An alphabetic parallel for Mycenaean ma-ka

What is it about?

This paper offers an alphabetic Greek parallel for the Mycenaean term ma-ka, widely debated but still not interpreted. Results emerging from this hypothesis are then used to further clarify certain content aspects of the tablets attesting ma-ka (e.g. ritual) as well as to cast new light on others related controversial issues (e.g. pa-ta).

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Why is it important?

This finding is consistent with the strong connection between ma‑ka and cereals, the syntactical interpretation of ma‑ka as nominative, the allocation of ma‑ka for communal use, and the religious content of tablets where the term appears. Such reading is also confirmed by other sources, corroborating this hypothesis. As such, this provides further details on the religious context (possibly even Dionisyan) that Linear B tablets seem to share with the text of the Classical period. This interpretation fits in perfectly with the results obtained through the methodology for the study of the Mycenaean Greek lexicon as well as considerations on the high linguistic conservativism of specific semantic areas, as is the case of the religious sphere.

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