Hurrian hymn to Nikkal
The oldest surviving notated music in the world, a hymn to the goddess Nikkal from Ugarit, around 1400 BCE. Composer unknown.
- Original byline
- Anonymous
- Published
- Date not recorded
- Form
- Poems
- Authorship
- Still unknown
- Reason for anonymity
- Religious
- Copyright
- Public domain
- Reference
- Wikipedia · Wikidata
The authorship story
The Hurrian hymn to Nikkal, tablet h.6 from Ugarit, preserves both lyrics and a form of musical notation from around 1400 BCE, making it the oldest substantially complete notated music known. The song petitions the moon god's consort for fertility. The tablet credits no composer; a few other hymns in the group carry names that scholars read as scribes or possibly composers, but h.6 itself is anonymous. The world's oldest surviving song, like its oldest literature, comes down without its maker's name.
Questions readers ask
Who wrote Hurrian hymn to Nikkal?
Nobody knows. No author for Hurrian hymn to Nikkal has been identified in the documented record.
Can I read Hurrian hymn to Nikkal for free?
Hurrian hymn to Nikkal is in the public domain, though this site has not yet verified a free full-text source for it.
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