Anunna
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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 human saints of orthodox Christianity.[citation needed]
These are related to, and in some cases overlapping with, the Anunnaki and the Igigi (minor gods). The literal translation of Anunna is "of An." The name is variously written "dan-una", "da-nuna-ke4-ne", or "da-nun-na", meaning something like "those of royal blood".[1] The head of the Council of the heavens was the An, the sky god, and the other members were his offspring. His throne was inherited by Enlil, resulting in a dispute between Enlil and his brother Enki regarding who was the rightful leader. Enki was said to have created mankind.
To mention a few:
- Ashnan: The cereal grain goddess.
- Enkimdu: The god in charge of canals and ditches.
- Enbilulu: The god in charge of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers.
- Ereshkigal: Queen of the Underworld.
- Ishkur: The god of the winds.
- Lahar: The god of cattle.
- Nanshe: The patron goddess of the poor, widows and orphans.
- Nidaba: The goddess of writing, particularly documents in the palace archives.
- Ninkasi (the lady who fills the mouth): One of the healing children of Enki and Ninhursag; she governs the art of brewing. Some speculation on the activities of Ninkasi has led researchers to ask, "Which came first? Beer or bread?"
- Uttu: The goddess of weaving and clothes.
[edit] References
- ^ Gwendolyn Leick, A Dictionary of Ancient Near Eastern Mythology (NY: Routledge, 1998), p. 7.
- A. Leo Oppenheim, Ancient Mesopotamia: Portrait of a Dead Civilization (1976) - A conventional analysis of Sumerian religious practice.
- The Pennsylvania Sumerian Dictionary.
