two rivers as means of transport (pp. 447–66), which is, surprisingly, not well documented in the texts. Clearly, both rivers functioned as means of communication between large centers of ancient civilizations, even though this seems to have been presupposed and not always explicitly mentioned in the texts. The list of goods and means of river travel appear in a limited way in the cuneiform record. Chapter 8 highlights the function of both rivers as water sources (pp. 467–536). This represented an important function and is well documented in the texts. Blaschke focuses on the irrigation systems (including canals) associated with the rivers, seasonal flooding that brought fertile soil and wealth and prosperity, and the observations regarding lower and higher water levels.Chapter 9 examines the function of the river as part of ritual activity (pp. 537–54), including recipes for the production of purifying river water, purification rites, funerary rites, and other, nondescript rituals. Chapter 10 continues in the sphere of religion and studies the deification of the rivers (pp. 555–80). Blaschke suggests that, in contrast to later Greek and Roman texts, the rivers were never personified as deities, even though one can see that they were considered numinous (p. 578). Following a brief chapter listing unclear texts (pp. 581–82), ch. 12 offers a concise comparison with the perception of rivers in other ANE cultures (pp. 583–92), followed by a summary of the results (pp. 593–99). Blaschke concludes that the inhabitants of Mesopotamia never really considered themselves part of a cohesive region located between the two important sources of water. There never existed a term such as “Mesopotamia” or Zweistromland in the cuneiform literature (p. 598). Both the Euphrates and Tigris were considered the prototypes of rivers in the ANE, as they combined all kinds of relevant characteristics (p. 599)The volume ends with a registry of all the texts referenced in the volume (including also their publication information and the pages where they were referenced; cf. pp. 601–35), a bibliography (pp. 637–70), and several indexes (pp. 671–75).Blaschke’s work connects a number of disciplines. Students interested in ancient geography and topography, as well as cuneiform specialists, will find a massive amount of important information. The sheer quantity of data that the author tackled makes this a must-read volume for anyone interested in the geography and history of a region of human civilization that was so significant within the flow of historical developments. Those ancient (and often anonymous) authors who wrote these texts representing many different literary genres were aware of their connection to the land, the river(s), and the larger rhythms of life marked by water levels and seasonal changes. Modern readers will do well to consider this link between the natural world and human civilization as we are faced more and more with the results of climate change

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