Ninshubur (; Ninšubur, "Lady of
Subartu
The land of Subartu (Akkadian ''Šubartum/Subartum/ina Šú-ba-ri'', Assyrian '' mât Šubarri'') or Subar (Sumerian Su-bir4/Subar/Šubur, Ugaritic 𐎘𐎁𐎗 ṯbr) is mentioned in Bronze Age literature. The name also appears as ''Subari'' in ...
" or "Lady of servants"), also spelled Ninšubura, was a
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 ...
whose primary role was that of the ''
sukkal'' (divine vizier) of the goddess
Inanna
Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an List of Mesopotamian deities, ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, Divine law, divine justice, and political p ...
. While it is agreed that in this context Ninshubur was regarded as female, in other cases the deity was considered male, possibly due to
syncretism
Syncretism () is the practice of combining different beliefs and various school of thought, schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merging or religious assimilation, assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in t ...
with other divine messengers, such as
Ilabrat
Ilabrat was a Mesopotamian god who in some cases was regarded as the sukkal (attendant deity) of the sky god Anu. Evidence from the Old Assyrian period indicates that he could also be worshiped as an independent deity.
Name
Multiple etymologies ha ...
. No certain information about her genealogy is present in any known sources, and she was typically regarded as unmarried. As a ''sukkal'', she functioned both as a messenger deity and as an intercessor between other members of the pantheon and human petitioners.
Due to the belief that she could intercede with higher ranking deities, Ninshubur was popular in everyday religion, and many
theophoric name
A theophoric name (from Greek: , ''theophoros'', literally "bearing or carrying a god") embeds the word equivalent of 'god' or God's name in a person's name, reflecting something about the character of the person so named in relation to that deit ...
s invoking her and other references to personal worship are known. Her original cult center was Akkil, but in the
Early Dynastic Period she was already worshiped in nearby
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 ...
. She was also introduced to the pantheon of the state of
Lagash
Lagash (cuneiform: LAGAŠKI; Sumerian: ''Lagaš''), was an ancient city state located northwest of the junction of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and east of Uruk, about east of the modern town of Ash Shatrah, Iraq. Lagash (modern Al-Hiba) w ...
, where her cult center was
Girsu
Girsu ( Sumerian ; cuneiform ) was a city of ancient Sumer, situated some northwest of Lagash, at the site of modern Tell Telloh, Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq.
History
Girsu was possibly inhabited in the Ubaid period (5300-4800 BC), but sign ...
. Many kings of this area regarded her as their personal deity. 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 ...
she was also introduced to
Ur. Further cities where Ninshubur was worshiped include
Adab,
Nippur
Nippur (Sumerian language, Sumerian: ''Nibru'', often logogram, logographically recorded as , EN.LÍLKI, "Enlil City;"The Cambridge Ancient History: Prolegomena & Prehistory': Vol. 1, Part 1. Accessed 15 Dec 2010. Akkadian language, Akkadian: '' ...
,
Malgium
Malgium (also Malkum) is an ancient Mesopotamian city identified as Tell Yassir which thrived especially in the Middle Bronze Age, ca. 2000 BC - 1600 BC. Located on the river Tigris, south of where the Diyala River branches off and upstream of ...
, and more.
In myths, Ninshubur is portrayed as a companion of Inanna and helps her during various exploits. In ''Inanna's Descent to the Netherworld'', she is responsible for securing Inanna's return by pleading with
Enlil
Enlil, , "Lord f theWind" later known as Elil, is an ancient Mesopotamian god associated with wind, air, earth, and storms. He is first attested as the chief deity of the Sumerian pantheon, but he was later worshipped by the Akkadians, Bab ...
,
Nanna
Nanna may refer to:
*Grandmother
Mythology
* Sin (mythology), god of the moon in Sumerian mythology, also called Suen
* Nanna (Norse deity), goddess associated with the god Baldr in Norse mythology
* Nana Buluku, Fon/Dahomey androgynous deity cre ...
and
Enki
, image = Enki(Ea).jpg
, caption = Detail of Enki from the Adda Seal, an ancient Akkadian cylinder seal dating to circa 2300 BC
, deity_of = God of creation, intelligence, crafts, water, seawater, lakewater, fertility, semen, magic, mischief
...
. After being resurrected, Inanna protects her from the ''
galla'' demons sent to find someone to replace her in the land of the dead. Ninshubur's mourning is contrasted with
Dumuzi's attitude which leads to his death in this composition. In ''Inanna and Enki'', Ninshubur helps Inanna escape from Enki's servants after theft of the ''
me''.
Name
Frans Wiggermann translates Ninshubur's name as "Lady of
Subartu
The land of Subartu (Akkadian ''Šubartum/Subartum/ina Šú-ba-ri'', Assyrian '' mât Šubarri'') or Subar (Sumerian Su-bir4/Subar/Šubur, Ugaritic 𐎘𐎁𐎗 ṯbr) is mentioned in Bronze Age literature. The name also appears as ''Subari'' in ...
" or alternatively "Lady of servants" (or "Lady of Subarian servants") based on another meaning of ''šubur,'' "servant," and in reference to her role as a benevolent intercessory deity. Early translations, for example
Wilfred G. Lambert's from 1976,) which relied on two
lexical texts from the first millennium BCE explaining it as ''bel erseti'' - "lord of the earth" or "lord of the underworld" - are regarded as erroneous, as no other sources explain the meaning of ''shubur'' as ''erseti''. It is possible this uncommon understanding was based on a local tradition associating Ninshubur with
Nergal
Nergal ( Sumerian: d''KIŠ.UNU'' or ; ; Aramaic: ܢܸܪܓܲܠ; la, Nirgal) was a Mesopotamian god worshiped through all periods of Mesopotamian history, from Early Dynastic to Neo-Babylonian times, with a few attestations under indicating hi ...
. The Sumerian term Shubur or Subir (Subartu) designated areas north of Mesopotamia. Both in ancient documents and in past scholarship the terms "Subartu" and "Subarians" usually refer to
Hurrians
The Hurrians (; cuneiform: ; transliteration: ''Ḫu-ur-ri''; also called Hari, Khurrites, Hourri, Churri, Hurri or Hurriter) were a people of the Bronze Age Near East. They spoke a Hurrian language and lived in Anatolia, Syria and Northern Mes ...
. Beate Pongratz-Leisten notes that Hurrians were never regarded as outsiders in Mesopotamian sources, unlike other neighboring groups such as the
Gutians
The Guti () or Quti, also known by the derived exonyms Gutians or Guteans, were a nomadic people of West Asia, around the Zagros Mountains (Modern Iran) during ancient times. Their homeland was known as Gutium ( Sumerian: ,''Gu-tu-umki'' or ,'' ...
, most likely due to their culture also having an urban character. According to Tonia Sharlach, the inhabitants of Subartu were viewed as "neighbors whose language (and perhaps culture) were worthy of closer knowledge." It is possible that echoes of Ninshubur's association with Subartu survived as late as in the
Neo-Assyrian period
The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the fourth and penultimate stage of ancient Assyrian history and the final and greatest phase of Assyria as an independent state. Beginning with the accession of Adad-nirari II in 911 BC, the Neo-Assyrian Empire grew t ...
in texts pertaining to
Papsukkal
Papsukkal () was a Mesopotamian god regarded as the sukkal (attendant deity) of Anu and his wife Antu in Seleucid Uruk. In earlier periods he was instead associated with Zababa. He acquired his new role through syncretism with Ninshubur.
C ...
.
Two forms of Ninshubur's in the
Emesal
Sumerian is the language of ancient Sumer. It is one of the oldest attested languages, dating back to at least 3000 BC. It is accepted to be a local language isolate and to have been spoken in ancient Mesopotamia, in the area that is modern-day ...
dialect are also known, Gashanshubur (referring to the female form of this deity) and Umunshubur (referring to the male one). The theonym ''Nin-''ŠUBUR.AL, attested in documents from the
Early Dynastic period, might be either an alternate form of Ninshubur's name or a separate, though similarly named, deity. Frans Wiggermann additionally argues that sometimes the name was rendered simply as "Shubur," but this assumption is not universally accepted.
Gender
The modern consensus view among
Assyriologists
Assyriology (from Greek , ''Assyriā''; and , ''-logia'') is the archaeological, anthropological, and linguistic study of Assyria and the rest of ancient Mesopotamia (a region that encompassed what is now modern Iraq, northeastern Syria, southea ...
is that Ninshubur was always identified as a female deity when associated with
Inanna
Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an List of Mesopotamian deities, ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, Divine law, divine justice, and political p ...
. At the same time, many authors propose that Ninshubur was male when associated with
Anu. While the second millennium BCE god list ''An = Anu ša āmeli'' explains that "Ninshubur is
Papsukkal
Papsukkal () was a Mesopotamian god regarded as the sukkal (attendant deity) of Anu and his wife Antu in Seleucid Uruk. In earlier periods he was instead associated with Zababa. He acquired his new role through syncretism with Ninshubur.
C ...
when Anu is concerned," Papsukkal being the name of a male messenger deity, Frans Wiggermann argues that the only texts from the third millennium BCE which identify Ninshubur's gender state that she was a goddess, rather than a god. Gábor Zólyomi also translates a passage related to Ninshubur's role as a servant of Anu as referring to a female deity. Texts from
Lagash
Lagash (cuneiform: LAGAŠKI; Sumerian: ''Lagaš''), was an ancient city state located northwest of the junction of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and east of Uruk, about east of the modern town of Ash Shatrah, Iraq. Lagash (modern Al-Hiba) w ...
from the
Early Dynastic period refer to Ninshubur exclusively as a goddess according to Toshiko Kobayashi. According to Marcos Such-Gutiérrez, the evidence from Adab is not entirely conclusive, though might point at the female version of this deity being worshiped there too, despite attested connection to Anu.
