Meroitic
1
9.9
Relating to the ancient kingdom of Meroë and its people, language, or writing
- adjective
- /mɛˈroʊɪtɪk/
:
meroítico
- Linguists study Meroitic to better understand the history and evolution of languages in ancient Africa.
- Meroitic script
Examples
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Material recovered from the later Napatan and Meroitic periods is sparser.
Academic text (2006) -
The Meroitic script features unique characters that represent the sounds of the ancient Nubian language.
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Archaeologists discovered artifacts adorned with Meroitic inscriptions, revealing insights into the culture of the ancient kingdom.
Surface Forms
Meroitic positive
Morphology
Meroitic = Meroë (transparent) = Meroe + itic
Formed by the productive adjectival suffix '-itic' attached to the place name Meroë, so the relation to the place is directly inferable.
Etymology
Meroitic comes from the ancient city name Meroë, the capital of a kingdom in Nubia in what is now Sudan. It literally means 'from Meroë', so calling something Meroitic means it belongs to the people, language, or script of that old kingdom.