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The earliest known writing system, called cuneiform, was initially used by bookkeepers to track beer and food rations in ancient Mesopotamian cities. Eventually, the tablets became home to more interesting reading material — like professions of love and passion. Historians now believe the world’s oldest romantic poem was written in cuneiform 4,000 years ago, sometime around 2000 BCE. Called “The Love Song for Shu-Sin,” the poem expresses affection between Inanna, the Sumerian goddess of love, and Shu-Sin, the king of Ur (a Mesopotamian city that once stood in present-day southern Iraq).
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It's a factHistorians believe poems and music have long been interwoven art forms, with the earliest poems shared through song. Many of the oldest surviving poems from ancient Greece and China were performed orally, and today, ballads remain a commonly used form for both poetry and music.
Despite being uncovered at an archaeological dig site in the late 19th century, the clay tablet featuring “The Love Song for Shu-Sin” sat untranslated for decades following its discovery. Tucked into storage at the Istanbul Museum in Turkey, the ancient notepad went unnoticed until 1951, when scholar Samuel Noah Kramer deciphered its inscription and interpreted its meaning. He surmised that the poem wasn’t just a statement of love, but part of a larger religious ceremony. Each year, the Sumerian king was responsible for symbolically marrying the goddess Inanna to ensure prosperity and bountiful harvests in the year ahead. While Shu-Sin — who ruled from 1973 to 1964 BCE — was featured in a series of other poems, researchers aren’t sure about details of the ritual. But even without us knowing more, the poem remains historically significant, shaping our understanding of early writing and world history — and perhaps even inspiring a little romance.
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“Sonnet 18,” the romantic poem that compares its subject to a “summer’s day,” was penned by ______.
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“Sonnet 18,” the romantic poem that compares its subject to a “summer’s day,” was penned by Shakespeare.
The world’s longest poem took more than 500 years to write.
One of history’s oldest poems holds the record for being the world’s longest. The “Mahabharata” is a roughly 2,500-year-old poem written in Sanskrit, an ancient language once used in parts of India and Southeast Asia. With a title that translates to “Great Epic of the Bharata Dynasty,” the poem recounts the tale of two cousins who become bitter enemies in the struggle for political control over India’s Bharata kingdom. Drafted by multiple writers over half a millennium, the “Mahabharata” includes 200,000 verses and a staggering 1.8 million words, making it seven times longer than Homer’s “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey.” Scholars consider the “Mahabharata” an important source for understanding how Hinduism developed between 400 BCE and 200 CE, though it’s not just enjoyed by academics — many of the poem’s stories have been reworked for stage and screen for modern audiences.
Nicole Garner Meeker is a writer and editor based in St. Louis. Her history, nature, and food stories have also appeared at Mental Floss and Better Report.