In most
Akkadian Akkadian or Accadian may refer to:
* Akkadians, inhabitants of the Akkadian Empire
* Akkadian language, an extinct Eastern Semitic language
* Akkadian literature, literature in this language
* Akkadian cuneiform
Cuneiform is a logo- syllabi ...
texts Ninshubur was regarded as male, though it is possible exceptions did exist. According to Raphael Kutscher, Ninshubur might have been viewed as female in Malgium when worshiped alongside
Ulmašītum
Ulmašītum was a Mesopotamian goddess regarded as warlike. Her name was derived from (E-)Ulmaš, a temple in the city of Akkad dedicated to Ishtar. She was commonly associated with Annunitum, and in many texts they appear as a pair. While she or ...
, though Douglas Frayne treats this deity as male in his translation of an inscription from this location. In Old Babylonian and Kassite periods in
Nippur
Nippur (Sumerian language, Sumerian: ''Nibru'', often logogram, logographically recorded as , EN.LÍLKI, "Enlil City;"The Cambridge Ancient History: Prolegomena & Prehistory': Vol. 1, Part 1. Accessed 15 Dec 2010. Akkadian language, Akkadian: '' ...
Ninshubur was also considered female. However, whether her name on Kassite seals refers to a god or a goddess deity is presently unknown.
Uri Gabbay proposed that Ninshubur's identity was a mirror of the ''
gala
Gala may refer to:
Music
* ''Gala'' (album), a 1990 album by the English alternative rock band Lush
*'' Gala – The Collection'', a 2016 album by Sarah Brightman
*GALA Choruses, an association of LGBT choral groups
*''Gala'', a 1986 album by T ...
'' clergy, but this view is not supported by other researchers, as regardless of gender Ninshubur was never described as a ''gala'', and the only similarity between her and the class of priests was their shared ability to appease specific deities. Wolfgang Heimpel suggested another solution, namely that three separate deities shared the same name, one female (according to him found for example in association with Inanna in
Ur) and two male (one associated with Anu and yet another in
Girsu
Girsu ( Sumerian ; cuneiform ) was a city of ancient Sumer, situated some northwest of Lagash, at the site of modern Tell Telloh, Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq.
History
Girsu was possibly inhabited in the Ubaid period (5300-4800 BC), but sign ...
), with no ambiguity of gender in any case. However, the matter of Ninshubur's gender was in some cases unclear to ancient scribes, with one
Old Babylonian
Old Babylonian may refer to:
*the period of the First Babylonian dynasty (20th to 16th centuries BC)
*the historical stage of the Akkadian language
Akkadian (, Akkadian: )John Huehnergard & Christopher Woods, "Akkadian and Eblaite", ''The Camb ...
hymn (CBS 15119+) possibly being an attempt at reconciling conflicting accounts by describing Ninshubur (identified as female in this context by Frans Wiggermann) as dressed in both feminine (left side) and masculine (right side) robes.
The view that Ninshubur was male as a servant of An in Sumerian texts from the third millennium BCE relies on the widely accepted assumption that a deity's ''sukkal'' matched their gender. However,
Amasagnudi
Amasagnudi was a Mesopotamian goddess regarded as a servant of Anu and as the wife of Papsukkal. She is only known from a handful of sources, including the god list ''An = Anum'' and documents from Seleucid Uruk.
Name
The name Amasagnudi can b ...
, regarded as a goddess in known sources and in one case equated with female Ninshubur, was also said to be a ''sukkal'' of Anu in one Old Babylonian document. Ninshubur herself appears as the ''sukkal'' of Nergal instead of
Ugur or
Ishum
Ishum (Išum; possibly the masculine form of Akkadian ''išātum'', "fire") was a Mesopotamian god of Akkadian origin. He is best attested as a divine night watchman, tasked with protecting houses at night, but he was also associated with variou ...
(both of them male) in one Sumerian text dated to the Old Babylonian period.
Ninshubur was not the only Mesopotamian deity whose gender varied in ancient sources, other examples include
Ninkasi
Ninkasi was the Mesopotamian goddess of beer and brewing. It is possible that in the first millennium BCE she was known under the variant name Kurunnītu, derived from a term referring to a type of high quality beer. She was associated with both ...
(the deity of beer, female in earlier sources but at times male later on), the couple
Ninsikila
Ninsikila (or Ninsikil, 𒀭𒎏𒂖) was a Mesopotamian deity regarded as the spouse of Lisin. Early sources refer to him as male, but later on the name came to refer to a goddess instead. The change in gender might have been influenced by an as ...
and
Lisin
Lisin was a Mesopotamian deity initially regarded as a goddess and addressed as ''ama'', "mother," who later came to be regarded as a god and developed an association with fire. The name was also applied to a star associated with Nabu. Lisin's s ...
, whose genders were in some instances switched around,
Uṣur-amāssu
Uṣur-amāssu (also spelled Uṣur-awāssu or Uṣur-amāssa) was a Mesopotamian deity. While originally viewed as male, she later came to be regarded as a goddess. Regardless of gender, Uṣur-amāssu was considered as a child of Adad and Shala ...
, described as a son of
Adad
Hadad ( uga, ), Haddad, Adad ( Akkadian: 𒀭𒅎 '' DIM'', pronounced as ''Adād''), or Iškur ( Sumerian) was the storm and rain god in the Canaanite and ancient Mesopotamian religions.
He was attested in Ebla as "Hadda" in c. 2500 BCE. ...
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 ...
'' but as his daughter in sources from Uruk from the first millennium BCE, and the Venus deity
Ninsianna
Ninsianna ( Sumerian: "Red Queen of Heaven") was a Mesopotamian deity considered to be the personification of Venus. This theonym also served as the name of the planet in astronomical texts until the end of the Old Babylonian period. There is evid ...
, whose varying gender might be connected to dual role as personification of both the morning star and the evening star.
Syncretism with male deities
It has been proposed that the variance in Ninshubur's gender is related to syncretism with the male Akkadian god
Ilabrat
Ilabrat was a Mesopotamian god who in some cases was regarded as the sukkal (attendant deity) of the sky god Anu. Evidence from the Old Assyrian period indicates that he could also be worshiped as an independent deity.
Name
Multiple etymologies ha ...
. In texts from the second millennium BCE, Ninshubur and Ilabrat coexisted. It is assumed that at least some cases Ninshubur's name, when treated as masculine, was a logographic spelling of Ilabrat's, for example in
Mari in personal names. However, Ichiro Nakata nonetheless lists a single instance name from this city in which Ninshubur according to his analysis is treated as a female deity.
Ninshubur was additionally syncretised with
Papsukkal
Papsukkal () was a Mesopotamian god regarded as the sukkal (attendant deity) of Anu and his wife Antu in Seleucid Uruk. In earlier periods he was instead associated with Zababa. He acquired his new role through syncretism with Ninshubur.
C ...
, originally the ''sukkal'' of
Zababa
Zababa (Sumerian: 𒀭𒍝𒂷𒂷 dza-ba4-ba4) was the tutelary deity of the city of Kish in ancient Mesopotamia. He was a war god. While he was regarded as similar to Ninurta and Nergal, he was never fully conflated with them. His worship is at ...
, tutelary god of
Kish
Kish may refer to:
Geography
* Gishi, Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan, a village also called Kish
* Kiş, Shaki, Azerbaijan, a village and municipality also spelled Kish
* Kish Island, an Iranian island and a city in the Persian Gulf
* Kish, Iran, ...
. Papsukkal's rise to prominence at the expense of other similar figures, such as Ninshubur, was likely rooted simply in the presence of the word ''sukkal'' in his name. While an association between the two is attested in the god list ''An = Anum'' already, the conflation was only finalized in the
Seleucid
The Seleucid Empire (; grc, Βασιλεία τῶν Σελευκιδῶν, ''Basileía tōn Seleukidōn'') was a Greek state in West Asia that existed during the Hellenistic period from 312 BC to 63 BC. The Seleucid Empire was founded by the ...
period 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 ...
. Papsukkal was not worshiped in that city in earlier periods, and in contrast with Ninshubur appeared only infrequently as a family deity or in personal names, but in the context of the so-called "antiquarian theology" relying largely on god lists, which developed in Uruk under
Achaemenid
The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire (; peo, wikt:𐎧𐏁𐏂𐎶, 𐎧𐏁𐏂, , ), also called the First Persian Empire, was an History of Iran#Classical antiquity, ancient Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great in 550 BC. Bas ...
rule, he was fully identified with Ninshubur and thus became Anu's ''sukkal'' and one of the eighteen major deities of the city. The late syncretic Papsukkal was not regarded as the ''sukkal'' of Anu and Ishtar, but rather Anu and
Antu Antu may refer to:
* Antu (goddess), a goddess, in Akkadian mythology
* Antu (Mapuche mythology), the Pillan spirit in the Mapuche mythology
* Antu, India, a town in Pratapgarh District, Uttar Pradesh, India
* Antu County, in Jilin, China
* Alpha ...
as a pair instead.
Despite the syncretism leading to perception of Ninshubur as a male deity, it is possible that the goddess
Amasagnudi
Amasagnudi was a Mesopotamian goddess regarded as a servant of Anu and as the wife of Papsukkal. She is only known from a handful of sources, including the god list ''An = Anum'' and documents from Seleucid Uruk.
