In Sumerian mythology, Ninhursag (NIN. Mesopotamian mythology is the collective name given to Sumerian Akkadian Assyrian and Babylonian mythologies from the land between the Tigris URSAG) was the earth and mother-goddess, one of the seven great deities of Sumer. A goddess is a Female Deity. Many Cultures have goddesses Often deities are part of a polytheistic system that includes several deities Sumer ( Sumerian: sux-Latn [[Ki (earth ki]]-[[EN (cuneiform en]]-'''ĝir15''', Akkadian: Šumeru; possibly Biblical Shinar She is principally a fertility goddess. Temple hymn sources identify her as the 'true and great lady of heaven' and kings of Sumer were 'nourished by Ninhursag's milk'. She is typically depicted wearing a horned head-dress and tiered skirt, often with bow cases at her shoulders, and not infrequently carries a mace or baton surmounted by an omega motif or a derivation, sometimes accompanied by a lion cub on a leash. She is the tutelary deity to several Sumerian rulers.
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Names
Ninhursag means "lady of the mountain" (from Sumerian NIN "lady" and ḪURSAG (or ḪUR. Sumerian ( " native tongue " was the language of ancient Sumer, spoken in Southern Mesopotamia since at least the 4th millennium BC The Sumerian word NIN ( Akkadian pronunciation EREŠ) is the sign for "lady" SAG) "sacred mountain"). She had many names including Ninmah ("Great Queen"); Nintu ("Lady of Birth"); Mama or Mami (mother); Aruru (sister of Enlil); Belet-Ili (lady of the gods - Akkadian). In Sumerian mythology, Ninhursag (NINURSAG was the earth and mother- Goddess, one of the seven great deities of Sumer. Mami is a Goddess in the Babylonian epic Atra-Hasis and in other creation legends MAMA (Showroom for Media and Moving Art is a publicly funded visual arts and culture organisation based in Rotterdam. In Sumerian mythology, Ninhursag (NINURSAG was the earth and mother- Goddess, one of the seven great deities of Sumer. Enlil ( EN = Lord + LIL = Loft "Lord of the Open" or "Lord of the Wind" was the name of a chief deity listed and written about in ancient Sumerian In Babylonian and Akkadian mythology, Belet-Ili (lady of the gods - Akkadian is a mother goddess probably modelled on the goddess or equal to Ninhursag Minor synonyms include Ninzinak (lady of the embryo); Nindim (lady fashioner); Nagarsagak (carpenter of insides); Ninbahar (lady pottery); Ninmag (lady vulva); Ninsigsig (lady of silence); Mudkesda (blood-stauncher); Amadugbad (mother spreading the knees); Amaududa (mother who has given birth); Sagzudingirenak (midwife of the gods); Ninmenna (lady of the diadem). According to legend her name was changed from Ninmah to Ninhursag by her son Ninurta in order to commemorate his creation of the mountains. Ninurta ( Nin Ur: Lord of the Earth/Plough in Sumerian and Akkadian mythology was the god of Nippur, identified with Ningirsu As Ninmenna, according to a Babylonian investiture ritual, she placed the golden crown on the king in the Eanna temple.
Some take the view that Ki (earth) the primordial goddess of the earth and consort of An (heaven), was identical to or an earlier form of Ninhursag. Ki (earth in Sumerian mythology was the goddess and personification of the earth and underworld chief consort of An (heaven the sky god This may very well be the case, since some authorities argue that Ki was never regarded as a deity in her own right in the historical period. There is no evidence of a cult for the goddess and the name appears in a limited number of Sumerian creation texts. This sort of syncretisation can lead to confusion; as Ki, Ninhursag would be the mother of Enlil, whereas in other sources she is his sister. Enlil ( EN = Lord + LIL = Loft "Lord of the Open" or "Lord of the Wind" was the name of a chief deity listed and written about in ancient Sumerian
Some of the names above were once associated with independent goddesses (such as Ninmah and Ninmenna), who later became identified and merged with Ninhursag, and myths exist in which the name Ninhursag is not mentioned. She also seems to have been identified with Ninsar (=Lady Greenery) and Ninkurra (=Lady Pasture) or even Uttu (=the spinner), her daughters in the tale of Enki and Ninhursag. In Sumerian mythology, Ninsar (from Nin = Lady Sar = Green(ery is the goddess of plants In Sumerian mythology a minor mother goddess daughter of Enki and Ninsar. Uttu in Sumerian mythology is the goddess of weaving and clothing Enki ( Sumerian: dENKI(G 𒂗𒆠 was a Deity in Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea in Babylonian mythology
Mythology
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| Mesopotamian | |
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| Primordial beings | |
