mušānû
1 Lexical
OB-LexOB-Lex: Old Babylonian lexical texts lú še bala = ⸢mu⸣-ša-nu-um MSL 12, 203ff. ii 27 (Lu) DCCLT “man who turns barley = overturner”.
11. Winnower
OB-LitOB-Lit: Old Babylonian literary texts — new attestation (not in AHw/CAD) amšali pâ mu-ša-nu-um AML, 82: 17 SEAL “yesterday, the winnower (blew) the chaff”. new
12. A winnowing tool
OBOB: Old Babylonian (ca. 2000–1600 BCE) 4 gišmu-ša-nu CT 6, 20b: 30.
Discussion
The literal meaning “one who turns (barley)” is suggested by the Sumerian entry in OB Lu. Both this meaning and the attested spellings favor derivation from enû III rather than šanû IV (cf. CAD mušannû). Note that Sumerian lú še bala is explained as muštablakkitu in Lu = Azlag and mušēlû “winnower” in Ḫḫ 2.
The utensil, hitherto entered as mušānu in CAD and AHw., is most likely a type of winnowing fork or shovel.