Name
The name Amasagnudi can b ...
, worshiped alongside Papsukkal in Seleucid Uruk, was originally an epithet of (female) Ninshubur, a manifestation of her or at least a similar goddess sharing Ninshubur's role as ''sukkal'' of Anu. Frans Wiggermann translates Amasagnudi's name as "mother who cannot be pushed aside."
Julia Krul suggests that the conflation between two deities from the court of
Enki
, image = Enki(Ea).jpg
, caption = Detail of Enki from the Adda Seal, an ancient Akkadian cylinder seal dating to circa 2300 BC
, deity_of = God of creation, intelligence, crafts, water, seawater, lakewater, fertility, semen, magic, mischief
...
, male
Isimud
Isimud (also Isinu; Usmû; Usumu ( Akkadian)) is a minor god, the sukkal of the god Enki, in Sumerian mythology.
In ancient Sumerian artwork, Isimud is easily identifiable because he is always depicted with two faces facing in opposite directi ...
and female
Ara
ARA may refer to:
Media and the arts
* American-Romanian Academy of Arts and Sciences
* '' Artistička Radna Akcija'', compilation album released in former Yugoslavia
* Associate of the Royal Academy, denoting membership in the British Royal Aca ...
, might have been influenced by the similar process involving Ninshubur.
Attributes and iconography
![Seal_of_Lugal-ushumgal_as_servant_of_Naram-Sin](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/Seal_of_Lugal-ushumgal_as_servant_of_Naram-Sin.jpg)
Ninshubur's attribute was a staff, a sign of her office as a ''sukkal'' representing right to rule granted to her by her masters, It is possible that it was believed Ninshubur therefore bestowed similar privileges upon kings. Other gods' divine viziers were depicted holding staffs too, including Alla (
Ningishzida
Ningishzida ( Sumerian: DNIN-G̃IŠ-ZID-DA, possible meaning "Lord f theGood Tree") was a Mesopotamian deity of vegetation, the underworld and sometimes war. He was commonly associated with snakes. Like Dumuzi, he was believed to spend a part ...
's),
Isimud
Isimud (also Isinu; Usmû; Usumu ( Akkadian)) is a minor god, the sukkal of the god Enki, in Sumerian mythology.
In ancient Sumerian artwork, Isimud is easily identifiable because he is always depicted with two faces facing in opposite directi ...
(
Enki
, image = Enki(Ea).jpg
, caption = Detail of Enki from the Adda Seal, an ancient Akkadian cylinder seal dating to circa 2300 BC
, deity_of = God of creation, intelligence, crafts, water, seawater, lakewater, fertility, semen, magic, mischief
...
's) and
Nuska
Nuska or Nusku, possibly also known as Našuḫ, was a Mesopotamian god best attested as the sukkal (divine vizier) of Enlil. He was also associated with fire and light, and could be invoked as a protective deity against various demons, such as La ...
(
Enlil
Enlil, , "Lord f theWind" later known as Elil, is an ancient Mesopotamian god associated with wind, air, earth, and storms. He is first attested as the chief deity of the Sumerian pantheon, but he was later worshipped by the Akkadians, Bab ...
's). A ''sukkal'' was expected to walk in front of their master, leading the way with their staff. Other objects associated with Ninshubur include doors and shoes, and her epithet in a single source is "pure minister of the
lapis lazuli
Lapis lazuli (; ), or lapis for short, is a deep-blue metamorphic rock used as a semi-precious stone that has been prized since antiquity for its intense color.
As early as the 7th millennium BC, lapis lazuli was mined in the Sar-i Sang mines, ...
shoes." According to Julia Krul, said title is bestowed upon Ninshubur by Inanna in a late variant of one of the city laments, and might reflect her "arduous travels in her lady's service."
Very few depictions of female Ninshubur have been identified with certainty, though it is possible she is the deity on seals of
Lugal-ushumgal
Lugal-ushumgal (, ''lugal-ušumgal'') was a Sumerian ruler ( ensi, formerly read "Patesi") of Lagash ("Shirpula"), circa 2230-2210 BCE. Several inscriptions of Lugal-ushumgal are known, particularly seal impressions, which refer to him as gov ...
, governor of
Lagash
Lagash (cuneiform: LAGAŠKI; Sumerian: ''Lagaš''), was an ancient city state located northwest of the junction of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and east of Uruk, about east of the modern town of Ash Shatrah, Iraq. Lagash (modern Al-Hiba) w ...
during the reigns of
Naram-Sin of Akkad
Naram-Sin, also transcribed Narām-Sîn or Naram-Suen ( akk, : '' DNa-ra-am D Sîn'', meaning "Beloved of the Moon God Sîn", the "𒀭" being a silent honorific for "Divine"), was a ruler of the Akkadian Empire, who reigned c. 2254–2218 BC ...
and his son
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 ...
. It is also known that during building rituals figures of Ninshubur were buried under temples of other gods in some cases . A letter-prayer possibly referring to a statue of Ninshubur mentions that the deity had a "face exuding allure," and describes Ninshubur's physique in terms similar to these sometimes applied to Inanna.
It has been proposed that in
Girsu
Girsu ( Sumerian ; cuneiform ) was a city of ancient Sumer, situated some northwest of Lagash, at the site of modern Tell Telloh, Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq.
History
Girsu was possibly inhabited in the Ubaid period (5300-4800 BC), but sign ...
, where Ninshubur was regarded as the wife of
Meslamtaea (
Nergal
Nergal ( Sumerian: d''KIŠ.UNU'' or ; ; Aramaic: ܢܸܪܓܲܠ; la, Nirgal) was a Mesopotamian god worshiped through all periods of Mesopotamian history, from Early Dynastic to Neo-Babylonian times, with a few attestations under indicating hi ...
), she can be identified as a goddess accompanied by his symbolic animal, the "lion-griffin," similar to how
Geshtinanna
Geshtinanna was a Mesopotamian goddess best known due to her role in myths about the death of Dumuzi, her brother. It is not certain what functions did she fulfill in the Mesopotamian pantheon, though her association with the scribal arts and dr ...
was accompanied by
mushussu, a symbol of her husband
Ningishzida
Ningishzida ( Sumerian: DNIN-G̃IŠ-ZID-DA, possible meaning "Lord f theGood Tree") was a Mesopotamian deity of vegetation, the underworld and sometimes war. He was commonly associated with snakes. Like Dumuzi, he was believed to spend a part ...
, and that on Old Babylonian seals the double lion-headed mace associated with Nergal might represent Ninshubur in the role of a deity related to him.
The constellation
Orion, known in ancient Mesopotamia as Sipazianna, "the true shepherd of heaven," was regarded as the astral symbol of Ninshubur, as well as Ilabrat and Papsukkal.
Character
Ninshubur is regarded by Assyriologists as "the earliest and most important" ''
sukkal'', linked to the deities she served "not as cause and effect, but as command and execution." Her two main functions were these of "intercessory goddess" and "archetypal vizier of the gods." She served Inanna, but also Anu and by extension the entire divine assembly. The association with Anu is known from sources from the reign of
Third Dynasty of Ur
The Third Dynasty of Ur, also called the Neo-Sumerian Empire, refers to a 22nd to 21st century Common Era, BC (middle chronology) Sumerian ruling dynasty based in the city of Ur and a short-lived territorial-political state which some historians c ...
onward, and might be a secondary development, with Inanna being her primary and original mistress. As Inanna's ''sukkal'', Ninshubur was believed to implement divine rules and regulations on her behalf. Her role as a popular intercessory deity in
Sumerian religion
Sumerian religion was the religion practiced by the people of Sumer, the first literate civilization of ancient Mesopotamia. The Sumerians regarded their divinities as responsible for all matters pertaining to the natural and social orders.
Ove ...
was derived from her position as a servant of major deities, which resulted in the belief that she was capable of mediating with her masters on behalf of human petitioners. One hymn (CBS 14073) describes her as a servant of not only her usual masters, but also
Enlil
Enlil, , "Lord f theWind" later known as Elil, is an ancient Mesopotamian god associated with wind, air, earth, and storms. He is first attested as the chief deity of the Sumerian pantheon, but he was later worshipped by the Akkadians, Bab ...
,
Enki
, image = Enki(Ea).jpg
, caption = Detail of Enki from the Adda Seal, an ancient Akkadian cylinder seal dating to circa 2300 BC
, deity_of = God of creation, intelligence, crafts, water, seawater, lakewater, fertility, semen, magic, mischief
...
,
Damgalnuna
Damgalnuna, also known as Damkina, was a Mesopotamian goddess regarded as the wife of the god Enki. Her character is poorly defined in known sources, though it is known that like her husband she was associated with ritual purification and that sh ...
,
Nanna
Nanna may refer to:
*Grandmother
Mythology
* Sin (mythology), god of the moon in Sumerian mythology, also called Suen
* Nanna (Norse deity), goddess associated with the god Baldr in Norse mythology
* Nana Buluku, Fon/Dahomey androgynous deity cre ...
,
Ningal
Ningal ( Sumerian: "Great Queen"), also known as Nikkal in Akkadian, was a Mesopotamian goddess of Sumerian origin regarded as the wife of the moon god, Nanna/Sin. She was particularly closely associated with his main cult centers, Ur and Harran, ...
,
Ninurta
, image= Cropped Image of Carving Showing the Mesopotamian God Ninurta.png
, caption= Assyrian stone relief from the temple of Ninurta at Kalhu, showing the god with his thunderbolts pursuing Anzû, who has stolen the Tablet of Destinies from En ...
