Inanna of Zabalam (also Supālītum, Sugallītu, Nin-Zabalam) was a
hypostasis of the
Mesopotamian goddess
Deities in ancient Mesopotamia were almost exclusively anthropomorphic. They were thought to possess extraordinary powers and were often envisioned as being of tremendous physical size. The deities typically wore ''melam'', an ambiguous substan ...
Inanna associated with the city of
Zabalam
Zabala, also Zabalam ( ''zabalamki'', modern Tell Ibzeikh (also Tell el-Buzekh), Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq) was a city of ancient Sumer in what is now the Dhi Qar governorate in Iraq. In early archaeology this location was also called Tel el-Buz ...
. It has been proposed that she was initially a separate deity, perhaps known under the name Nin-UM, who came to be absorbed by the goddess of
Uruk
Uruk, also known as Warka or Warkah, was an ancient city of Sumer (and later of Babylonia) situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates River on the dried-up ancient channel of the Euphrates east of modern Samawah, Al-Muthannā, Iraq.Harm ...
at some point in the prehistory of Mesopotamia and lost her unknown original character in the process, though in certain contexts she nonetheless could still be treated as distinct. She was regarded as the mother of
Shara, the god of
Umma
Umma ( sux, ; in modern Dhi Qar Province in Iraq, formerly also called Gishban) was an ancient city in Sumer. There is some scholarly debate about the Sumerian and Akkadian names for this site. Traditionally, Umma was identified with Tell J ...
, a city located near Zabalam.
The worship of Inanna of Zabalam is already attested in the early texts from the
Uruk period
The Uruk period (ca. 4000 to 3100 BC; also known as Protoliterate period) existed from the protohistoric Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age period in the history of Mesopotamia, after the Ubaid period and before the Jemdet Nasr period. Named after ...
, which makes her one of the oldest tutelary goddesses of specific cities known from Mesopotamian sources. Her temple was known under the ceremonial name Gigunna. It is attested in sources from
Early Dynastic,
Sargonic and
Ur III
The Third Dynasty of Ur, also called the Neo-Sumerian Empire, refers to a 22nd to 21st century BC ( middle chronology) Sumerian ruling dynasty based in the city of Ur and a short-lived territorial-political state which some historians consider t ...
periods, and from various literary texts. Later on she came to be associated with the city of
Larsa
Larsa ( Sumerian logogram: UD.UNUGKI, read ''Larsamki''), also referred to as Larancha/Laranchon (Gk. Λαραγχων) by Berossos and connected with the biblical Ellasar, was an important city-state of ancient Sumer, the center of the cult ...
. An inscription of king
Warad-Sin
Warad-Sin (, ARAD- Dsuen) ruled the ancient Near East city-state of Larsa from 1770 BC to 1758 BC ( short chronology). There are indications that his father Kudur-Mabuk was co-regent or at very least the power behind the throne
The phrase "power ...
mentions the construction of a temple dedicated to her, the Ekalamtanigurru, possibly identical with the older sanctuary. She is also attested in various religious texts and in theophoric names from Larsa. Further cities where she was worshiped in the
Old Babylonian period
The Old Babylonian Empire, or First Babylonian Empire, is dated to BC – BC, and comes after the end of Sumerian power with the destruction of the Third Dynasty of Ur, and the subsequent Isin-Larsa period. The chronology of the first dynasty ...
include
Nippur,
Uruk
Uruk, also known as Warka or Warkah, was an ancient city of Sumer (and later of Babylonia) situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates River on the dried-up ancient channel of the Euphrates east of modern Samawah, Al-Muthannā, Iraq.Harm ...
,
Isin,
Kisurra
Kisurra (modern Tell Abu Hatab, Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate, Iraq) was an ancient Sumerian '' tell'' (hill city) situated on the west bank of the Euphrates, north of Shuruppak and due east of Kish.
History
Kisurra was established ca. 2700 BC, ...
and
Babylon. It is presumed that her main cult center, Zabalam, was eventually abandoned, though she is still mentioned in documents from the reign of the
First Sealand dynasty
The First Sealand dynasty, (URU.KÙKIWhere ŠEŠ-ḪA of King List A and ŠEŠ-KÙ-KI of King List B are read as URU.KÙ.KI) or the 2nd Dynasty of Babylon (although it was independent of Amorite-ruled Babylon), very speculatively c. 1732–1460 B ...
and references to various temples dedicated to her occur in the ''Canonical Temple List'' from the subsequent
Kassite period
The Kassites () were people of the ancient Near East, who controlled Babylonia after the fall of the Old Babylonian Empire c. 1531 BC and until c. 1155 BC (short chronology).
