Sumerian may be the oldest language to survive from antiquity, with clay tablets dating as far back as 3200BC. It died out as a spoken language by the end of the third millennium BC, but lived on as a literary language well into the classical era. It's written in cuneiform — wedge-shaped signs pressed into moist clay with a reed stylus — and the surviving texts range from royal inscriptions and administrative and legal records to a substantial literature of epic poetry, myths, hymns and laments.
Both options cover the same course content — the difference is how and when you learn.
Single session
Book individual 1-hour sessions with Nigel. No commitment — start whenever you're ready.
$40 / session
Book a sessionBundle — best value
Save with 4 sessions. Use them however you like — one topic or several.
$140 / 4 sessions
Book a bundleInterested in a group class? Classes of up to 5 students can become available with a minimum of two students — students have access to 8 group classes for the price of 4 one-on-one sessions. Tick the group class option in the booking form to let Nigel know.
What you'll learn
Read and understand basic cuneiform signs
Understand the structure of the Sumerian language — a language isolate unlike any other
Read short Sumerian texts with guidance
Understand the history and development of cuneiform writing
Have an insight into the world of ancient Mesopotamia and its extraordinary literature
Who this course is for
You want to engage with the very origins of writing and recorded human thought
You're interested in ancient Mesopotamia, the Epic of Gilgamesh or the ancient Near East
You want to learn the oldest written language available — a skill almost no one in the world has
You're interested in comparing ancient writing systems from across the world
Your teacher
Nigel spent seven years attending degree-level classes across every branch of the Indo-European language family. He now teaches from Auckland to students worldwide via Microsoft Teams.
Read Nigel's full story →You might also enjoy
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