,
Ninhursag
, deity_of=Mother goddess, goddess of fertility, mountains, and rulers
, image= Mesopotamian - Cylinder Seal - Walters 42564 - Impression.jpg
, caption=Akkadian cylinder seal impression depicting a vegetation goddess, possibly Ninhursag, sitting ...
and
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. ...
. Frans Wiggermann notes that Ninshubur's association with the divine assembly treated as a whole indicates that even though she shared many of her roles with another ''sukkal'',
Nuska
Nuska or Nusku, possibly also known as Našuḫ, was a Mesopotamian god best attested as the sukkal (divine vizier) of Enlil. He was also associated with fire and light, and could be invoked as a protective deity against various demons, such as La ...
, she was ultimately considered the higher ranked member of the pantheon.
In addition to her usual title, Ninshubur could also be called ''sukkal anna,'' "heavenly vizier." An inscription of
Rim-Sîn I
Rim-Sîn I ( akk, , Dri-im- Dsuen) ruled the ancient Near East city-state of Larsa from 1758 BC to 1699 BC (in short chronology) or 1822 BC to 1763 BC (middle chronology). His sister En-ane-du was high priestess of the moon god in Ur. Rim-Sin I ...
refers to her as a ''sukkalmaḫ''. According to Frans Wiggermann, while this term is attested as an administrative rank and in this context refers to an official responsible for managing the activities of multiple people holding the rank of ''sukkal'', there is no indication that it had a similar meaning when applied to deities, and in this context its use is most likely only meant to exalt the bearer. Ninshubur was also referred to as ''sukkalmaḫ'' in
Malgium
Malgium (also Malkum) is an ancient Mesopotamian city identified as Tell Yassir which thrived especially in the Middle Bronze Age, ca. 2000 BC - 1600 BC. Located on the river Tigris, south of where the Diyala River branches off and upstream of ...
, though according to Raphael Kutscher in this case the use of this title should be considered the result of
Elam
Elam (; Linear Elamite: ''hatamti''; Cuneiform Elamite: ; Sumerian: ; Akkadian: ; he, עֵילָם ''ʿēlām''; peo, 𐎢𐎺𐎩 ''hūja'') was an ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of modern-day Iran, stretc ...
ite cultural influence. Ninshubur could also be referred to as SAL.ḪÚB
2. This term is sparsely attested, and it assumed that it referred to a deity considered to be a ''sukkal'' who was viewed as emotionally close to their lord or lady. In most of cases SAL.ḪÚB
2 appears in parallel with "sukkal." Ninshubur is the only deity referred to as SAL.ḪÚB
2 in more than one or two sources, with seven instances known as of 2014. One of them is an Old Babylonian dedicatory inscription from the reign of
Samsu-iluna
Samsu-iluna (Amorite: ''Shamshu''; c. 1750–1712 BC) was the seventh king of the founding Amorite dynasty of Babylon, ruling from 1750 BC to 1712 BC (middle chronology), or from 1686 to 1648 BC ( short chronology). He was the son and successor of ...
. In another text, she is the "beloved SAL.ḪÚB
2 of Inanna," and appears in a short list of members of her family right after
Dumuzi.
A number of references to Ninshubur as the "mother of the land" are known. A theological text composed during the reign of the Third Dynasty of Ur states that "Ninshubur occupies the land" and includes her among the highest ranking gods, alongside Enlil,
Ninlil
Ninlil ( D NIN.LÍL; meaning uncertain) was a Mesopotamian goddess regarded as the wife of Enlil. She shared many of his functions, especially the responsibility for declaring destinies, and like him was regarded as a senior deity and head of the ...
, Nanna, Inanna, Enki,
Nergal
Nergal ( Sumerian: d''KIŠ.UNU'' or ; ; Aramaic: ܢܸܪܓܲܠ; la, Nirgal) was a Mesopotamian god worshiped through all periods of Mesopotamian history, from Early Dynastic to Neo-Babylonian times, with a few attestations under indicating hi ...
, Ninurta and Nuska. The deified hero
Gilgamesh
sux, , label=none
, image = Hero lion Dur-Sharrukin Louvre AO19862.jpg
, alt =
, caption = Possible representation of Gilgamesh as Master of Animals, grasping a lion in his left arm and snake in his right hand, in an Assyr ...
appears in it as well, seemingly to elevate his standing among gods due to his role in the royal ideology of that time period. Gábor Zólyomi notes that the one known hymn focusing on Ninshubur in the role of "mother of the land" (BL 195, known from the tablet Ash. 1911.326 from the
Ashmolean Museum
The Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology () on Beaumont Street, Oxford, England, is Britain's first public museum. Its first building was erected in 1678–1683 to house the cabinet of curiosities that Elias Ashmole gave to the University of ...
) employs multiple
topoi
In mathematics, a topos (, ; plural topoi or , or toposes) is a category that behaves like the category of sheaves of sets on a topological space (or more generally: on a site). Topoi behave much like the category of sets and possess a noti ...
related to abundance in
Sumerian literature
Sumerian literature constitutes the earliest known corpus of recorded literature, including the religious writings and other traditional stories maintained by the Sumerian civilization and largely preserved by the later Akkadian and Babylonian em ...
, for example building of cattle pens and sheepfolds under her command, otherwise not associated with her. Another hymn (CBS 14073) mentions both her role as a divine vizier and that of "mother of the land." In addition to this metaphorical role, Ninshubur was also referred to as a "mother" in personal names. However, references to her as an actual "birth mother" are uncommon and unusual according to Julia M. Asher-Greve.
Some hymns indicate that the role of a divine healer was occasionally ascribed to Ninshubur.
Association with other deities
No clear evidence exists regarding Ninshubur's parentage. In early sources she usually did not have a spouse.
Ninshubur and Inanna
Ninshubur, under the variant name Nin-Akkil ("lady of Akkil"), is already regarded as a servant of Inanna in the ''zami'' hymn from
Early Dynastic Abu Salabikh
The low tells at Abu Salabikh, around northwest of the site of ancient Nippur in Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate, Iraq mark the site of a small Sumerian city state of the mid third millennium BCE, with cultural connections to the cities of Kish, ...
. Frans Wiggermann describes the relation between them as very close. It was believed that Inanna bestowed Ninshubur's titles upon her and made her a ''sukkal''. In one text, Inanna addressed Ninshubur endearingly as "my mother." In another, she is called the "beloved vizier" and appears right after
Dumuzi and before other relatives. Ninshubur was regarded as a guardian of Inanna's secrets and as her adviser, though according to one text the latter could scoff at offered advice, both incorrect and correct. Ninshubur was also capable of "appeasing" Inanna, and one of her epithets was "who flatters the heart of Inanna." Various epithets related to this function are preserved 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 ...
''. Additionally, a temple dedicated to her whose location is not presently known bore the name E-šatezu, "house which knows the soothing of the heart." It is attested in a hymn dedicated to king
Shulgi
Shulgi ( dŠulgi, formerly read as Dungi) of Ur was the second king of the Third Dynasty of Ur. He reigned for 48 years, from c. 2094 – c. 2046 BC (Middle Chronology) or possibly c. 2030 – 1982 BC ( Short Chronology). His accomplishme ...
, though it is uncertain if it corresponds to structures dedicated to Ninshubur mentioned in texts from his reign.
The role of a mediator between a major deity and worshipers played by Ninshubur in the cult of Inanna has been compared to that played by the spouses of other major gods, for example
Aya in the relation to
Shamash
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. ...
or
Shala
Shala (Šala) was a Mesopotamian goddess of weather and grain and the wife of the weather god Adad. It is assumed that she originated in northern Mesopotamia and that her name might have Hurrian origin. She was worshiped especially in Karkar a ...
in relation to
Adad
Hadad ( uga, ), Haddad, Adad ( Akkadian: 𒀭𒅎 '' DIM'', pronounced as ''Adād''), or Iškur ( Sumerian) was the storm and rain god in the Canaanite and ancient Mesopotamian religions.
He was attested in Ebla as "Hadda" in c. 2500 BCE. ...
.
Sumerian literary catalogs list at least 7 hymns dedicated to Ninshubur which based on surviving incipits described her lamenting over something that happened to Inanna.
Ninshubur and ''Lamma'' goddesses
Ninshubur was associated with the
Lamma class of goddesses, likely due to their shared role in intercession between mortals and higher ranking gods. An association with Lamma was also attributed to
Nanaya
Nanaya (Sumerian language, Sumerian , Dingir, DNA.NA.A; also transcribed as "Nanāy", "Nanaja", "Nanāja", '"Nanāya", or "Nanai"; antiquated transcription: "Nanâ"; in Greek language, Greek: ''Ναναια'' or ''Νανα''; Aramaic: ''ננױ ...
, regarded as "lady of Lamma." She was viewed as a servant of Inanna much like Ninshubur, and in god lists, 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 ...
, she usually appears after the latter, before any further related deities (such as
Kanisurra,
Gazbaba
Gazbaba, also known as Kazbaba or Kazba, was a Mesopotamian goddess closely associated with Inanna, Nanaya and Kanisurra. Like them, she was connected with love and eroticism.
Name and character
Gazbaba's name is most likely derived from the Akk ...
or
Bizilla
Bizilla (also spelled Bizila) was a Mesopotamian goddess closely associated with Nanaya and like her sometimes listed alongside courtiers of Inanna. However, she is also attested in connection with Ninlil, and it is assumed that she was viewed as ...
).
