# A-TA-NA-TE (ʾAtanat)

> ʾAtanat, 'She-who-gives'—feminine of √y-t-n 'to give' with I-y \> ʾ; the etymon of Athena (di Mino, Ya Diktu 20)

A Linear A word in the Linear A Lexicon. The reading is a proposal and carries its tier.

- Reading: ʾAtanat
- Confidence: Probable. Fits the word’s contexts and has a close external comparison, without an independent control.
- Root: [\*ytn ~ \*ntn](<https://linear-a.ai/roots/2608/index.md>) 'give'
- Kind: Divine
- Language: Semitic
- Signs: A (a) · TA (ta) · NA (na) · TE (te)

## Compared forms

- Linear B: a-ta-na-po-ti-ni-ja (KN V 52)—divine offering list alongside e-nu-wa-ri-jo, pa-ja-wo-ne, po-se-da-o-ne
- Greek: Ἀθάνα (Doric), Ἀθήνη (Ionic/Attic)—pre-Greek, no established etymology (Beekes 2010)
- Ugaritic: *√ytn* — √ytn 'to give; to set, place' (Huehnergard 2012); ytnt 'she gave' (GlOS 2, 78)
- Phoenician: BʿLYTN Baʿal Yaton 'Baʿal has given'; YTNT, a woman's name 'she gave' (Benz 1972, 328; Krahmalkov 2000, 220)
- Hebrew: נָתַן *nātan* — nātan (נָתַן) 'to give'
- Hurrian: a-da-na, Atana, a personal name at Kaneš (Monti 2017, 451), the rival

## Attestations

- [ZA 10a](<https://linear-a.ai/texts/ZA10a/index.md>): A-TA-NA-TE 1 — The Giver (f.) — Athena etymology; √y-t-n 'to give' with y > ʾ weakening (feminine *yātanāt > ʾātanāt)

## Commentary

ZA 10a: A-TA-NA-TE 1, fourth in a list headed by TA-NA-TE 2. ʾAtanat 'She-who-gives' (di Mino, Ya Diktu 20): feminine *yātanat of √y-t-n 'to give' with y > ʾ, final E a dead vowel after t; Phoenician keeps the y- in BʿLYTN Baʿal-yatōn 'Baʿal has given'. Greek takes the weakened form: Mycenaean a-ta-na-po-ti-ni-ja (KN V 52), Doric Ἀθάνα, Ionic Ἀθήνη, Pre-Greek for Beekes (2010); Athena wins Athens by giving the olive. The A-/∅ alternation with TA-NA-TE on ZA 10a recurs in A-PA-RA-NE/PA-RA-NE, A-MI-TA/MI-TA and A-DU/DU. Rivals: a form of TA-NA-TE Tanāt (√t-n-n, Tinnit), which heads the ZA 10a list; Hurrian Atana (Monti 2017, 451). See A-TA-NA-JE.

## Same root

- [JE-TA-NA](<https://linear-a.ai/lexicon/JE-TA-NA/index.md>) (Yatana)
- [NA-TU-\*301-NE](<https://linear-a.ai/lexicon/NA-TU-*301-NE/index.md>) (natūnān)
- [MA-TI-TI](<https://linear-a.ai/lexicon/MA-TI-TI/index.md>) (mattitt(u))
- [A-DU-NI-TA-NA](<https://linear-a.ai/lexicon/A-DU-NI-TA-NA/index.md>) (ʾAddu-nittāna)
- [A-TA-NA-JE](<https://linear-a.ai/lexicon/A-TA-NA-JE/index.md>) (ʾatanāya)
- [I-TI-NI-SA](<https://linear-a.ai/lexicon/I-TI-NI-SA/index.md>) (ʾItniša)

## In the onomasticon

- [A-TA-NA-TE](<https://linear-a.ai/names/A-TA-NA-TE/index.md>): God or goddess, Semitic

## Related forms

- A-TA-NA-JE (THEZb6)
- A-DU-NI-TA-NA (ARKH1a)

## References

- Reading: di Mino; Monti 2017; Benz 1972; Krahmalkov 2000; GlOS 2
- Huehnergard, John (2012), An Introduction to Ugaritic. Hendrickson
- Krahmalkov: Krahmalkov, Charles R. (2000), A Phoenician-Punic Dictionary. Peeters (Leuven)
- Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010), Etymological Dictionary of Greek. Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 10/1–2,Brill
- Benz, Frank L. (1972), Personal Names in the Phoenician and Punic Inscriptions. Studia Pohl 8,Biblical Institute Press
- Monti, Luciano Esteban (2017), A Systematic Approach to the Hurrian Pantheon: The Onomastic Evidence. PhD dissertation, Università degli Studi di Udine (XXVIII cycle)
- GlOS 2: Sanmartín, Joaquín (2024), A Glossary of Old Syrian, Volume 2: l – z. Languages of the Ancient Near East 8/2,Eisenbrauns (Pennsylvania State University Press), University Park
- Ya Diktu: di Mino, Tom (2026), Ya Diktu: Grammar of the Minoan Peak Sanctuary Libation Formula. Minoan Mystery, online,46 pp.

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Page: https://linear-a.ai/lexicon/A-TA-NA-TE/
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Cite as: di Mino, Tom. 2026. Linear A Lexicon. Plasma AI. https://linear-a.ai/. Data: kaphtor, commit add28e94.