Elungata
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- Jan 28, 2011
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El, but the jurisdiction over rainfall and fertility was delegated to Baal, or Hadad. Other important deities included Resheph, lord of plague and the nether world; Kothar, the divine craftsman; Asherah, consort of El; and Astarte, goddess of fertility.
The language of the Canaanites may perhaps be best described as an archaic form of Hebrew, standing in much the same relationship to the Hebrew of the Old Testament as does the language of Chaucer to modern English. The Canaanites were also the first people, as far as is known, to have used an alphabet. In Late Bronze Age strata at the site of Lachish, archaeologists have found a form of script that is recognized by most scholars as the parent of Phoenician and thence of the Greek and Latin alphabets. They also found that a curious cuneiform alphabet was in use at Ugarit. Side by side with these innovations, however, the traditional syllabic cuneiform of Mesopotamia was regularly employed.
The language of the Canaanites may perhaps be best described as an archaic form of Hebrew, standing in much the same relationship to the Hebrew of the Old Testament as does the language of Chaucer to modern English. The Canaanites were also the first people, as far as is known, to have used an alphabet. In Late Bronze Age strata at the site of Lachish, archaeologists have found a form of script that is recognized by most scholars as the parent of Phoenician and thence of the Greek and Latin alphabets. They also found that a curious cuneiform alphabet was in use at Ugarit. Side by side with these innovations, however, the traditional syllabic cuneiform of Mesopotamia was regularly employed.