Julia M. Asher-Greve explains the purpose of Lamma as that of "protective and tutelary goddesses" and notes that they are the figures most commonly appearing in so-called "presentation scenes" in ancient Mesopotamian art, in which a minor goddess (Lamma) leads a human to a seated major deity. Lamma could also be a designation for specific goddesses in contexts in which their functions were analogous to these usually fulfilled by this category of deities, with Gudea occasionally calling the
Anuna (a collective term for the major deities) gods "Lamma of all countries." The nature of Lamma can be compared to that of the modern concept of
guardian angel
A guardian angel is a type of angel that is assigned to protect and guide a particular person, group or nation. Belief in tutelary beings can be traced throughout all antiquity. The idea of angels that guard over people played a major role in A ...
.
Other associations
In
Girsu
Girsu ( Sumerian ; cuneiform ) was a city of ancient Sumer, situated some northwest of Lagash, at the site of modern Tell Telloh, Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq.
History
Girsu was possibly inhabited in the Ubaid period (5300-4800 BC), but sign ...
, Ninshubur was the spouse of
Meslamtaea, a name used to refer to
Nergal
Nergal ( Sumerian: d''KIŠ.UNU'' or ; ; Aramaic: ܢܸܪܓܲܠ; la, Nirgal) was a Mesopotamian god worshiped through all periods of Mesopotamian history, from Early Dynastic to Neo-Babylonian times, with a few attestations under indicating hi ...
in early sources from southern Mesopotamian cities. Marcos Such-Gutiérrez notes that it is possible that this tradition was also known in
Adab, where Ninshubur appears alongside Meslamtaea in two lists of offerings. Frans Wiggermann notes that the pairing of Nergal with Ninshubur is unusual, as she was the only goddess sometimes regarded as his wife who had a well defined role other than that of his spouse, the other exception being
Ereshkigal
In Mesopotamian mythology, Ereshkigal ( sux, , lit. "Queen of the Great Earth") was the goddess of Kur, the land of the dead or underworld in Sumerian religion, Sumerian mythology. In later myths, she was said to rule Irkalla alongside her husb ...
. He assumes that since many of Nergal's attested spouses, such as
Mammitum
Mammitum, Mammitu or Mammi was a Mesopotamian goddess viewed as the wife of Nergal, the god of death. Mammitum's name might mean “oath” or “frost” (based on similarity to the Akkadian word ''mammû'', "ice" or "frost"). In the earliest ...
or Admu, were possibly associated with the earth, this role of Ninshubur was tied to her function as "lady of the earth." No other examples of Ninshubur being regarded as another deity's wife are known. A single source refers to Ninshubur as Nergal's ''sukkal'' rather than wife. Dina Katz on the basis of the connection between those two deities suggests that a tradition connecting Ninshubur to the
underworld
The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underworld.
...
might have existed in early periods, but notes that no potential references to it occur in any sources postdating the Old Babylonian period.
In
Mari Kakka, a local healing goddess, attested only in personal names, was associated with Ninshubur, but also with the medicine goddess
Ninkarrak
Ninkarrak ( akk, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒋼𒀀𒊏𒀝, '' dnin-kar-ra-ak'') was a goddess of medicine worshiped chiefly in northern Mesopotamia and Syria. It has been proposed that her name originates in either Akkadian or an unidentified substrate lang ...
. This deity most likely should be regarded as distinct from
Kakka
Kakka was a Mesopotamian god best known as the sukkal (attendant deity or divine messenger) of Anu and Anshar. His cult center was Maškan-šarrum, most likely located in the north of modern Iraq on the banks of the Tigris.
A deity named Kakka ...
, the ''sukkal'' of
Anshar
Anshar, also spelled Anšar ( Sumerian: , Neo-Assyrian: , meaning "whole heaven"), was a primordial god in the Babylonian creation myth Enuma Elish. His consort is Kishar which means "Whole Earth". They were the children of Lahamu and Lahmu an ...
, known from the god list ''An = Anum'', where the medicine goddess Kakka appears separately in Ninkarrak's section, and from the later myth
Enuma Elish. Ninshubur was identified with the latter Kakka in ''An = Anum'' but only in the specific role of "one who holds the great scepter."
A single Old Babylonian letter associates Ninshubur with Lugalnamtarra, a deity possibly analogous to
Namtar
Namtar ( sux, , lit=fate) was a figure in ancient Mesopotamian religion who, depending on the context, could be regarded both as a minor god and as a demon of disease. He is best attested as the sukkal (attendant deity) of Ereshkigal, the goddess ...
, and invokes both of them to bless the recipient. Lugalnamtarra, as well as a deity whose name was written as
dSUKKAL, who according to Odette Boivin might be analogous to Ninshubur, both appear in association with Shamash in texts from 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 ...
in place of his usual attendants (such as
Bunene The ancient Mesopotamian deity Bunene, inscribed in cuneiform sumerograms as dḪAR and phonetically as d''bu-ne-ne'', was a subordinate to and '' sukkal'' ("vizier") or charioteer of the sun-god Šamaš, whom he drove from the eastern horizon at da ...
).
Akurduana, one of the kings of Sealand, included the title "servant of Utu and Ninshubur" in his royal titulature. In
Isin
Isin (, modern Arabic: Ishan al-Bahriyat) is an archaeological site in Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate, Iraq. Excavations have shown that it was an important city-state in the past.
History of archaeological research
Ishan al-Bahriyat was visited b ...
, Ninshubur was seemingly instead incorporated into the entourage of the medicine goddess
Ninisina
Ninisina ( Sumerian: "Mistress of Isin") was a Mesopotamian goddess who served as the tutelary deity of the city of Isin. She was considered a healing deity. She was believed to be skilled in the medical arts, and could be described as a divine ph ...
. Frans Wiggermann states an attestation of Ninshubur appearing alongside
Alammuš in the court of Nanna is also known. In
Malgium
Malgium (also Malkum) is an ancient Mesopotamian city identified as Tell Yassir which thrived especially in the Middle Bronze Age, ca. 2000 BC - 1600 BC. Located on the river Tigris, south of where the Diyala River branches off and upstream of ...
in the Old Babylonian period, she seemingly fulfilled the role of a sukkal in relation to
Ulmašītum
Ulmašītum was a Mesopotamian goddess regarded as warlike. Her name was derived from (E-)Ulmaš, a temple in the city of Akkad dedicated to Ishtar. She was commonly associated with Annunitum, and in many texts they appear as a pair. While she or ...
.
In a greeting formula in a latter from Old Babylonian
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 cul ...
, Ninshubur is paired with the otherwise unknown goddess Mārat-ūmi, "daughter of the day" or "daughter of the storm". In a single incantation dated to the end of the third millennium BCE, possibly a part of a building ritual, she appears alongside the divine potter
Nunura
Nunura (also transcribed Nunurra) was a Mesopotamian god regarded as a divine potter. He was also associated with apotriopaic magic and exorcisms, and in multiple incantations he is invoked against demons. Late god lists equate him with Ea, wh ...
. She is rare in magical texts otherwise, though she is attested in an incantation from the Ur III period alongside
Asalluhi
In Sumerian and Akkadian mythology Asaruludu is one of the Anunnaki. His name is also spelled Namshub, Asarludu, and Asarluhi (). The etymology and meaning of his name are unclear.
Asaruludu served as an exorcist in Sumerian religious rituals.. ...
, and in a late liver omen text "hand of Ninshubur" is listed one of the possible diagnoses.
Worship
There is also evidence for creation of cult statues and votive offerings dedicated to Ninshubur from various locations in the Early Dynastic period already. Due to her intercessory role, she was popular in the sphere of personal worship, for example as a family deity. She was also among the deities invoked in
theophoric name
A theophoric name (from Greek: , ''theophoros'', literally "bearing or carrying a god") embeds the word equivalent of 'god' or God's name in a person's name, reflecting something about the character of the person so named in relation to that deit ...
s in many periods. Sometimes her title ''sukkal anna,'' written with a
dingir
''Dingir'' (, usually transliterated DIĜIR, ) is a Sumerian word for "god" or "goddess". Its cuneiform sign is most commonly employed as the determinative for religious names and related concepts, in which case it is not pronounced and is con ...
sign in front of it like
theonyms, was used in them too.
Akkil, Uruk and Badtibira
Akkil, where Ninshubur was associated with
Inanna
Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an List of Mesopotamian deities, ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, Divine law, divine justice, and political p ...
, was considered her primary cult center. Nin-Akkil ("lady of Akkil"), a name found in documents from the
Early Dynastic period and from the reign of
Third Dynasty of Ur
The Third Dynasty of Ur, also called the Neo-Sumerian Empire, refers to a 22nd to 21st century Common Era, BC (middle chronology) Sumerian ruling dynasty based in the city of Ur and a short-lived territorial-political state which some historians c ...
, likely refers to her. She is the goddess of this location in the ''Temple Hymns'', though
Walther Sallaberger
Walther Sallaberger (born 3 April 1963 in Innsbruck) is an Austrian Assyriologist.
From 1982 to 1988, Walther Sallaberger studied languages and cultures of the ancient Near East as well as classical archeology at the University of Innsbruck. He ...
notes that she can be considered one of the members of a group of deities associated with
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 ...
in this context nonetheless, similar to
Dumuzi and
Ningirima
Ningirima was a Mesopotamian goddess associated with incantations, attested already in the Early Dynastic period. She was also associated with snakes, fish and water. According to the god list ''An = Anum'' and other sources, she was regarded as ...
. Frans Wiggermann is uncertain if Akkil should be interpreted as a town or as a
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 ...
