Cuneiform Sign Pir2

PIR₂ names one sign, not a complete translation. Sign lists record several readings for it: bir₃, hiš₃, lah₂, lih₂, par₅, per₂, pir₂, tam₅, and udaₓ. These are scholarly values attached to the sign, not nine English definitions; the small subscripts distinguish the spellings. Oracc cross-references the same sign as ASY 227, MZL 613, and SYA 199 in other sign-list catalogs.

It is one sign with several readings. A cuneiform sign could represent a word or idea, or a sound. On a tablet, the language, neighboring signs, and period help identify which value is intended. PIR₂ alone identifies a sign-list entry; it cannot settle the meaning of a sentence.

Why does the sign's shape vary?

Its written shape changed across periods, regions, and scribal styles. Cuneiform grew from administrative record-keeping in Sumer in the late fourth millennium BCE. Marks impressed into clay developed into wedge-shaped writing, later used for Sumerian, Akkadian, Elamite, Hittite, Hurrian, and other languages.

Modern fonts show a representative glyph for the sign's identity. Cuneiform shapes changed across periods, regions, and writing styles, so a font glyph cannot tell you which form appeared on a particular ancient tablet.