Overview
The term maškim is attested in the documents from the Royal Archives of Ebla (modern Syria, 24th century BC) more than 2000 times. It is one of the most common function names mentioned in the Archives, nevertheless its interpretation is not yet clear. Scholars generally agree in considering this term as a function and not as a profession name: in almost all contexts, maškim is in fact almost invariably preceded and followed by a personal name (PN1 masǩ im PN2). So far, the interpretation of the term as “agent” has been commonly accepted; however, a more detailed connotation is still a desideratum. The function of the maškim was probably temporary, and it has been suggested that it was closely linked to commercial activities. Nevertheless, the relationship between the two PNs linked by this term is enigmatic to the point that the relation of dependence between the two individuals has sometimes been questioned. Since the term maškim occurs with an extremely high frequency, a systematic study of all contexts in which it appears has long been considered as difficult and time-consuming. However, digital tools may support and accelerate the process of data gathering and evaluation: the aim of my paper is to show the results obtained by applying Social Network Analysis (SNA) to the maškim mentioned in the Ebla tablets. SNA is a set of methodologies that investigates social networks, i.e. structures characterized by a set (or sets) of actors and the defined relationships between them. This technique may be applied to the maškim attested in the Ebla texts on a strictly social profile: the function name masǩ im represents the “tie” between the two PNs, and the individuals are considered as “actors” linked by supposed relations of dependency (represented by the function name itself). The primary goal of the study is twofold: a) to gather all the occurrences of the term maškim and the related PNs attested in the administrative documents from Ebla published so far; b) to discover and investigate possible patterns or tendencies in the network designed by these individuals.