They gained control of Babylonia after the Hittite sack of Babylon ...
.
Origin and names
Inanna of Zabalam is among the oldest attested examples of distinct manifestations of deities tied to specific geographical locations. She was the tutelary goddess of the city of
Zabalam
Zabala, also Zabalam ( ''zabalamki'', modern Tell Ibzeikh (also Tell el-Buzekh), Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq) was a city of ancient Sumer in what is now the Dhi Qar governorate in Iraq. In early archaeology this location was also called Tel el-Buz ...
, also known as Sugal in Akkadian (modern Tell Ibzeikh in Iraq). It is agreed that while to a degree the local manifestations of Inanna shared a "common essence," they also could have distinct, unique traits, and interpretations presenting them as facets of one goddess or as distinct figures could coexist. For example, in the
Weidner god list
Weidner god list is the conventional name of one of the known ancient Mesopotamian lists of deities, originally compiled by ancient scribes in the late third millennium BCE, with the oldest known copy dated to the Ur III or Isin-Larsa period. Fur ...
, Inanna of Zabalam occurs separately from Inanna herself and
Dumuzi, alongside other local manifestations, which might indicate in this context she was not strictly viewed as a hypostasis, but rather as a separate local goddess.
According to
Joan Goodnick Westenholz
Joan Goodnick Westenholz (1 July 1943 – 2013) was an Assyriologist and the chief curator at the Bible Lands Museum in Jerusalem. She held positions related to academic research at the Oriental Institute (University of Chicago), Harvard Univ ...
, the original character of the tutelary goddess of Zabalam was lost prior to the beginning of recorded history in a process in which "her selfhood was swallowed up by that of
Inana
Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, divine justice, and political power. She was originally worshiped in Su ...
of
Uruk
Uruk, also known as Warka or Warkah, was an ancient city of Sumer (and later of Babylonia) situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates River on the dried-up ancient channel of the Euphrates east of modern Samawah, Al-Muthannā, Iraq.Harm ...
." While it is presumed that many cities adopted the cult of Inanna from Uruk in the Uruk period already, in Zabalam the introduction of the Urukean goddess might have resulted in such a situation due to the geographic proximity of both cities. Westenholz suggests her original name might have been Nin-UM, attested in the ''
zame'' hymns from the
Early Dynastic period. Antoine Cavigneaux and Manfred Krebernik in the corresponding entry in ''
'' maintain more caution, and refer to Nin-UM neutrally as a deity, rather than specifically a goddess, though they accept the name might refer to a hypostasis of Inanna in all contexts it is attested in. The meaning of the name Nin-UM is unknown, and a connection with the month name ''ne''-UM from the local calendar of
Ur has been ruled out.
Inanna of Zabalam could be referred to with the name Supālītum (Supallītu), derived from the Akkadian spelling of the toponym, and through a
folk etymology connected with the word ''supālu'' (''sāpalu''), "
juniper." It was commonly used in Babylonian
lexical texts. It occurs in the god list ''
An = Anum
''An = Anum'', also known as the Great God List, is the longest preserved Mesopotamian god list, a type of lexical list cataloging the deities worshiped in the Ancient Near East, chiefly in modern Iraq. While god lists are already known from the ...
'' as explanation of ''
dInanna-su-bala
ki'' (tablet IV, line 134). A second similar name was Sugallītu (Šugallītu; "she of Zabalam"), whose spelling might have been influenced by the term Esugal, referring to a
ziggurat
A ziggurat (; Cuneiform: 𒅆𒂍𒉪, Akkadian: ', D-stem of ' 'to protrude, to build high', cognate with other Semitic languages like Hebrew ''zaqar'' (זָקַר) 'protrude') is a type of massive structure built in ancient Mesopotamia. It has ...
dedicated to Ishtar located in the city of
Akkad, or alternatively by the word ''
sukkallu''. The latter name could be written logographically as
dZU.GAL or
dSU.GAL. A further possible name,
dZA-BA-AD, perhaps to be read as DIĜIR Zabalam, "the goddess of Zabalam," has been identified on an exercise tablet from
Susa. Texts from
Umma
Umma ( sux, ; in modern Dhi Qar Province in Iraq, formerly also called Gishban) was an ancient city in Sumer. There is some scholarly debate about the Sumerian and Akkadian names for this site. Traditionally, Umma was identified with Tell J ...
from the
Ur III period
The Third Dynasty of Ur, also called the Neo-Sumerian Empire, refers to a 22nd to 21st century BC (middle chronology) Sumerian ruling dynasty based in the city of Ur and a short-lived territorial-political state which some historians consider t ...
also use the
epithet Nin-Zabalam, "lady of Zabalam," especially when referring to the worship of this goddess in the settlement ''A-ka-sal
4ki''.