, and favors the latter interpretation due to lack of references to it in ecnomic texts, but
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 ...
in a more recent publication concludes it was a town located close to
Bad-tibira
Bad-tibira ( Sumerian: , bad3-tibiraki), "Wall of the Copper Worker(s)", or "Fortress of the Smiths", identified as modern Tell al-Madineh (also Tell Madineh), between Ash Shatrah and Tell as-Senkereh (ancient Larsa) in southern Iraq, was an ancien ...
. Ninshubur's temple located in that settlement was E-(a)akkil, whose name has been translated as "house of lamentation" by
Andrew R. George. The city is to be distinguished from a temple of
Papsukkal
Papsukkal () was a Mesopotamian god regarded as the sukkal (attendant deity) of Anu and his wife Antu in Seleucid Uruk. In earlier periods he was instead associated with Zababa. He acquired his new role through syncretism with Ninshubur.
C ...
in
Kish
Kish may refer to:
Geography
* Gishi, Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan, a village also called Kish
* Kiş, Shaki, Azerbaijan, a village and municipality also spelled Kish
* Kish Island, an Iranian island and a city in the Persian Gulf
* Kish, Iran, ...
also known as Akkil, and a from a sanctuary of
Manungal
Nungal ( sux, d''Nun-gal'', "great princess"), also known as Manungal and possibly Bēlet-balāṭi, was the Mesopotamian goddess of prisons, sometimes also associated with the underworld. She was worshiped especially in the Ur III period in ci ...
, the goddess of prisons, also bearing such a name. A number of objects dedicated to "Ninshubur of Akkil" are known, including artifacts from the Early Dynastic period and a vessel inscribed by a ''sanga'' priests of Inanna from Uruk in the Ur III period.
In the Early Dynastic period Ninshubur's cult was already established in Uruk, as indicated by votive inscriptions, and it is considered possible that it was transferred there from Akkil. She continues to appear in sources from this city in the Ur III period, when
Shulgi
Shulgi ( dŠulgi, formerly read as Dungi) of Ur was the second king of the Third Dynasty of Ur. He reigned for 48 years, from c. 2094 – c. 2046 BC (Middle Chronology) or possibly c. 2030 – 1982 BC ( Short Chronology). His accomplishme ...
built a new temple dedicated to her there. A year name of either this king or his predecessor
Ur-Nammu
Ur-Nammu (or Ur-Namma, Ur-Engur, Ur-Gur, Sumerian: , ruled c. 2112 BC – 2094 BC middle chronology, or possibly c. 2048–2030 BC short chronology) founded the Sumerian Third Dynasty of Ur, in southern Mesopotamia, following several centuries ...
mentions the building of a ""temple kitchen of Ninshubur, which might be related to a foundation tablet dedicated to her from Uruk, though this remains uncertain.
A document from the reign of
Shu-Sin
Shu-Sin, also Šu-Suen ( akk, : '' DŠu D Sîn'', after the Moon God Sîn", the "𒀭" being a silent honorific for "Divine", formerly read Gimil-Sin) was king of Sumer and Akkad, and was the penultimate king of the Ur III dynasty. He succeeded ...
indicates that Ninshubur was also worshiped in Bad-tibira.
Lagash and Girsu
![Sacrifice_AO29968_mp3h9034](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/04/Sacrifice_AO29968_mp3h9034.jpg)
Ninshubur is well attested in sources from the state of
Lagash
Lagash (cuneiform: LAGAŠKI; Sumerian: ''Lagaš''), was an ancient city state located northwest of the junction of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and east of Uruk, about east of the modern town of Ash Shatrah, Iraq. Lagash (modern Al-Hiba) w ...
. Offerings were typically made to her in the city of
Girsu
Girsu ( Sumerian ; cuneiform ) was a city of ancient Sumer, situated some northwest of Lagash, at the site of modern Tell Telloh, Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq.
History
Girsu was possibly inhabited in the Ubaid period (5300-4800 BC), but sign ...
. She was already worshiped there when the area was under the rule of
Lugalanda
Lugalanda, also Lugal-anda ( sux, ) was a Sumerian king of Lagash during the 24th century BC.
Lugalanda was the son of the high priest of Lagash, who appointed him as king. At this time the high priests of Lagash were very influential, and ei ...
(around 2400 BCE), during whose reign she was celebrated during festivals of
Nanshe
Nanshe ( sux, ) was a Mesopotamian goddess in various contexts associated with the sea, marshlands, the animals inhabiting these biomes, namely bird and fish, as well as divination, dream interpretation, justice, social welfare, and certain admin ...
and
Ningirsu
, image= Cropped Image of Carving Showing the Mesopotamian God Ninurta.png
, caption= Assyrian stone relief from the temple of Ninurta at Kalhu, showing the god with his thunderbolts pursuing Anzû, who has stolen the Tablet of Destinies from En ...
and received offerings from the king's wife, Barnamtarra. There is no evidence pertaining to Ninshubur from the reign of Lugalanda's predecessor
Enentarzi
Enentarzi (, ''en-en₃-tar-zid'', also , ''en-e-tar-zi'' was '' Ensi'' (governor) of Lagash. He was originally a chief-priest of Lagash for the god Ningirsu.
He succeed Enannatum II who only had a short reign and was the last representative of t ...
, which makes it possible she a deity worshiped by commoners at first, and only started to receive offerings from the official administration during the period of the latter monarch's rule. A temple dedicated to her, E-ešbarmeluḫḫa, "house of decisions which cleans the ''
me''," existed in Girsu. It is possible, though not certain, that E-mekilibbasagil, "house which lifts on high all the ''me''," known from later royal inscriptions, was also located in this city.
A later ruler of Lagash,
Urukagina
Uru-ka-gina, Uru-inim-gina, or Iri-ka-gina ( sux, ; 24th century BC, middle chronology) was King of the city-states of Lagash and Girsu in Mesopotamia, and the last ruler of the 1st Dynasty of Lagash. He assumed the title of king, claiming to ...
, regarded Ninshubur as his personal deity. In offering lists from his reign she was placed above Mesandu, who possibly had an analogous role during the reigns of earlier local kings.
Puzer-Mama
Puzer-Mama or Puzur-Mama (, ''puzur4- Dma-ma'') was a ruler of Lagash before Gudea, circa 2200 BCE. Though he adopted the title of King (''lugal''), Puzer-Mama shows kinship with future Lagashite kings in the religiosity of his inscriptions.
He t ...
, who ruled Lagash around 2200 BCE, mentions Ninshubur in his royal inscriptions, possibly in reference to Urukagina's reverence for her, as it is likely that they came from the same family and thus shared the same personal goddess, though he might also have considered her a divine mediator guaranteeing Lagash its territorial rights, regained from Akkadian rulers. Another ruler of Lagash who regarded her as his personal goddess was
Nammahani, brother in law of
Gudea
Gudea ( Sumerian: , ''Gu3-de2-a'') was a ruler ('' ensi'') of the state of Lagash in Southern Mesopotamia, who ruled circa 2080–2060 BC ( short chronology) or 2144-2124 BC (middle chronology). He probably did not come from the city, but had marr ...
. Gudea himself referred to Ninshubur as his ''
nin'' ("mistress"). Statues dedicated for the life of a ruler to Ninshubur and to
Ningishzida
Ningishzida ( Sumerian: DNIN-G̃IŠ-ZID-DA, possible meaning "Lord f theGood Tree") was a Mesopotamian deity of vegetation, the underworld and sometimes war. He was commonly associated with snakes. Like Dumuzi, he was believed to spend a part ...
are also known from the periods of Nammahani's and
Ur-Ningirsu II's rule.
Only a single theophoric name invoking Ninshubur is known from the Lagash area, Ninshubur-amamu ("Ninshubur is my mother").
Ur and Enegi
Ninshubur is first attested in
Ur in the Ur III period. E-ninbitum ("house fit for a lady"), a temple dedicated to her, or according to Wolfgang Heimpel a cella in Inanna's temple, is attested in texts from this city. It might be the same temple as E-aggasummmu, "house which gives decrees," also presumed to be located in Ur.
Shulgi
Shulgi ( dŠulgi, formerly read as Dungi) of Ur was the second king of the Third Dynasty of Ur. He reigned for 48 years, from c. 2094 – c. 2046 BC (Middle Chronology) or possibly c. 2030 – 1982 BC ( Short Chronology). His accomplishme ...
referred to her as "mistress." However, she does not appear in the official cultic calendars and offering lists from this location from the reign of his dynasty, despite being a popular deity, which according to Julia M. Asher-Greve can be compared to
Nanshe
Nanshe ( sux, ) was a Mesopotamian goddess in various contexts associated with the sea, marshlands, the animals inhabiting these biomes, namely bird and fish, as well as divination, dream interpretation, justice, social welfare, and certain admin ...
's position in the local pantheon. References to "Ninshubur of
Enegi" appear in texts from Ur as well. It has been suggested she was introduced to the latter city from Uruk, as the local pantheon included other typically Urukean deities as well, such as the demigod
Gilgamesh
sux, , label=none
, image = Hero lion Dur-Sharrukin Louvre AO19862.jpg
, alt =
, caption = Possible representation of Gilgamesh as Master of Animals, grasping a lion in his left arm and snake in his right hand, in an Assyr ...
and his mother
Ninsun
Ninsun (also called Ninsumun, cuneiform: dNIN.SUMUN2; Sumerian: ''Nin-sumun(ak)'' "lady of the wild cows") was a Mesopotamian goddess. She is best known as the mother of the hero Gilgamesh and wife of deified legendary king Lugalbanda, and appea ...
