Alexei Kassian discuss the possible connection between Sumerian and Hurrian languages. He compares the list of basic vocabulary and finds six possible cognates. Then calculates the probability of chance coincidence and deduce that it is quite low.
Finally, he proposes two scenarios.
In the first Hurrians migrated to south and mixed with Sumerians and the second version is that a group of Sumerian related people move to north and shifts to proto Hurro-Urartian. He prefers the first and links it with Kura-Araxes expansion to south, but the latter is also possible given the known migration of fertile crescent farmers from the North Mesopotamia to the north,
The next issue in this paper is that he believes in Sino-Caucasian theory and wants to see HU as part of it. Which obviously is very problematic given that genetics do not support the existence of the Snio-Caucasian.
He cites Fournet but do not discuss in details other words that can be Sumerian - Hurrian cognates.
The word apple in Sumerian hašhur/ ha-šu-ur compare with hinzuri in Hurrian. Fournet demonstrated that Hurrians were adding [n] in the middle of the word like in Puratu>Purantu (Euphrates) which means that the initial form of hinzuri was *hizur a possible cognate of hashur.
Another interesting word is the en meaning God in Hurrian, inua goddess in Urartian. Compare the Sumerian Anu the sky god.
There are other fruit words like pomegranate and plume, but they are believed to be via Akkadian intermediation.
He also discusses the famous and well accepted word tibira in Sumerian meaning sculptor, craftsman which is compared to Hurrian tabira meaning smith. This word is believed to be of Hurrian origin. Some (but not all) links the Armenian darbin (smith) with it.
See also
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