Associations with other deities
The god
Shara, commonly referred to simply as a son of
Inanna in modern literature aimed at general audiences, was specifically regarded as the son of the goddess of Zabalam. The translation of the only passage mentioning his father is uncertain. Julia M. Asher-Greve suggests this tradition was a secondary development, and Shara was only assigned to Inanna as a son to make it possible to refer to her with the epithet ''ama'', mother, though she also notes it was seemingly not related to motherhood, but rather to senior position in the pantheon and authority over specific cities. Manuel Molina instead assumes that it reflected the close relation between their respective cult centers.
An inscription of Warad-Sin refers to Inanna of Zabalam as a daughter of
Suen. The circle of deities associated with her also included Apiriĝmaḫ, as well as two goddesses attested in an analogous role in
Uruk
Uruk, also known as Warka or Warkah, was an ancient city of Sumer (and later of Babylonia) situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates River on the dried-up ancient channel of the Euphrates east of modern Samawah, Al-Muthannā, Iraq.Harm ...
,
Ninshubur
Ninshubur (; Ninšubur, "Lady of Subartu" or "Lady of servants"), also spelled Ninšubura, was a Mesopotamian goddess whose primary role was that of the ''sukkal'' (divine vizier) of the goddess Inanna. While it is agreed that in this context N ...
and
Nanaya
Nanaya ( Sumerian , DNA.NA.A; also transcribed as "Nanāy", "Nanaja", "Nanāja", '"Nanāya", or "Nanai"; antiquated transcription: "Nanâ"; in Greek: ''Ναναια'' or ''Νανα''; Aramaic: ''ננױננאױ;'' Syriac: ܢܢܝ) was a Mesopo ...
.
In the ''
Zame'' hymns, Nin-UM, possibly identical with Inanna of Zabalam, appears in association with the god
Ištaran
Ištaran (Ishtaran, sux, ) was a Mesopotamian god who was the tutelary deity of the city of Der, a Sumerian city state positioned east of the Tigris on the border between Sumer and Elam. It is known that he was a judge deity, and his positi ...
. She is also equated with Inanna-kur, an early hypostasis of Inanna known already from sources from the
Uruk period
The Uruk period (ca. 4000 to 3100 BC; also known as Protoliterate period) existed from the protohistoric Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age period in the history of Mesopotamia, after the Ubaid period and before the Jemdet Nasr period. Named after ...
. However, the latter also maintained an independent identity and could be instead linked with ''
dMen'', a deity presumed to be a deified crown.
Worship
Early history
The oldest evidence for the existence of Zabalam and for the worship of its tutelary goddess comes from the
Uruk III period (c. 3100 – 2900 BCE). The name of the city was written in cuneiform logographically as MUŠ
3.UNUG, following a typical early pattern in which the combination of the name of a local deity, in this case, Inanna (MUŠ
3) and the sign "sanctuary" (UNUG) was used to render the name of city. Analogously,
Larsa
Larsa ( Sumerian logogram: UD.UNUGKI, read ''Larsamki''), also referred to as Larancha/Laranchon (Gk. Λαραγχων) by Berossos and connected with the biblical Ellasar, was an important city-state of ancient Sumer, the center of the cult ...
was rendered as
UTU
Utu (dUD "Sun"), also known under the Akkadian name Shamash, ''šmš'', syc, ܫܡܫܐ ''šemša'', he, שֶׁמֶשׁ ''šemeš'', ar, شمس ''šams'', Ashurian Aramaic: 𐣴𐣬𐣴 ''š'meš(ā)'' was the ancient Mesopotamian sun god. ...
. UNUG and
Ur -
NANNAx.UNUG. Later on the sign ZA was added as a phonetic indicator, though the writing continued to be variable until the
Old Babylonian period
The Old Babylonian Empire, or First Babylonian Empire, is dated to BC – BC, and comes after the end of Sumerian power with the destruction of the Third Dynasty of Ur, and the subsequent Isin-Larsa period. The chronology of the first dynasty ...