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In the legend of Enki and Ninhursag, Ninhursag bore a daughter to Enki called Ninsar ("Lady Greenery"). Ancient Semitic religion spans the Polytheistic religions of the Semitic speaking peoples of the Ancient Near East. The word mythology (from the Greek grc μυθολογία mythología, meaning "a story-telling a legendary lore" Mesopotamian mythology is the collective name given to Sumerian Akkadian Assyrian and Babylonian mythologies from the land between the Tigris In the Levantine pantheon the Elohim are the sons of El the ancient of days (olam assembled on the divine holy place Mount Zephon ( Jebel This is a sub-article to Pre-Islamic Arabia Arabian mythology comprises the ancient Pre-Islamic beliefs of the Arabs Prior to the Mesopotamia (from the Greek meaning "land between the rivers" is an area geographically located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers largely corresponding The Anunna are the fifty great gods of Sumerian mythology. Some of them are associated with specific cities while others bear a strong resemblance to the functions of patron The Epic of Gilgamesh is an epic poem from Ancient Mesopotamia and is among the earliest known works of literary fiction. In Sumerian mythology, the utukku were a type of Spirit or Demon that could be either benevolent or evil Babylonian mythology is a set of stories depicting the activities of Babylonian deities, Heroes and Mythological creatures While these stories Mesopotamian mythology is the collective name given to Sumerian Akkadian Assyrian and Babylonian mythologies from the land between the Tigris In Sumerian mythology and later for Assyrians and Babylonians Anu (also An; (from Sumerian *An = sky heaven was a sky-god Enlil ( EN = Lord + LIL = Loft "Lord of the Open" or "Lord of the Wind" was the name of a chief deity listed and written about in ancient Sumerian Enki ( Sumerian: dENKI(G 𒂗𒆠 was a Deity in Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea in Babylonian mythology Ishtar ( D IŠTAR 𒀭𒌋𒁯 is the Assyrian and Babylonian counterpart to the Sumerian Inanna and to Sin (Akkadian Sîn, Suen; Sumerian Nanna) is a Sumerian God in Mesopotamian mythology. For the Canaanite sun godess see Shemesh Shamash was the common Akkadian name of the Sun-god and god of justice in Babylonia Enki ( Sumerian: dENKI(G 𒂗𒆠 was a Deity in Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea in Babylonian mythology In Sumerian mythology, Ninsar (from Nin = Lady Sar = Green(ery is the goddess of plants Ninsar bore Enki a daughter Ninkurra. Enki ( Sumerian: dENKI(G 𒂗𒆠 was a Deity in Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea in Babylonian mythology In Sumerian mythology a minor mother goddess daughter of Enki and Ninsar. Ninkurra, in turn, bore Enki a daughter Uttu. Enki ( Sumerian: dENKI(G 𒂗𒆠 was a Deity in Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea in Babylonian mythology Uttu in Sumerian mythology is the goddess of weaving and clothing Enki then pursued Uttu, who was upset because he didn't care for her. Uttu, on her ancestress Ninhursag's advice buried Enki's seed in the earth, whereupon eight plants (the very first) sprung up. Enki, seeing the plants, ate them, and became ill in eight organs of his body. Ninhursag cured him, taking the plants into her body and giving birth to eight deities: Abu, Nintulla (Nintul), Ninsutu, Ninkasi, Nanshe (Nazi), Dazimua, Ninti, and Enshag (Enshagag). Abu in Sumerian mythology was a minor god of plants He was one of the eight deities born to relieve the illness of Enki. Nintulla or Nintul was a god in Sumerian mythology, and one of the eight deities born to relieve the illness of Enki. Ninsutu (also known as Ninkautu was a goddess in Sumerian mythology, one of the eight deities born to relieve the illness of Enki. Ninkasi is the ancient Sumerian matron goddess of Beer. Her father was Enki, the lord Nudimmud, and her mother was Ninti In Sumerian mythology Nanshe was the daughter of Enki and Ninhursag. Dazimua was a goddess in Sumerian mythology, one of the eight deities born to relieve the illness of Enki. Cuneiform TI or TÌL (Borger 2003 nr; U+ 122FE 𒋾 has the main meaning of "life" when used ideographically Enshag or Enshagag, in Sumerian mythology was one of the eight deities born to relieve the illness of Enki.
In the text 'Creator of the Hoe' she completed the birth of mankind after the heads had been uncovered by Enki's hoe.
In creation texts Ninmah (another name for Ninhursag) acts as a midwife whilst the mother goddess Nammu makes different kinds of human individuals from lumps of clay at a feast given by Enki to celebrate the creation of humankind. In Sumerian mythology, Nammu (more properly Namma) is the Sumerian creation goddess
Worship
Her symbol the omega (Ω) has been depicted in art from around 3000 BC, though more generally from the early second millennium. It appears on some boundary stones - on the upper tier, which indicates her importance.
Her temple, the E'Saggila (from Sumerian E = House, SAG = Sacred, Ila (Akkadian) = Goddess), was located on the Khur (sacred mound) of Eridu, although she also had a temple at Kish. Sumerian ( " native tongue " was the language of ancient Sumer, spoken in Southern Mesopotamia since at least the 4th millennium BC Eridu (URUNUNKI; Sumerian:eridug Akkadian: ?) from the Sumerian for 'mighty place' is modern Tell Abu Shahrain, Iraq
KI
Cuneiform KI (Borger 2003 nr. 737; U+121A0 𒆠) is the sign for "earth", but also "place location". In Computing, Unicode is an Industry standard allowing Computers to consistently represent and manipulate text expressed in most of the world's It is also read as GI5, GUNNI (=KI. NE) "hearth", KARAŠ (=KI. KAL. BAD) "encampment, army", KISLAḪ (=KI. UD) "threshing place" and SUR7 (=KI. GAG). In Akkadian orthography, it functions as a determiner for toponyms and has the syllabic values gi, ge, qi and qe.
See also
References
Michael Jordon, Encyclopedia of Gods, Kyle Cathie Limited, 2002
External links
In Mesopotamian mythology, Ereshkigal ( D EREŠ. KI. GAL, lit In Genesis, Eve is the first woman the wife of Adam. God created her from Adam's rib as his helpmateDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic