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''ziggurat'' ▫ᴱᴺ|Definition|1st|20260222202800-00-⌔
ziggurat - Wiktionary, the free dictionary
English
Noun
ziggurat (plural ziggurats)
- (archaeology) A temple tower of the ancient Mesopotamian valley, having the form of a terraced pyramid of successively receding stories
- ✤ It would be uplifting to think that the ziggurat was the first expression of Near Eastern civilization, for then one could speak about humanity’s fascination with the heavens, of the human quest for communion with the infinite.1
- Any building with similar style or shape.
- ✤ He works in an old ziggurat of an office building.
Etymology
Learned borrowing from Akkadian 𒅆𒂍𒉪 (ziqqurratum).
Pronunciation
Printed 2026-06-28.
(echo:: @ ⌗)
Link to original Footnotes
1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 159: ↩
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