. The only other female tutelary deities of specific cities known from comparably early sources as Inanna of Zabalam are Inanna of Uruk,
Nanshe,
Ezina and
Nisaba
Nisaba was the Mesopotamian goddess of writing and grain. She is one of the oldest Sumerian deities attested in writing, and remained prominent through many periods of Mesopotamian history. She was commonly worshiped by scribes, and numerous Su ...
.
Third millennium BCE
Inanna of Zabalam belonged to the local pantheon of the state (later province) of
Umma
Umma ( sux, ; in modern Dhi Qar Province in Iraq, formerly also called Gishban) was an ancient city in Sumer. There is some scholarly debate about the Sumerian and Akkadian names for this site. Traditionally, Umma was identified with Tell J ...
, though as noted by Manuel Molina, her
cult likely had "supraregional" significance already in the late Uruk period. In the
Early Dynastic period she appears in the ''
zame'' hymns, and one of the strophes directly identifies her with Nin-UM, her possible earlier name.
Literary texts such as ''Inanna's Descent'' and the hymn ''Inanna F'' indicate that Inanna's
temple
A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...
in Zabalam was known as Gigunna (''Gi-gun
4ki-na''). In the
Sargonic period, it was rebuilt by
Naram-Sin or
Shar-Kali-Sharri
Shar-Kali-Sharri (, '' DShar-ka-li-Sharri''; reigned c. 2217–2193 BC middle chronology, c. 2153–2129 BC short chronology) was a king of the Akkadian Empire.
Rule
Succeeding his father Naram-Sin in c. 2217 BC, he came to the throne in an age ...
. However, only remnants of a later Old Babylonian structure have been found during excavations, last of which took part in 2001–2002 on behalf of State Board of Antiquities and Heritage of Iraq, but further research on the site is not possible due to extensive
looting in the aftermath of the
Iraq War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish)
, partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror
, image ...
rendering it "almost completely destroyed and virtually irrecoverable to archaeology." The temple was seemingly the center of economic activity of the city. Most of the documents which presumably originated in Zabalam come from the temple's archive, though
provenance is often difficult to establish due to the entire area surrounding ancient Umma and Zabalam being affected by looting.
According to textual sources in the
Ur III period
The Third Dynasty of Ur, also called the Neo-Sumerian Empire, refers to a 22nd to 21st century BC (middle chronology) Sumerian ruling dynasty based in the city of Ur and a short-lived territorial-political state which some historians consider t ...
the temple was nominally maintained by the governor of Umma, though the city of Zabalam was effectively under direct control of the royal family due to its religious and economic significance for the state. Queen
Abi-simti was known for her devotion to Inanna of Zabalam, despite not originating in this city. However, she did own a house there, and it is possible that an estate of the royal family was located nearby. Texts from Umma from the same period indicate that Inanna of Zabalam ("Nin-Zabalam") was also worshiped in the settlement ''A-ka-sal
4ki'', and mention a ''gudu
4'' priest and a herdsman in her service.
Second millennium BCE
Inanna of Zabalam retained her religious importance after the fall of the Third Dynasty of Ur, during the successive periods of the reigns of dynasties of
Isin,
Larsa
Larsa ( Sumerian logogram: UD.UNUGKI, read ''Larsamki''), also referred to as Larancha/Laranchon (Gk. Λαραγχων) by Berossos and connected with the biblical Ellasar, was an important city-state of ancient Sumer, the center of the cult ...
and
Babylon. She came to be strongly associated with the second of these three cities. A year formula of
Warad-Sin
Warad-Sin (, ARAD- Dsuen) ruled the ancient Near East city-state of Larsa from 1770 BC to 1758 BC ( short chronology). There are indications that his father Kudur-Mabuk was co-regent or at very least the power behind the throne
The phrase "power ...
of Larsa mentions the construction of a temple dedicated to her, the Ekalamtanigurru, "house which inspires dread in the land," according to
Andrew R. George possibly to be identified with the earlier structure in Zabalam rebuilt by Shar-Kali-Shari. In the city of Larsa, she and a local manifestation of Inanna, "Queen-of-Larsa," were worshiped separately from each other. Her cult involved ''maḫḫûm'' (
prophetic
In religion, a prophecy is a message that has been communicated to a person (typically called a ''prophet'') by a supernatural entity. Prophecies are a feature of many cultures and belief systems and usually contain divine will or law, or pret ...
