Alexander Pruß, Thomas Richter, Doris Prechel und Dirk Wicke (Hrsg.) unter Mitwirkung von Michael Würz
Kultur – Kontakt – Kultur. Beiträge anlässlich der 66. Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale in Frankfurt/Main und Mainz, 25.–29. Juli 2022. dubsar 35. Münster. 2025
594 pages
ISBN 978-3-96327-288-2 (hardcover book), 130 €
ISBN 978-3-96327-289-9 (e-book)
Originally scheduled for 2020 at the Universities of Frankfurt and Mainz, the 66th Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale – following a hiatus caused by the pandemic – took place in Mainz in July 2022 under the title “Kultur | Kontakt | Kultur”. The present volume assembles 34 articles derived from the papers presented at the conference. As is well known, the Ancient Near East has at all times been an “open space” where the paths of numerous groups have intersected throughout the ages. Natural routes of communication channeled movement, while geographically favorable zones characterized the regions where different population groups encountered one another. Cultural contact is multifaceted and can leave diverse traces in material culture, social practices, societal structures, and—naturally—in language. Until now, topics such as trade, migration, nomadism, and many others have generally been discussed in the field of Ancient Near Eastern studies as separate phenomena. Conversely, the underlying mechanisms of cultural contact and “contact culture” have rarely been examined and their full scope remains far from being fully explored—despite the clear fact that a culture acquires its distinct contours only through contact with “the Other” and with other cultures. The conference focused not only on interregional encounters; intracultural contacts—such as those between marginalized social groups and established communities—were also addressed in the presentations, as reflected in the written and material records.
Full details and a table of contents are available here: https://www.zaphon.de/kultur-kontakt-kultur/en
