ṣiāḫum

Akkadian

Root
ṣ-y-ḫ
1 term

𒍢𒀀𒄷𒌝 (ṣiāḫum)

Etymology

Possibly related to Arabic ضَحِكَ (ḍaḥika) and Biblical Hebrew צָחַק (ṣɔḥaq), though difficult to explain phonetically.

Pronunciation

• (Old Babylonian) IPA^(key): /sˤiˈaː.χum/

Verb

ṣiāḫum (G, a-i, durative iṣīaḫ, perfect iṣtīḫ, preterite iṣīḫ, imperative ṣīḫ) (from Old Akkadian on)

1. to laugh, smile
2. to be alluring, to act coquettishly

Alternative forms

• ṣiāḫu (non-mimated)
• ṣâḫu

Cuneiform spellings

Phonetic
𒍢𒀀𒄷𒌝 (ṣi-a-ḫu-um) 𒍝𒀀𒄷 (ṣa-a-ḫu)

Derived terms

• ṣēḫiš (laughing)

 

References

• “ṣâḫu”, in The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago (CAD)‎^[1], Chicago: University of Chicago Oriental Institute, 1956–2011
• Black, Jeremy, George, Andrew, Postgate, Nicholas (2000) “ṣiāḫu(m)”, in A Concise Dictionary of Akkadian, 2nd corrected edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz Verlag