Urash

Name and character

Urash's name was usually represented by the cuneiform sign IB, typically prefaced by the so-called "divine determinative", DINGIR, though phonetic syllabic spellings such as ur₅-ra-aš or u₄-ra-aš are also attested, in some cases, for example in the god list An = Anum, as glosses. The precise origin of the name is a matter of dispute, though it is agreed that regardless of whether it originated in Sumerian or Akkadian, it was understood as "earth" or "tilth". Urash was accordingly considered the deification of the earth. She has been characterized as a primeval deity, comparable in that regard to Anu or Nammu. In some cases, Urash could be inserted into texts dealing with the Enki-Ninki deities, the ancestors of Enlil, due to shared association with the earth.