Greek and Latin Inscriptions

Abstract

The walls at Dura-Europos have yielded hundreds of graffiti, essentially Greek, where accounts and lists of people's names can be found, but also acclamations, prayers, obscenities, etc. The word “epigraphy” can be used to designate, not only the discipline, but also its object, a collection of inscriptions that have common characteristics and that epigraphists group together in typological categories. Collections of Greek and Latin inscriptions used for studying the Bible or even inscribed Greek epigrams also contain numerous texts from the Near East. The oral practice of the different languages used in the Near East and literacy, in other words the access to reading and writing, are popular topics for research. One might add to the panorama of religious Hellenistic epigraphy two dedications, one from Dan, the other without precise origin, written in both Greek and Aramaic.