. References to her receiving offerings there appear in texts from
Puzrish-Dagan
Puzrish-Dagan (modern Drehem) is an important archaeological site in Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate (Iraq). It is best-known for the thousands of clay tablets that are known to have come from the site through looting during the early twentieth century ...
too. In one case, Ninshubur of Enegi is called the "small Ninshubur" (Ninshubur-banda), in contrast with Ninshubur of Akkil or Uruk, referred to as "great Ninshubur" (Ninshubur-gula).
During excavations of Ur, chapels of Ninshubur and
Hendursaga
Hendursaga (, Dḫendur-saŋ), also spelled Hendursanga or EndursagaMichael Jordan, ''Encyclopedia of Gods''p. 75 Facts on File, 1993 (, Dḫendur-saŋ-ŋa2) was a Mesopotamian god. He was regarded as a divine night watchman. He was commonly ...
, as well as votive objects to dedicated to them from
Isin-Larsa period
The Isin-Larsa period (circa 2025-1763 BCE, Middle Chronology, or 1961-1699 BCE, Short Chronology) is a phase in the history of ancient Mesopotamia, which extends between the end of the Third Dynasty of Ur and the conquest of Mesopotamia by King ...
have been found. It is uncertain if a statue found in the Ninshubur chapel represents any deity, or a human. for example a princess or ''
en'' priestess, though it has been noted that she lacks the horned crown associated with divinity. A letter-prayer to Ninshubur (UET 6/1, 7) which indicates that such texts were presented to a statue of the deity, is also assumed to be from Ur, though it is regarded as likely that it was sent by a king 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 cul ...
, possibly
Rim-Sîn I
Rim-Sîn I ( akk, , Dri-im- Dsuen) ruled the ancient Near East city-state of Larsa from 1758 BC to 1699 BC (in short chronology) or 1822 BC to 1763 BC (middle chronology). His sister En-ane-du was high priestess of the moon god in Ur. Rim-Sin I ...
. Records indicate that he built temples of both female and male Ninshubur. In an inscription commemorating the building of a temple of Ninshubur in Ur, he refers to this deity as a goddess, while in a later one commemorating the defeat of Uruk - as a god. It is likely he was particularly devoted to this deity.
Other cities
Ninshubur appears in sources from
Nippur
Nippur (Sumerian language, Sumerian: ''Nibru'', often logogram, logographically recorded as , EN.LÍLKI, "Enlil City;"The Cambridge Ancient History: Prolegomena & Prehistory': Vol. 1, Part 1. Accessed 15 Dec 2010. Akkadian language, Akkadian: '' ...
in the Early Dynastic period already, and it is possible she was introduced to the local pantheon directly from Akkil, like in the case of Uruk. In the Old Babylonian period, she received offerings in the temple complexes of
Enlil
Enlil, , "Lord f theWind" later known as Elil, is an ancient Mesopotamian god associated with wind, air, earth, and storms. He is first attested as the chief deity of the Sumerian pantheon, but he was later worshipped by the Akkadians, Bab ...
and
Ninurta
, image= Cropped Image of Carving Showing the Mesopotamian God Ninurta.png
, caption= Assyrian stone relief from the temple of Ninurta at Kalhu, showing the god with his thunderbolts pursuing Anzû, who has stolen the Tablet of Destinies from En ...
. Her temple in this city was Eakkilduku, "house of lamentation, the pure mound." It is possible it can be identified with a nameless sanctuary mentioned in an inscription dated to the reign of
Ibbi-Sin
Ibbi-Sin ( sux, , ), son of Shu-Sin, was king of Sumer and Akkad and last king of the Ur III dynasty, and reigned c. 2028–2004 BCE ( Middle chronology) or possibly c. 1964–1940 BCE (Short chronology). During his rei ...
.
Since before the
Sargonic period, Ninshubur was also present in the pantheon of
Adab.
Meskigal
Meskigal ( sux, , ''mes-ki-g̃al₂-la'') was a Sumerian ruler of the Mesopotamian city of Adab in the mid-3rd millennium BCE, probably circa 2350 BCE. He was contemporary with Lugal-zage-si and the founder of the Akkadian Empire, Sargon of Ak ...
, a ruler of this city, considered her his personal deity and dedicated a statue to her for the life of himself, his wife and children. A document dealing with distribution of bread to the Adab's temples indicates that one of them was dedicated to Ninshubur, and that its staff included a ''nin-dingir'' priestess. While Ninshubur's position in offering lists indicates she was a major deity in the local pantheon, very few theophoric names invoking her are attested.
Ninshubur is also attested in Early Dynastic texts from
Shuruppak, the cult center of
Sud. In
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 ...
, she was worshiped alongside
Inanna of Zabalam
Inanna of Zabalam (also Supālītum, Sugallītu, Nin-Zabalam) was a hypostasis of the Mesopotamian goddess Inanna associated with the city of Zabalam. It has been proposed that she was initially a separate deity, perhaps known under the name Nin- ...
.
According to Jennie Myers, Ninshubur is also attested in Sippar, where the theonym according to her should be read phonetically in Sumerian names, and as "Ilabrat" in less common Akkadian ones. The worship of Ninshubur in this city is no longer attested after the reign of
Sin-Muballit
Sin-Muballit was the father of Hammurabi and the fifth Amorite king of the first dynasty (the ''Amorite Dynasty'') of Babylonia, reigning c. 1813-1792 or 1748-1729 BC (see Chronology of the Ancient Near East). He ruled over a relatively new and ...
. The reasons behind this are unknown.
In
Malgium
Malgium (also Malkum) is an ancient Mesopotamian city identified as Tell Yassir which thrived especially in the Middle Bronze Age, ca. 2000 BC - 1600 BC. Located on the river Tigris, south of where the Diyala River branches off and upstream of ...
, a kingdom located to the south of
Eshnunna
Eshnunna (modern Tell Asmar in Diyala Governorate, Iraq) was an ancient Sumerian (and later Akkadian) city and city-state in central Mesopotamia 12.6 miles northwest of Tell Agrab and 15 miles northwest of Tell Ishchali. Although situated in th ...
, Ninshubur was worshiped in a temple built by the local king Takil-ilissu in the Old Babylonian period. An inscription states that various festivals dedicated to this deity were held in the courtyard of the temple of
Ulmašītum
Ulmašītum was a Mesopotamian goddess regarded as warlike. Her name was derived from (E-)Ulmaš, a temple in the city of Akkad dedicated to Ishtar. She was commonly associated with Annunitum, and in many texts they appear as a pair. While she or ...
, which bore the ceremonial name Emaš (possibly erroneous writing of Eulmaš). In the same text Ninshubur is invoked in a curse formula alongside Anu, Ulmašītum,
Annunitum
Annunitum () or Anunītu was a Mesopotamian goddess of war. While initially she functioned as an epithet of Ishtar (Sumerian Inanna), she started to develop into a separate deity in the final years of the Sargonic period and through the Ur III per ...
, and the lions Dan-bītum and Rašub-bītum to guarantee that nobody removes Takil-ilissu's name from the foundation of the temple.
Other cities where Ninshubur was worshiped include
Akkad Akkad may refer to:
*Akkad (city), the capital of the Akkadian Empire
*Akkadian Empire, the first ancient empire of Mesopotamia
*Akkad SC, Iraqi football club
People with the name
*Abbas el-Akkad, Egyptian writer
*Abdulrahman Akkad, Syrian LGBT act ...
(in the Sargonic period),
Isin
Isin (, modern Arabic: Ishan al-Bahriyat) is an archaeological site in Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate, Iraq. Excavations have shown that it was an important city-state in the past.
History of archaeological research
Ishan al-Bahriyat was visited b ...
,
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 cul ...
,
Mari and Nerebtum (possibly
Tell Ishchali
Tell Ishchali (also Iščāli or Šaǧālī) an archaeological site in Diyala Province (Iraq). It is thought to be ancient Nerebtum or Kiti and was part of the city-state of Eshnunna. It was occupied during the Old Babylonian period.
Ancient name
...
) in the Old Babylonian period, and later on
Babylon
''Bābili(m)''
* sux, 𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠
* arc, 𐡁𐡁𐡋 ''Bāḇel''
* syc, ܒܒܠ ''Bāḇel''
* grc-gre, Βαβυλών ''Babylṓn''
* he, בָּבֶל ''Bāvel''
* peo, 𐎲𐎠𐎲𐎡𐎽𐎢 ''Bābiru''
* elx, 𒀸𒁀𒉿𒇷 ''Babi ...
and
Kish
Kish may refer to:
Geography
* Gishi, Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan, a village also called Kish
* Kiş, Shaki, Azerbaijan, a village and municipality also spelled Kish
* Kish Island, an Iranian island and a city in the Persian Gulf
* Kish, Iran, ...
, but it is difficult to tell if the deity in mention was female Ninshubur, male Ninshubur, or Ilabrat.
Mythology
In literary texts, Ninshubur frequently accompanies
Inanna
Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an List of Mesopotamian deities, ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, Divine law, divine justice, and political p ...
.
''Inanna's descent to the Netherworld''
Ninshubur appears in the myth ''Inanna s Descent to the Netherworld''. It is presently known from a total of fifty eight copies from 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 ...
, with most found during excavations in
Ur and
Nippur
Nippur (Sumerian language, Sumerian: ''Nibru'', often logogram, logographically recorded as , EN.LÍLKI, "Enlil City;"The Cambridge Ancient History: Prolegomena & Prehistory': Vol. 1, Part 1. Accessed 15 Dec 2010. Akkadian language, Akkadian: '' ...
