Cuneiform Sign Dun4

The spelling around it determines which reading is intended.

Cuneiform reference lists assign 𒂈 several readings: DUL₄, DUN₄, MIGIR₂, and ŠUDUL₄. In Sumerian, it appears in words transliterated into Latin letters as dun, “to lay the warp”—the lengthwise threads on a loom—and šudul₄, “yoke” or “crossbeam.”

Treat each reading as part of a word: the language and neighboring signs determine which one is intended.

When was it used, and what for?

The word uses are attested across several periods.

The warp and yoke terms are attested from Early Dynastic IIIb through Hellenistic records. Early Dynastic IIIb was an early Mesopotamian period; Hellenistic records belong to a later Greek-influenced era.

The warp verb recurs in later records. The yoke term also appears in Sumerian and Akkadian, two ancient Mesopotamian writing traditions; both uses connect the sign with weaving and animal-drawn equipment.

Why does DUN₄ have a subscript 4?

It distinguishes this sign from others with the same reading.

Scholarly subscripts distinguish separate cuneiform signs that share a reading label. DUN, DUN₃, and DUN₄ name separate signs, not alternate font styles.

Unicode encodes an abstract sign across historical styles, so cuneiform-capable fonts can draw different period-specific forms. A font lacking Cuneiform coverage can show a missing-glyph box; the encoded character remains the same.