Sumerian

[ soo-meer-ee-uh n, -mer- ]

/ suˈmɪər i ən, -ˈmɛr- /

adjective

of or relating to Sumer, its people, or their language.

noun

a native or inhabitant of Sumer.

a language of unknown affinities that was the language of the Sumerians and had, in the late 4th and 3rd millenniums b.c., a well-developed literature that is preserved in pictographic and cuneiform writing and represents the world's oldest extant written documents.

Origin of Sumerian

First recorded in 1870–75; Sumer + -ian

OTHER WORDS FROM Sumerian

pre-Su·me·ri·an, adjective, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for sumerian

The name Easter may, or may not, be derived from the Sumerian goddess Inanna, or Ishtar—the source of the Hebrew name Esther.
Meet Krampus, the Seriously Bad Santa|Jay Michaelson|December 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In Sumerian culture, beer is referenced on the earliest recovered tablet.
5 Pioneering Ways to Cook with Beer|Stacey Slate|February 2, 2010|DAILY BEAST
The name Eve is derived from a Sumerian pun on the word for rib.
The Truth About Genesis|Bruce Feiler|September 18, 2009|DAILY BEAST
Sumerian forces, however, had not been the only ones which had contributed to overthrow the last king of the Pash dynasty.
The Ancient East|D. G. Hogarh

Indeed, for the dynastic period, the agreement of these old Sumerian lists with the chronological system of Berossus is striking.
Legends Of Babylon And Egypt|Leonard W. King
Moreover, the recorded ages of Sumerian and Hebrew patriarchs are strangely alike.
Legends Of Babylon And Egypt|Leonard W. King
Evidently the beginning of Sumerian civilization had some connection with ancient seafarers.
The New Gresham Encyclopedia. Vol. 1 Part 3|Various
Mr. Pinches, again, has discovered a Sumerian legend of the origin of things which seems to have been current at Eridu.
A Primer of Assyriology|Archibald Henry Sayce

British Dictionary definitions for sumerian

Sumerian

/ (suːˈmɪərɪən, -ˈmɛər-) /

noun

a member of a people who established a civilization in Sumer during the 4th millennium bc

the extinct language of this people, of no known relationship to any other language

adjective

of or relating to ancient Sumer, its inhabitants, or their language or civilization

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012