Willemijn Havenaar M.A.
Ancient Languages and Texts (ALT)
Assyriologie/Altorientalistik
Institut für Altorientalistik
Fabeckstr. 23-25
14195 Berlin
03/2022 – 10/2023
Collections Registrator at the Spoorwegmuseum in Utrecht, The Netherlands
10/2020 – 12/2021
Project Assistent for the digitalisation and online publication of the Frank Scholten photo collection at the Leiden University Library
09/2020 – 08/2021
MA in Assyriology from Leiden University
09/2017 – 08/2020
BA in Humanities from the University College Utrecht
Cultural Identity in Sumerian Literature
This dissertation will be a literary analysis of Ur III and Old Babylonian Sumerian language literary text that sets out to identify elements of cultural identity. This research is based on the idea that literature is a means to express cultural identity and therefore it is possible to determine a definition of the Sumerian cultural identity through the analysis of Sumerian literature. The dissertation will furthermore look for a relationship between cultural identity and urbanity and the associated idea of permanence. This dissertation will draw from established theories from literary theory and studies on cultural identity in general. The dissertation will, in three parts, examine the connection between mythological characters and the Sumerian value system, analyse literary texts and determine if and which elements of cultural identity are present, and finally place the elements of cultural identity in the larger context of the Sumerian civilization.