List of Mesopotamian deities
 | This article may have too many red links. (October 2021) |
The following is a list of Mesopotamian deities.
Major Deities
[change | change source]- Hadad (or Adad) - storm and rain god
- Enlil (or Ashur) - god of air, head of the Assyrian and Sumerian pantheon
- Anu (or An) - god of heaven and the sky, lord of constellations, and father of the gods
- Dagon (or Dagan) - god of fertility
- Enki (or Ea) - god of the Abzu, crafts, water, intelligence, mischief and creation and divine ruler of the Earth and its humans
- Ereshkigal - goddess of Irkalla, the Underworld
- Inanna (later known as Ishtar) - goddess of fertility, love, and war
- Marduk - patron deity of Babylon who eventually became regarded as the head of the Babylonian pantheon
- Nabu - god of wisdom and writing
- Nanshe - goddess of prophecy, fertility and fish
- Nergal - god of plague, war, and the sun in its destructive capacity; later husband of Ereshkigal
- Ninhursag (or Mami, Belet-Ili, Ki, Ninmah, Nintu, or Aruru) - earth and mother goddess
- Ninlil - goddess of the air; consort of Enlil
- Ninurta - champion of the gods, the epitome of youthful vigor, and god of agriculture
- Shamash (or Utu) - god of the sun, arbiter of justice and patron of travelers
- Sin (or Nanna) - god of the moon
- Tammuz (or Dumuzid) - god of food and vegetation
Minor deities
[change | change source]This is only some of them. There are thousands. This is in Alphabetic order.
- Abu - a minor god of vegetation
- Ama-arhus - Akkadian fertility goddess; later merged into Ninhursag
- Amasagnul - Akkadian fertility goddess
- Amurru - god of the Amorite people
- An - a goddess, possibly the female principle of Anu
- Arah - the goddess of fate.
- Asaruludu or Namshub - a protective deity
- Ashnan - goddess of grain
- Aya - a mother goddess and consort of Shamash
- Azimua - a minor Sumerian goddess
- Bau - dog-headed patron goddess of Lagash
- Belet-Seri - recorder of the dead entering the underworld
- Birdu - an underworld god; consort of Manungal and later syncretized with Nergal
- Bunene - divine charioteer of Shamash
- Damgalnuna - mother of Marduk
- Damu - god of vegetation and rebirth; possibly a local offshoot of Dumuzi
- Emesh - god of vegetation, created to take responsibility on earth for woods, fields, sheep folds, and stables
- Enbilulu - god of rivers, canals, irrigation and farming
- Endursaga - a herald god
- Enkimdu - god of farming, canals and ditches
- Enmesarra - an underworld god of the law, equated with Nergal
- Ennugi - attendant and throne-bearer of Enlil
- Enshag - a minor deity born to relieve the illness of Enki
- Enten - god of vegetation, created to take responsibility on earth for the fertility of ewes, goats, cows, donkeys, birds
- Erra - Akkadian god of mayhem and pestilence
- Gaga - a minor deity featured in the Enûma Eliš
- Gatumdag - a fertility goddess and tutelary mother goddess of Lagash
- Geshtinanna - Sumerian goddess of wine and cold seasons, sister to man
- Geshtu-E - minor god of intelligence
- Gibil or Gerra - god of fire
- Gugalanna - the Great Bull of Heaven, the constellation Taurus and the first husband of Ereshkigal
- Gunara - a minor god of uncertain status
- Hahanu - a minor god of uncertain status
- Hani - an attendant of the storm god Adad
- Hayasum - a minor god of uncertain status
- Hegir-Nuna - a daughter of the goddess Bau
- Hendursaga - god of law
- Ilabrat - attendant and minister of state to Anu
- Ishum - brother of Shamash and attendant of Erra
- Isimud - two-faced messenger of Enki
- Ištaran - god of the city of Der (Sumer)
- Kabta - obscure god “Lofty one of heaven”
- Kakka - attendant and minister of state to both Anu and Anshar
- Kingu - consort of Tiamat; killed by Marduk, who used his blood to create mankind
- Kubaba - tutelary goddess of the city of Carchemish
- Kulla - god of bricks and building
- Kus (god) - god of herdsmen
- Lahar - god of cattle
- Lugal-Irra - possibly a minor variation of Erra
- Lulal - the younger son of Inanna; patron god of Bad-tibira
- Mamitu - Sumerian goddess of fate
- Manungal - an underworld goddess; consort of Birdu
- Mandanu -god of divine judgment
- Muati - obscure Sumerian god who became syncretized with Nabu
- Mushdamma - god of buildings and foundations
- Nammu - a creation goddess
- Nanaya - goddess personifying voluptuousness and sensuality
- Nanshe - a minor deity born to relieve the illness of Enki
- Negun - a minor goddess of uncertain status
- Neti - a minor underworld god; the chief gatekeeper of the netherworld and the servant of Ereshkigal
