In this collection Cécile Michel translates into English texts related to wives and daughters of merchants and to their activities in nineteenth-century BCE Aššur and Kaneš. Discovered in excavations of the Old Assyrian private archives at Kültepe (ancient Kaneš) in Central Anatolia, these letters sent from Aššur reflect the preeminent role of Assyrian women within the family and in the domestic economy, as well as their contribution to long-distance trade. Contracts and other legal texts excavated at Kültepe attest to Assyrian and Anatolian women as parties in marriage and divorce contracts, last wills, loans, and purchase contracts. These unique finds paint a vivid portrait of women who aspire to be socially respected and provide a rare opportunity to reconstruct their daily lives as both businesswomen and housewives. Series Editor’s Foreword...................................................................................ix Acknowledgments.............................................................................................xi Abbreviations and Conventions.....................................................................xv List of Figures.................................................................................................xxix Map of the Old Assyrian Period...................................................................xxx Introduction................................................................................................1 The History of Women and Gender in Assyriology 3 Old Assyrian Archives and Women 6 The Role of Women in Society and Economy 23 Chronology, Calendars, and Metrology..................................................39 The Old Assyrian Eponym System 39 Old Assyrian Kings 40 Old Assyrian Months, Half-Months, and Weeks 40 The Anatolian Dating System 41 Old Assyrian Weights and Measures 43 1.. Marriage and Divorce........................................................................45 From Betrothal to Marriage 46 Monogamy and Bigamy 68 Divorce 85 Widowhood and Remarriage 102 2.. Women and Family..........................................................................111 Women and Inheritance 113 Women Protected against Their Father’s or Husband’s Creditors 146 Women in Debt 151 Women and Family Responsibility for Debt 159 Female Slaves 169 3.. Housewives.......................................................................................195 Motherhood 197 Raising Children 204 Provisioning and Food 213 Heads of the Household 223 Women at Home 236 Farming Activities of Anatolian Women 248 4.. Businesswomen................................................................................255 Weaving as a Remunerative Profession 256 Separate Assets for Men and Women 271 Women Lend, Buy, and Invest 282 Women Representing Their Husbands 301 Women, Archives, and Seals 315 Women and Writing 333 5.. Religion and Social Mores...............................................................339 Women’s Feelings and Advice on Behavior 341 Women’s Religion and the Spirits of the Dead 354 Women Consecrated to Gods 376 6.. Portraits of Assyrian and Anatolian Women.................................395 Akatiya and Šīmat-Suen, Sisters of Uṣur-ša-Ištar 397 Ahaha, a Woman Consecrated to the God Aššur 411 Tarām-Kūbi, Wife of Innaya, and Her Sister, Šīmat-Aššur 426 Ištar-baštī I, Wife of Imdī-ilum, and Her Daughter, Ištarbaštī II/Zizizi 434 Kunnaniya, a Lonely Anatolian Woman 444 Šišahšušar, a Housewife Owning Cattle 459 Hatala, a Woman Involved in Trade 469 Anna-Anna, Married to Ennum-Aššur 472 Texts Edited...........................................................................................................483 Texts Concordance 483 Reverse Texts Concordance 487 Bibliography....................................................................................................493 Indexes.............................................................................................................531 Abbreviations 531 Personal Names 531 Geographical Names and Nisbe 556 Gods and Goddesses 557 Eponyms (limum) 558 Weeks (hamuštum) 559 Months 559 Professions and Titles 560 Commented Words and Expressions 560 Cited Texts 562 Subjects 563