"ecstatics"), who are otherwise sparsely attested in
southern Mesopotamia, and more commonly occur in texts from the west. Apparently both men and women could fulfill this function. Under the name Šugallītu, Inanna of Zabalam also appears in a greeting formula in a letter from this city (alongside
Shamash), in a wisdom text mentioning offerings made to her, and in theophoric names such as Ubar-Šugallītu, Warad-Šugallītu, Šugallītu-gamil (in all cases the spellings used are logographic) and Kuk-Šugallītum (the theonym is spelled syllabically; the first element is
Elamite
Elamite, also known as Hatamtite and formerly as Susian, is an extinct language that was spoken by the ancient Elamites. It was used in what is now southwestern Iran from 2600 BC to 330 BC. Elamite works disappear from the archeological record ...
).
Inanna of Zabalam was also worshiped in
Nippur,
Isin and
Uruk
Uruk, also known as Warka or Warkah, was an ancient city of Sumer (and later of Babylonia) situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates River on the dried-up ancient channel of the Euphrates east of modern Samawah, Al-Muthannā, Iraq.Harm ...
. There are also references to the worship of "Inanna-Zabalam of Uruk" in Larsa. She additionally seemingly came to be viewed as one of the tutelary deities of the city
Umma
Umma ( sux, ; in modern Dhi Qar Province in Iraq, formerly also called Gishban) was an ancient city in Sumer. There is some scholarly debate about the Sumerian and Akkadian names for this site. Traditionally, Umma was identified with Tell J ...
. Earlier this role belonged only to
Shara and
Ninura
Ninura ('' dNin-ur4(-ra)''; also transcribed Ninurra) was a Mesopotamian goddess associated with the state of Umma. The god Shara, worshiped in the same area, was regarded as her husband. She is only attested in sources from the third millennium ...
. A loan document mentions a month named after her, ITI ''na-ab-ri-ì'' (from ''nabrium'', a type of festival) ''ša su-ga-li-ti-im''. It comes from the early Old Babylonian period, though its point of origin is difficult to ascertain, and various features of the text might point at the influence of traditions of
Mari or the
Diyala area. According to Witold Tyborowski, it might have been a variant name of a month in the local calendar of
Kisurra
Kisurra (modern Tell Abu Hatab, Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate, Iraq) was an ancient Sumerian '' tell'' (hill city) situated on the west bank of the Euphrates, north of Shuruppak and due east of Kish.
History
Kisurra was established ca. 2700 BC, ...
. The theophoric element Sugallitum can be found in a single name from this city, Amat-Sugallitum.
In Zabalam itself,
Hammurabi
Hammurabi (Akkadian: ; ) was the sixth Amorite king of the Old Babylonian Empire, reigning from to BC. He was preceded by his father, Sin-Muballit, who abdicated due to failing health. During his reign, he conquered Elam and the city-states ...
of
Babylon built a temple named Ezikalamma ("house - the life of the land"), as indicated by inscribed bricks found during excavations. References to the goddess of Zabalam also occur in sources from the capital of his kingdom. A priest of Sugallîtum is attested in a text from this city from the late Old Babylonian period, in which he acts as a witness. It has been suggested that his presence in Babylon was the result of the arrival of refugees from Larsa.
After the Old Babylonian period, Zabalam was likely abandoned. However, the archives of the
First Sealand dynasty
The First Sealand dynasty, (URU.KÙKIWhere ŠEŠ-ḪA of King List A and ŠEŠ-KÙ-KI of King List B are read as URU.KÙ.KI) or the 2nd Dynasty of Babylon (although it was independent of Amorite-ruled Babylon), very speculatively c. 1732–1460 B ...
still contain references to offerings made to
dINANA NIN-SU.GAL, "Inanna-lady-of-Zabalam." According to Manfred Krebernik, a reference to ''
dŠu-gal-li-tum'' also occurs in an incantation postdating the Old Babylonian period in an enumeration of various names of Ishtar. In the ''Canonical Temple List'', most likely composed in the
Kassite period
The Kassites () were people of the ancient Near East, who controlled Babylonia after the fall of the Old Babylonian Empire c. 1531 BC and until c. 1155 BC (short chronology).
They gained control of Babylonia after the Hittite sack of Babylon ...
, cult centers of Inanna of Zabalam (referred to as Supālītum) are listed in a separate short section. They include the Etemennigurru (location unknown; entry 319), the Esusuĝarra ("house where meals are set out"), likely in Uruk (entry 320), the E.AN-kum in an unknown location (entry 321), and the Egigunna in Muru (entry 322). In a lamentation, the Esiguz, "house of goat hair," located in Guabba, is associated with her.
References
Bibliography
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{{refend
Mesopotamian goddesses
Inanna