, as well as from a fragment from the
Middle Babylonian period. It is assumed it belonged to the curriculum of scribal schools. However, no first millennium BCE examples are known.
Before Inanna embarks on her journey to the land of the dead, seemingly motivated by a desire to take over it, she instructs Ninshubur what to do if she will not return after three days. It is assumed that this scene is supposed to establish that she is not going to be trapped in the underworld permanently. After this period time passes, Ninshubur, following her mistress' instructions, mourns her death by lamenting and wearing rags and pleads with the gods
Enlil
Enlil, , "Lord f theWind" later known as Elil, is an ancient Mesopotamian god associated with wind, air, earth, and storms. He is first attested as the chief deity of the Sumerian pantheon, but he was later worshipped by the Akkadians, Bab ...
,
Nanna
Nanna may refer to:
*Grandmother
Mythology
* Sin (mythology), god of the moon in Sumerian mythology, also called Suen
* Nanna (Norse deity), goddess associated with the god Baldr in Norse mythology
* Nana Buluku, Fon/Dahomey androgynous deity cre ...
and
Enki
, image = Enki(Ea).jpg
, caption = Detail of Enki from the Adda Seal, an ancient Akkadian cylinder seal dating to circa 2300 BC
, deity_of = God of creation, intelligence, crafts, water, seawater, lakewater, fertility, semen, magic, mischief
...
in an effort to persuade them to rescue Inanna. In all three cases, she repeats the same formula:
Victor Hurowitz considered it possible that the terms which Ninshubur uses to illustrate the possible dreadful fate of Inanna in the netherworld during her attempts to persuade other gods to help her might be a mythical reflection of a ritual of renewal of a damaged statue. While the first two gods Ninshubur approaches, Enlil and Nanna, refuse to help her, she eventually manages to secure the aid of Enki. He creates two beings, ''galatura'' and ''kurĝara'', who subsequently bring Inanna back.
After Inanna returns to the world of the living, Ninshubur, who was waiting at the gates of the
underworld
The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underworld.
...
, throws herself at her feet. The term ''ganzir'', used to refer to this location in this passage, is sparsely attested in Sumerian literature, only appearing in ''
Gilgamesh
sux, , label=none
, image = Hero lion Dur-Sharrukin Louvre AO19862.jpg
, alt =
, caption = Possible representation of Gilgamesh as Master of Animals, grasping a lion in his left arm and snake in his right hand, in an Assyr ...
,
Enkidu
Enkidu ( sux, ''EN.KI.DU10'') was a legendary figure in ancient Mesopotamian mythology, wartime comrade and friend of Gilgamesh, king of Uruk. Their exploits were composed in Sumerian poems and in the Akkadian ''Epic of Gilgamesh'', writte ...
and the Underworld'' otherwise. The ''
galla'' demons accompanying Inanna suggest they can take Ninshubur to replace her in the underworld, but she protests:
Since Ninshubur is a faithful servant who mourned her properly, the demons are therefore not allowed to take her. She also does not allow them to take two further servants they meet,
Shara and
Lulal
Lulal, inscribed dlú.làl in cuneiform(𒀭𒇽𒋭), was a Mesopotamian god associated with Inanna, usually as a servant deity or bodyguard but in a single text as a son. His name has Sumerian origin and can be translated as "syrup man."
In the ...
. Eventually they reach
Dumuzi's city
Bad-tibira
Bad-tibira ( Sumerian: , bad3-tibiraki), "Wall of the Copper Worker(s)", or "Fortress of the Smiths", identified as modern Tell al-Madineh (also Tell Madineh), between Ash Shatrah and Tell as-Senkereh (ancient Larsa) in southern Iraq, was an ancien ...
, where it turns out that he did not mourn Inanna's death, which angers her. His behavior, contrasted with Ninshubur's (as well as Shara's and Lulal's), is meant to justify his eventual fate. Inanna lets the ''galla'' take him away. Ninshubur is not mentioned in the surviving lines of the remaining section of the narrative, which is focused on Dumuzi's attempt at escaping his fate and his confinement in the underworld.
Alhena Gadotti notes that an "inverted parallelism" exists between the role of Ninshubur in ''Inanna's Descent'' and that of Gilgamesh in another composition dealing with similar themes, ''Gilgamesh, Enkidu and the Underworld'': in the former, a servant seeks help on behalf of her mistress, while in the latter text the roles are reversed, and it is Gilgamesh who wants to bring his companion Enkidu back. Dina Katz suggests that since ''Inanna's Descent'' was a widely circulated text, it is plausible that this part of the latter narrative was in part inspired by it.
Papsukkal takes Ninshubur's role in an
Akkadian Akkadian or Accadian may refer to:
* Akkadians, inhabitants of the Akkadian Empire
* Akkadian language, an extinct Eastern Semitic language
* Akkadian literature, literature in this language
* Akkadian cuneiform
Cuneiform is a logo- syllabi ...
adaptation of ''Inanna's Descent'' focused on the counterpart of Inanna, Ishtar, but he is not directly designated as her personal servant, and the text states that he was serving "the great gods" as a group.
''Inanna and Enki''
In the myth ''Inanna and Enki'', Ninshubur assists her mistress in escaping from enemies sent after her by Enki in the Boat of Heaven, ''ma
2an-na'', also referred to as the "Both of An" in modern literature. The name of the boat is also attested in a fragment of an otherwise unknown narrative about Inanna and
Enmerkar
Enmerkar was an ancient Sumerian ruler to whom the construction of Uruk and a 420-year reign was attributed. According to literary sources, he led various campaigns against the land of Aratta.
Historical king
Late Uruk period
The tradition ...
and in texts from
Puzrish-Dagan
Puzrish-Dagan (modern Drehem) is an important archaeological site in Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate (Iraq). It is best-known for the thousands of clay tablets that are known to have come from the site through looting during the early twentieth century ...
, where it appears in association with Inanna and
Nanaya
Nanaya (Sumerian language, Sumerian , Dingir, DNA.NA.A; also transcribed as "Nanāy", "Nanaja", "Nanāja", '"Nanāya", or "Nanai"; antiquated transcription: "Nanâ"; in Greek language, Greek: ''Ναναια'' or ''Νανα''; Aramaic: ''ננױ ...
during a festival, and in lists of offerings from Old Babylonian
Isin
Isin (, modern Arabic: Ishan al-Bahriyat) is an archaeological site in Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate, Iraq. Excavations have shown that it was an important city-state in the past.
History of archaeological research
Ishan al-Bahriyat was visited b ...
,
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 cul ...
and Nippur.
After Inanna's theft of the ''
me'', Enki's monstrous servants attack the boat six times, but each time she repeats the formula "water has not touched your hands, water has not touched your feet" to Ninshubur, which according to Bendt Alter is meant to indicate that as long as the stay out of water they are out of the reach of Enki. After successfully escaping, they reach
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 ...
, and Ninshubur asks Inanna where she plans to unload the stolen items. The rest of the myth is poorly preserved.
''Poem of Agushaya''
In an Akkadian myth known under the title ''Poem of Agushaya'' or ''Hymn of Agushaya'' Ninshubur is tasked with providing Ishtar (the counterpart of Inanna) with information about the fearsome Saltu ("discord"), an opponent Ea (the counterpart of Enki) created for her, meant to serve as her mirror image. A peculiarity of this text are recurring misspellings of specific words in Ninshubur's speech. While it has been proposed that they are simply scribal errors, Benjamin R. Foster assumes this is implausible as all of them occur in two successive lines, and proposes that they were employed purposely to represent Ninshubur
stuttering
Stuttering, also known as stammering, is a speech disorder in which the flow of speech is disrupted by involuntary repetitions and prolongations of sounds, syllables, words, or phrases as well as involuntary silent pauses or blocks in which the ...
in shock due to Saltu's fearsome nature and her resemblance to Ishtar, translating the text accordingly:
Gallery
File:Seal of Lugal-ushumgal as servant of Shar-Kali-Sharri.jpg, A seal of Lugal-ushumgal as servant of Shar-Kali-Sharri, possibly depicting Ninshubur
File:The name of the deity Ninshubur is mentioned on the right shoulder. From Adab. 2600-2370 BCE. Iraq Museum.jpg, The name of the deity Ninshubur is mentioned on the right shoulder. From Adab, Iraq. 2600-2370 BCE. Iraq Museum.
File:Sumerian - Male Worshiper - Walters 215 (2).jpg, Ancient Sumerian calcite-alabaster figurine of a male worshiper. 2500 BCE - 2250 BCE. The inscription on his right arm mentions Ninshubur.
File:BM 22470 Statue dedicated to the goddess Nin-shubur of the city of Der by Enzi and his son Amar-kiku (2400 BCE).jpg, Statue from Der dedicated to Ninshubur by Enzi and his son Amar-kiku. 2400 BCE). British Museum, BM 22470.
References
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External links
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Compositions dedicated to Ninshuburin the
Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature
The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature (ETCSL) was a project that provides an online digital library of texts and translations of Sumerian literature.
This project's website contains "Sumerian text, English prose translation and bibl ...
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Inana's descent to the nether world' in the ETCSL
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Inana and Enki' in the ETCSL
Ancient Mesopotamian Gods and Goddesses: Papsukkal (god)
{{Sumerian mythology
Mesopotamian goddesses
Mesopotamian gods
Messenger goddesses
Wisdom goddesses
LGBT themes in mythology
Inanna