Ninura
Ninura | |
---|---|
Tutelary goddess of Umma | |
Major cult center | Umma, Gišaba[1] |
Successor | Inanna of Zabalam |
Animals | lion,[2] possibly swan or goose[3] |
Temple | Eula |
Personal information | |
Spouse | Shara |
Ninura (
Character
The meaning of Ninura's name is unknown,[6] though it is agreed that neither of the two attested writings, older dNin-ur4 (𒀭𒊩𒌆𒌴) and newer dNin-ur4-ra (𒀭𒊩𒌆𒌴𒊏), supports the view that it was a genitive construction.[4] In the Early Dynastic zame hymns, she is the tutelary goddess of the city of Ĝiša,[6] presumed to be an alternate name of Umma.[7] Her best attested epithet is "mother of Umma,"[8] ama-tu-da Ĝišaki.[6]
Ninura's husband was Shara, and they (or their temples) commonly appear side by side in known sources.[9] In the zame hymns, she precedes him.[6] She is similarly placed before him in early offering lists, and it has been suggested that she might have been the original tutelary deity of Umma, only replaced by Shara in this role later on.[10] Hartmut Waetzoldt notes that while this theory is plausible, in historical times Ninura had fewer temples in the area surrounding the city than Shara did.[11]
The existence of an emblem (šu-nir) of Ninura is mentioned in texts from Umma.
An early literary text from Abu Salabikh mentions Ninura "shaking the heaven and the earth."[4]
Worship
Ninura is only mentioned in sources from the third millennium BCE.[6] The earliest attestations come from Early Dynastic Abu Salabikh, and include the zame hymns, a god list and a literary text.[4] She was associated with the city of Umma.[4] One of its rulers, Gishakidu, referred to himself as an "en priest attached to the side of Ninura."[13] Her temple located in this city bore the ceremonial name Eula, possibly house of sleep.[5] The name appears in an inscription of Nammaḫani, a local ruler contemporary with the period of Gutian rule in Mesopotamia,[4] who rebuilt it.[5] The position of "temple administrator" is only attested among the clergy of Ninura and Shara in texts from Umma.[8] A gudu4 priest in her service is also attested.[4][14] Furthermore, she had an 'egi-zi' priestess, associated with the settlement Gišaba.[1] In early sources, theophoric names invoking Ninura were common in the state of Umma due to her status as a local deity, similarly to how Nanshe and Bau commonly appear in names from the state of Lagash.[15] Exaples include Ku-Ninura, Lu-Ninura, Lugal-Ninura, Ninura-amamu, Ninura-da and Ninura-kam.[4] Only a single seal with the formula servant of Ninura is known.[8]
Ninura's importance in the
No attestations of Ninura postdating the Ur III period are known.
References
- ^ a b Steinkeller 2005, p. 304.
- ^ Asher-Greve & Westenholz 2013, p. 203.
- ^ a b Asher-Greve & Westenholz 2013, pp. 218–219.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Cavigneaux & Krebernik 1998, p. 510.
- ^ a b c d George 1993, p. 152.
- ^ a b c d e Asher-Greve & Westenholz 2013, p. 53.
- ^ Waetzoldt 2014, p. 318.
- ^ a b c d e Asher-Greve & Westenholz 2013, p. 202.
- ^ Waetzoldt 2014, p. 321.
- ^ Sibbing-Plantholt 2022, p. 31.
- ^ Waetzoldt 2014, pp. 321–322.
- ^ Asher-Greve & Westenholz 2013, pp. 202–203.
- ^ Waetzoldt 2014, p. 319.
- ^ Asher-Greve & Westenholz 2013, p. 208.
- ^ Asher-Greve & Westenholz 2013, p. 209.
- ^ Frayne 1997, p. 294.
- ^ Sibbing-Plantholt 2022, pp. 30–31.
- ^ Huber Vulliet 2011, p. 32.
Bibliography
- Asher-Greve, Julia M.; Westenholz, Joan G. (2013). Goddesses in Context: On Divine Powers, Roles, Relationships and Gender in Mesopotamian Textual and Visual Sources (PDF). Academic Press Fribourg. ISBN 978-3-7278-1738-0.
- Cavigneaux, Antoine; Krebernik, Manfred (1998), "Nin-ura", Reallexikon der Assyriologie (in German), retrieved 2022-10-24
- Frayne, Douglas (1997). Ur III Period (2112-2004 BC). RIM. The Royal Inscriptions of Mesopotamia. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 978-1-4426-5706-9.
- George, Andrew R. (1993). House most high: the temples of ancient Mesopotamia. Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns. OCLC 27813103.
- Huber Vulliet, Fabienne (2011), "Šara", Reallexikon der Assyriologie (in French), retrieved 2022-10-24
- Sibbing-Plantholt, Irene (2022). The Image of Mesopotamian Divine Healers. Healing Goddesses and the Legitimization of Professional Asûs in the Mesopotamian Medical Marketplace. Boston: Brill. OCLC 1312171937.
- Steinkeller, Piotr (2005). "The Priestess Égi-zi and Related Matters". In Sefati, Yitzhak (ed.). An experienced scribe who neglects nothing: ancient Near Eastern studies in honor of Jacob Klein. Bethesda, MD: CDL Press. OCLC 56414097.
- Waetzoldt, Hartmut (2014), "Umma A. Philologisch", Reallexikon der Assyriologie (in German), retrieved 2022-10-24