Akkadian language: Quick Facts

Written and fact-checked by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Facts

Also Known As	Babylonian language • Assyrian language • Assyro-Babylonian language • Accadian language

Photos

A diagram shows the family tree of Semitic languages, branching into West Semitic and East Semitic. West Semitic includes Ethiopic, Modern and Old South Arabian, Arabic and its dialects, Maltese, and Northwest Semitic languages like Amorite, Ugaritic, Canaanite, Aramaic, and Modern Hebrew. East Semitic includes Akkadian, Old Akkadian, Babylonian, and Assyrian.

See All Images →

Topics

Where Does the Name Europe Come From?Akkadian writing Assyrian dialect Babylonian dialect Akkadian literature Akkad extinct language Anatolian languages Sumerian language Egyptian language Eblaite language Phoenician language Elamite language Avestan language Canaanite languages Amorite language Italic languages

Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

Semitic languages: General overview

Key People

default image

François Lenormant

French Assyriologist

Sayce, detail of an oil painting by an unknown artist, c. 1920; in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford

Archibald H. Sayce

British language scholar

Buddhist engravings on wall in Thailand. Hands on wall. Hompepage blog 2009, history and society, science and technology, geography and travel, explore discovery

Languages & Alphabets