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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · 1d

#New on #OCIANA - Perhaps one of the commonest themes in graffiti world wide are records of sexual intercourse. Ancient graffiti are no exception! This Script 2 #Dhofari txt reads:

{r}{ḥ}km w nk hls¹m
'Rḥkm and he had sex with Hls¹m'

Find more: ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · 5d

#New on #OCIANA, the 1st #Dhofari Script 2 txt is now online. It is a simple 3 generation genealogy, 𝒅̣𝒍ʿ𝒕 (𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇) ʿ𝒎𝒓 (𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇) 𝒍𝒃𝒏𝒎. These texts are written horizontally rather than vertically and have a lovely butterfly 𝒎.
Find more: ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · 8d

While #Dhofari Script 1a is well understood and its corpus is growing, the much less frequently attested Script 2 remained illusive. Here are some notes on that variant for discussion: academia.edu/144277088/Al...

To learn about #Dhofari, tune in here: open.spotify.com/episode/0zVe...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · 11d

Perhaps the matter has to do with the expectation of the linear flow of information. In Thamudic graffiti signing rock art, often times the name of the animal interrupts the genealogy - l PN h-gml h-rhwy 'By PN, the Rhwite, is this camel'.

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · 12d

My approach would be comparative. In the Near East, Nabataean, Safaitic, and Greek expressions share much in common, e.g. Nab dkyr PN, Greek μνήσθη, Arabian ḏkr. I don't know the epigraphic landscape, but perhaps thematic comparison with Punic stelae? 'vowed it' 'built it' 'offered it'...etc

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · 17d

#NEW on #OCIANA - Drought is a major theme in the #Safaitic inscriptions. This text records a drought in the spring, during 𝒅̱𝒏𝒃 𝒅̱𝒌𝒓 (ذنب ذكر) 'the tail of Aries'! And calls upon the god Yayṯeʿ to deliver from the dry land.

ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · 17d

you will be missed!

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · 18d

Happening at OSU this Friday-Sunday - #NACAL_48!

Three days of Afro-Asiatic linguistics. See the link for the program and registration.

nesa.osu.edu/events/north...

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Reposted by Safaitic

Yale Classics Library @yaleclassicslib.bsky.social · 19d

New issue of Journal of Semitic Studies Vol. 70, No. 2 (2025) academic.oup.com/jss/issue/70/2 @oxfordacademic.bsky.social @safaitic.bsky.social

Volume 70 Issue 2 | Journal of Semitic Studies | Oxford Academic

The official journal of the University of Manchester. Publishes items of interest to specialists in the main Semitic languages and in both Biblical and Islamic Studies. Extensive reviews of selected b...

academic.oup.com

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · 24d

I propose "Eteoyamnite" for the family, or however we reconstruct the Proto-Semitic word for 'south'. Perhaps we need to include into that family Hadramitic (and other non-Sabaic ASA languages) as well. Let's see...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · 24d

The first epigraphic attestation of the Modern South Arabian lexical isogloss ġayg 'man' in a #Dhofari text
'Bar-Shahm son of Mb---- has love for a man'

Amorous expressions are common in the inscriptions, as is concealing the identity of the lover with generic nouns!

ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · 27d

Lots of new grammar in the #Dhofari inscriptions, suggesting further links with the Modern South Arabian languages. The verb yġfrm 'may they pardon' shows the plural ending -m. See these two new texts just uploaded to #OCIANA

ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · 29d

By special request: A Safaitic-Greek bilingual inscription, demonstrating the transcription of interdentals and all other sorts of fun things. @bnuyaminim.bsky.social @maartenkossmann.bsky.social @lameensouag.bsky.social

Find more:
ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · Sep 9

Indeed! I'll upload a bilingual text to OCIANA today to illustrate this.

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · Sep 9

When transcribing Old Arabic, Latin = Arabic [tʰ]: wahballāt 'gift of Allāt' = Vaballathus (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaballa...)

Vaballathus - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · Sep 5

#New on #OCIANA, perhaps the first rhymed Dhofari text: an expression of weeping out of lovesickness, themes in Safaitic and in Jāhilī poetry.

'here, he has wept; in him is much weeping; because of his excess love (صبه), he is silent'

Find more: ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · Aug 8

New on #OCIANA! A remarkable text carved 'when the reign of Dahr caused difficulty', i.e., when deified death ravaged the land. This is our first attestation of Dahr as a divine title in the pre-Islamic epigraphic record! Likely an epithet of Mot 'Death', Manay 'Fate'

ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · Jul 25

Remarkable! #Dhofari inscription KMC 28 just deciphered and uploaded records the dedication of rock art to a deity called mʿl mḥmd, exalted mḥmd. The epithet mʿl was previously applied to divine sun. It seems mḥmd 'praised one' also has the same referent!

find more: ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · Jul 24

#New on #OCIANA: a #Dhofari inscription from east Oman discovered by Prof. al-Jahwari. The text seems to give the name and lineage of an individual. If this is correct, then Dhofari 𝒉𝒍 would correspond to Arabic ʾahl 'family'.

Find more: ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · Jul 19

Thank you! I have added a clarifying note. I mean the root doesn't exist but we can connect it to 'whip' (if we assume ad-hoc things :)). Thanks for pointing that out!

Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · Jul 19

Indeed, recalls ḥīrah/ḥīrtā, but somehow a less physical interpretation fits the context better for me. All impressionistic at this moment.

Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · Jul 19

An challenging #Dofari inscription, with a preliminary analysis on #OCIANA: ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

A man falls ill, after travelling by night, and comes to the present place to make an offering...I think :). Comments are very welcome at this early stage of understanding this new language.

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · Jul 16

#New in #OCIANA: A remarkable prayer in #Dhofari in praise ℎ̣𝑚𝑑 of a deity called ʾ𝑦𝑙. Is ʾ𝑦𝑙 a local pronunciation of the pan-Semitic father deity, ʾilu? The deity seems to be later in the inscription called ℎ̣𝑦 'living'!

See the commentary: ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · Jul 15

#New on #OCIANA: 3 #Dhofari texts, attesting much in the way of grammar: a preposition k-, a suffixed article, and a new verb, s³ʿl, the meaning of which is unclear.

Find more:
ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...
ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...
ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

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Safaitic @safaitic.bsky.social · Jul 14

Read about the decipherment of the #Dhofari script in @science.org: www.science.org/content/arti...

The Dhofari inscriptions are slowly being translated and inserted into #OCIANA. See this fascinating inscr. that invokes the exalted Sun, Shams, to heal a woman: ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions...

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