- Nibhaz - god of the Avim
- Nidaba - goddess of writing, learning and the harvest
- Namtar - minister of Ereshkigal
- Nin-Ildu - god of carpenters
- Nin-imma - goddess of the female sex organs
- Ninazu - god of the underworld and healing
- Nindub - god associated with the city Lagash
- Ningal - goddess of reeds and consort of Nanna (Sin)
- Ningikuga - goddess of reeds and marshes
- Ningirama - god of magic and protector against snakes
- Ningishzida - god of the vegetation and underworld
- Ninkarnunna - god of barbers
- Ninkasi - goddess of beer
- Ninkilim - "Lord Rodent" god of vermin
- Ninkurra - minor mother goddess
- Ninmena - Sumerian mother goddess who became syncretized with Ninhursag
- Ninsar - goddess of plants
- Ninshubur - Sumerian messenger goddess and second-in-command to Inanna, later adapted by the Akkadians as the male god Papsukkal
- Ninsun - "Lady Wild Cow"; mother of Gilgamesh
- Ninsutu - a minor deity born to relieve the illness of Enki
- Nintinugga - Babylonian goddess of healing
- Nintulla - a minor deity born to relieve the illness of Enki
- Nu Mus Da - patron god of the lost city of Kazallu
- Nunbarsegunu - goddess of barley
- Nusku - god of light and fire
- Pabilsaĝ - tutelary god of the city of Isin
- Pap-nigin-gara - Akkadian and Babylonian god of war, syncretized with Ninurta
- Pazuzu - son of Hanbi, and king of the demons of the wind
- Sarpanit - mother goddess and consort of Marduk
- The Sebitti - a group of minor war gods
- Shakka - patron god of herdsmen
- Shala - goddess of war and grain
- Shara - minor god of war and a son of Inanna
- Sharra Itu - Sumerian fertility goddess
- Shul-pa-e - astral and fertility god associated with the planet Jupiter
- Shul-utula - personal deity to Entemena, king of the city of Eninnu
- Shullat - minor god and attendant of Shamash
- Shulmanu - god of the underworld, fertility and war
- Shulsaga - astral goddess
- Sirara - goddess of the Persian Gulf
- Siris - god of beer
- Sirsir - god of mariners and boatmen
- Sirtir - goddess of sheep
- Sumugan - god of the river plains
- Tashmetum - consort of Nabu
- Tishpak - tutelary god of the city of Eshnunna
- Tutu - tutelary god of the city of Borsippa
- Ua-Ildak - goddess responsible for pastures and poplar trees
- Ukur - a god of the underworld
- Uttu - goddess of weaving and clothing
- Wer - a storm god linked to Adad
- Zaqar - messenger of Sin who relays communication through dreams and nightmares
Primordial beings
[change | change source]- Abzu - the Ocean Below, the name for fresh water from underground aquifers; depicted as a deity only in the Babylonian creation epic Enûma Eliš
- Anshar - god of the sky and male principle
- Kishar - goddess of the earth and female principle
- Kur - the first dragon, born of Abzu and Ma. Also Kur-gal, or Ki-gal the underworld
- Lahamu - first-born daughter of Abzu and Tiamat
- Lahmu - first-born son of Abzu and Tiamat; a protective and beneficent deity
- Ma -primordial goddess of the earth
- Mummu - god of crafts and technical skill
- Tiamat - primordial goddess of the ocean
Demigods and Heroes
[change | change source]- Adapa - a hero who unknowingly refused the gift of immortality
- The Apkallu - seven demigods created by the god Enki to give civilization to mankind
- Gilgamesh - hero and king of Uruk; central character in the Epic of Gilgamesh
- Enkidu - hero and companion of Gilgamesh
- Enmerkar - the legendary builder of the city of Uruk
- Lugalbanda - second king of Uruk, who ruled for 1,200 years
- Utnapishtim - hero who survived a great flood and was granted immortality; character in the Epic of Gilgamesh
Spirits and demons
[change | change source]- Alû, demon of night
- Asag - monstrous demon whose presence makes fish boil alive in the rivers
- Asakku, evil demon(s)
- The edimmu - ghosts of those who were not buried properly
- Gallû, underworld demon
- Hanbi or Hanpa - father of Pazuzu
- Humbaba - guardian of the Cedar Forest
- Lamashtu - a malevolent being who menaced women during childbirth
- Lilû, wandering demon
- Mukīl rēš lemutti demon of headaches
- Pazuzu - king of the demons of the wind; he also represented the southwestern wind, the bearer of storms and drought
- Rabisu - an evil vampiric spirit
- Šulak the bathroom demon, “lurker” in the bathroom
- Zu - divine storm-bird and the personification of the southern wind and the thunder clouds
Legendary beasts
[change | change source]- Battle Bison beast - one of the creatures slain by Ninurta
The eleven mythical monsters created by Tiāmat in the Epic of Creation, Enûma Eliš: