occur, most frequently girls (dumu-mí) bought by the queen or by
the mother of the king and then consecrated to the goddess I“¢ara.^184.2 When the Palace G administration records people (frequently
men) because they are employed for some specific works, terms of
clear topographical connotation such as ká, ìr-a-núm, and é-duru 5 ki
may be used. It may be presumed that: (1) ká, “city gate,” indicates
both an area between the royal palace and a city gate (i.e., a quarter),
and the people living there; (2) ìr-a-núm indicates (on the basis of
VE 1151, uru-bar = 'ìrìyàtum, “suburbs”) people living just outside
the city walls; (3) é-duru 5 ki(untranslated in VE 317) indicates peo-
ple living in hamlets and villages near (i.e., up to 25–30 km) a main
center such as Ebla.^19 All these people may be entered in the accounts
with reference to an overseer (ugula). In such bureaucratic contexts,
anonymous workers are recorded as guru“(man), dam (woman), and
(probably disregarding their sex) na-se 11 , “people,” an Akkadian loan-
word in Sumerian (VE 900, Eblaitic equivalent ni“um).4.3 The Eblaitic term for “family” is kaymum.^20 In chancery texts
dealing with journeys, however, kaymumis used to indicate those who
supplied auxiliary troops or men for services such as maintenance
of dykes and irrigation canals. These passages seem to refer to one
specific and not yet fully understood historical moment, involving a
phase of Ebla’s expansion toward the East in northern Syria.4.4 The Eblaitic term for “blood,” damum(= u“x (LAK 672), VE
970), is used in chancery and administrative texts and in personal
names.^21 It may be that in these cases, damumas a collective noun
refers to a part (actually the allied members) of a larger social group,
the li"mum, “clan.” On this interpretation, members of a faction
belonging to the damummay have been not only natural kinsmen
but also persons who became blood brothers by means of political
accords (including marriages). As in the case of kaymum, the relevant
available attestations of damumrefer to regions far from Ebla, gen-
erally in semi-nomadic areas.(^18) Oral communication by J. Pasquali.
(^19) Typically grouped in teams of 20 workers (Milano, “é-duru 5 ki.. .”).
(^20) Fronzaroli, “kam 4 -mu.. .” (Sumerian equivalent unknown), and cf. VE 792.
(^21) Bonechi, “Lexique et idéologie royale.. .”; Fronzaroli, “kam 4 -mu...”
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