Tumšuq 97

Known as:	Tumšuq 97
Cite this page as:	Melanie Malzahn. "Tumšuq 97". In A Comprehensive Edition of Tocharian Manuscripts (CEToM). Created and maintained by Melanie Malzahn, Martin Braun, Hannes A. Fellner, and Bernhard Koller. https://cetom.univie.ac.at/?m-tumsuq97 (accessed 08 Mar. 2026).
Edition
Editor:	Melanie Malzahn
Date of online publication:	2015-09-02
Provenience
Main find spot:	Unknown
Collection:	National Library of China (Beijing)
Language and Script
Language:	TB
Linguistic stage:	classical
Add. linguistic characteristics:	late
Script:	classical
Text contents
Text genre:	Non-literary
Text subgenre:	Account
Verse/Prose:	prose
Object
Material:	ink on wood tablet
Form:	Woodslip
Size (h × w):	4 × 18.5 cm
Number of lines:	4

Transliteration

a1	pa rwe ṣe kṣu tsa ra paṃ ñe me nne tri y[ā] ka ne ra pa tsai ya ṣi ne sa[nma] s[so] ntaṃ¯ (–) –
a2	ka le mo¯ ¯t la[¯] [¯]cä o ktau \| sa swe klai na[¯] [¯]ts mo¯ ¯t yā tka wi tau \| sa rā tsa[ṃ]¯ ¯ts cā (·)ñu
a3	tau \| ta rma mi ttro rśai w[r]a tsai wi tau \| – – – – – – –
a4	wa te yo ka le mo¯ ¯t la cä cā¯ ¯k sa nai tau

Transcription

a1	n1 n2 n3 pärweṣe kṣutsa rapaṃñe menne triyākane rapatsai yaṣine s_änmassontäṃ(ts) (yo)¬
a2	¬kale n4 mot lac ok tau । saswe klainats mot yātka wi tau । sarātsaṃts cā(k) ñu
a3	tau । tarmamittrorśai wratsai wi tau । – – – – – – –
a4	wate yokale mot lac{†ä} cāk sanai tau

Translation

a1	In the first regnal year, on the thirtieth [day] of the Rāp Month [= the last month of the year], in the night [of the feast] Rāp, for the Appeasers (?)
a2	alcohol for drinking went [out] [in the amount of] eight tau. \| The lord ordered [to give] two tau of alcohol to the women, \| [and an amount of] one cāk, nine tau to the planters, \|
a3	two tau towards Tarmamitrorśa (or: Tarmamitre, the Orśa) \| (For ...)
a4	again alcohol for drinking went [out] [in the amount of] one cāk, one tau.

Commentary

Linguistic commentary

*	Note the depalatalization in menne.
n1	kṣutsa for kṣuntsa or kṣuṃntsa probably reflects the loss of the nasal rather than a simple misspelling (Ogihara and Pinault 2010: 176f.).
n4	sarātsaṃts is a gen.pl. of a nomen agentis in -ntsa sarāntsa* made from 'to plant' (Ogihara and Pinault 2010: 185).

Philological commentary

*	The translation follows Ogihara and Pinault 2010: 180.
n2	For the feast Rāp 'New Year's Eve' (?), see Pinault 2008: 363f., Ogihara and Pinault 2010: 188-192 and Adams 2013a: 573f.
n3	For the meaning of sänmassu* adj. 'calm' > 'people pertaining to the appeasing ritual', see the discussion by Ogihara and Pinault 2010: 184f.

Remarks

*	Provisorial pressmark;
*	Photograph published in National Library of China 2006: 97 without press mark; precise find spot is unknown, "Tumšuq" as indicated by the publishers is possible.

References

Publication

National Library of China 2006: 97

Edition

Ogihara and Pinault 2010

Bibliography

Adams 2013a

Adams, Douglas Q. 2013a. A dictionary of Tocharian B. Revised and greatly enlarged. 2nd ed. 2 vols. Amsterdam/New York: Rodopi.

National Library of China 2006

National Library of China. 2006. 文明的守望古籍保护的历史与探索 – Bastions of civilization : a history and exploration of ancient book conservation. Beijing tu shu guan chu ban she.

Ogihara and Pinault 2010

Ogihara, Hirotoshi, and Georges-Jean Pinault. 2010. “Un fragment de planchette de bois en tokharien B.” Journal Asiatique 298.1: 173–202.

Pinault 2008

Pinault, Georges-Jean. 2008. Chrestomathie tokharienne. Textes et Grammaire. Leuven/Paris: Peeters.