In the World of Sumer: An Autobiography

by Samuel Noah Kramer

Samuel Noah Kramer is the leading authority on the interpretation and reading of civilization's oldest literature. His life and life's work are so thoroughly intertwined that his autobiography is also the story of the recovery of the language and literature of the Sumerians. From young Talmudist to the patriarch of Sumerology, Kramer recountshis long and distinguished career. Writing for the non-specialist, he paints a panoramic view of Sumerian literature and provides thumbnail sketches of the individuals with whom he collaborated.

Genres: Biography

253 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1986

About the author

Dr. Samuel Noah Kramer, Ph.D. (University of Pennsylvania, 1929; born Simcha Kramer), was a historian, philologist, and Assyriologist, particularly renowned as an expert in the language and history of Sumer. He was Clark Research Professor Emeritus of Assyriology at the University of Pennsylvania, where he was also Curator Emeritus of the Tablet Collections.

Dr. Kramer is often credited with the virtual creation of Sumerian cuneiform literature as an academic field, in which he wrote some 30 books for both academic and popular audiences. was a member of the American Oriental Society, Archeological Institute of America, Society of Biblical Literature and American Philosophical Society, which awarded him its John Frederick Lewis Prize.