kandum

Akkadian

Etymology

The seemingly very old word could have been borrowed either from West Semitic, i. e. from Aramaic כַּנְדָּא (kandā, “vessel, pot; specifically for wine”), or from Sanskrit कन्दु (kandu, “pot”), which has been connected to Proto-South Dravidian *kiṇṭV- (“pot”). Aramaic כּדּא (kaddā) could have been later assimilated. The other Northwest Semitic languages, as Ugaritic 𐎋𐎄 (kd), Hebrew כַּד (kaḏ), Phoenician 𐤊𐤃 (kd), only have forms without /n/.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkan.dum/

Noun

kandum m (plural kandānu)

1. (Neo-Babylonian) a kandu jar, a container of earthenware or silver, mainly for wine

Alternative forms

• kandu (non-mimated)

Cuneiform spellings

Phonetic
𒃶𒌈 (kan-dum) 𒃶𒁺 (kan-du) (plural) 𒃶𒁕𒀀𒉡 (kan-da-a-nu)

Descendants

• → Aramaic: 𐡊𐡃 / כּדּא (kaddā), כַּנְדָּא (kandā)
  • → Arabic: كَدّ (kadd)
  • → Hebrew: כַּד (kad)
  • → Phoenician: 𐤊𐤃 (kd)
    • Punic: 𐤊𐤃 (kd)
    • → Ancient Greek: κάδος (kádos) (see there for further descendants)
• → Ancient Greek: κόνδυ (kóndu)
• →⇒ Middle Persian: 𐫐𐫗𐫅𐫇𐫃 (kndwg), 𐫞𐫗𐫅𐫇𐫃 (qndwg /⁠kandūg⁠/)
  • Persian: کندو (kandu), کندوک (kanduk)
  • → Arabic: كَنْدُوج (kandūj)
  • → Chagatai: [script needed] (kündük)
  • → Kipchak: [script needed] (kendük)
  • → Ossetian: хӕндуг (xændug), хӕндыг (xændyg)
  • → Parthian: 𐫐𐫗𐫅𐫇𐫃 (kndwg), 𐫞𐫗𐫅𐫇𐫃 (qndwg /⁠kandūg⁠/)
    • → Old Armenian: քանդուկ (kʻanduk)
  • → Classical Syriac: ܟܱܢܕܘܩܳܐ (kandūqā)
• → Ugaritic: 𐎋𐎄 (kd)

Further reading

• “kandu”, in The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago (CAD)‎^[2], volume 8, K, Chicago: University of Chicago Oriental Institute, 1971, pages 148–149
• Zimmern, Heinrich (1915), Akkadische Fremdwörter als Beweis für babylonischen Kultureinfluss (in German), Leipzig: A. Edelmann, page 33