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Did the Epic of Gilgamesh exist in Sumerian?

Koo Won Kim 1

1전주대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

Among the literary works of ancient Mesopotamia, the Epic of Gilgamesh is the one whose formative history is best traced. The earliest known ‘later’ or ‘canonical’ version dates from the 7th century BC, but its prototype can be traced back to the Old Babylonian period. So how did the Old Babylonian version of the Epic of Gilgamesh come to be written? Even before Sumerian manuscripts of the Epic of Gilgamesh were known, scholars believed that its origins could be traced back to Sumerian times. In fact, the publication of Sumerian fragments of the Epic of Gilgamesh in the early 20th century spurred research into the relationship between the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Sumerian fragments. While many scholars agree that the Sumerian fragments serve as the "source material" for the Akkadian epic, they are skeptical about the existence of a Sumerian epic that utilizes the Sumerian poems of Gilgamesh. This paper aims to critically examine that consensus and explore the possibility of the existence of a Sumerian version of the Epic of Gilgamesh. To this end, I will present an alternative interpretation of the evidence presented by scholars who deny the existence of the Sumerian epic, as well as Bing's research on the traces of the Sumerian epic hidden within the Gilgamesh epic. For example, the hymnic ending, which has been presented as evidence for the independence of the Sumerian fragment, points to the end of an oral performance and does not negate the possibility that the story is part of a larger narrative. Also, according to Bing, the theological and thematic contradictions in the Gilgamesh epic hint at traces of the Sumerian epic. The above discussion suggests that it is possible that Sumerian epics existed, at least in oral form, during the Third Dynasty of Uruk. While the oral origins of Sumerian literature are debatable, it is clear that the Sumerian epics were transmitted through interaction with the oral tradition, so it is reasonable to assume the existence of a Sumerian epic, at least in an oral form, underlying Sumerian poems featuring Gilgamesh.

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* References for papers published after 2024 are currently being built.

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