Akkadian

or Ac·ca·di·an

[ uh-key-dee-uhn, uh-kah- ]

noun

1. the eastern Semitic language, now extinct, of Assyria and Babylonia, written with a cuneiform script.
2. one of the Akkadian people.
3. Obsolete. Sumerian.

adjective

1. of or belonging to Akkad.
2. of or relating to the eastern Semitic language called Akkadian.
3. Obsolete. Sumerian.

Akkadian

/ əˈkædɪən; əˈkeɪ- /

noun

1. a member of an ancient Semitic people who lived in central Mesopotamia in the third millennium bc
2. the extinct language of this people, belonging to the E Semitic subfamily of the Afro-Asiatic family

adjective

1. of or relating to this people or their language

Word History and Origins

Origin of Akkadian¹

First recorded in 1850–55; Akkad + -ian

Example Sentences

It now receives hundreds of queries per week, and similar efforts are being applied to languages from Korean to Akkadian, which was used in ancient Mesopotamia.

From Scientific American

Historians and linguists generally agree that Sumerian, Akkadian and Egyptian are the oldest languages with a clear written record.

From Scientific American

And then shortly after that, we also found some passages written in an ancient Semitic language called Akkadian that is related to Hebrew and Arabic today.

From Scientific American

Enheduanna lived three centuries after Puabi, following the ascendence of the Akkadians, who united speakers of the Sumerian and Akkadian languages.

From New York Times

Psychologist Tim Lomas created an interactive lexicography of emotion words in languages from Akkadian to Zulu, positing that expanded sentimental vocabularies enrich our inner lives.

From Washington Post