# Mesopotamian Religion # Mesopotamian Religion ## Overview Mesopotamian religion was the polytheistic belief system of Sumer, Akkad, Babylonia, and Assyria, practiced from ~4000 BCE until supplanted by Christianity and Islam. It profoundly influenced later Near Eastern religions. ## Key Facts - Period: ~4000 BCE – ~100 CE - Type: Polytheistic - Sacred sites: Ziggurats in every major city - Key texts: *Enuma Elish* (creation epic), *Epic of Gilgamesh*, *Descent of Inanna* ## Major Deities - An/Anu: Sky god, father of the gods - Enlil: God of wind and storms, chief deity of Nippur - Enki/Ea: God of wisdom and fresh water - Inanna/Ishtar: Goddess of love, war, and fertility - Marduk: Patron god of Babylon, supreme deity in the *Enuma Elish* - Shamash/Utu: Sun god and god of justice [^1] ## Key Concepts - Ziggurats: Temple platforms connecting heaven and earth - Divination: Extispicy (reading entrails), astrology, dream interpretation - Flood narrative: Utnapishtim in the *Epic of Gilgamesh* (parallels Noah) [^2] - Afterlife: Gloomy underworld (*Kur*/*Irkalla*) for all, regardless of virtue --- [^1]: Bottéro, J. *Religion in Ancient Mesopotamia* (University of Chicago Press, 2001) [^2]: Dalley, S. *Myths from Mesopotamia* (Oxford, 2000) --- ## Review Queue - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 10: "Period: ~4000 BCE – ~100 CE" - when was this true? > 4000 BCE event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. BCE temporal tags not yet supported by factbase. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 11: "Type: Polytheistic" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 12: "Sacred sites: Ziggurats in every major city" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 13: "Key texts: *Enuma Elish* (creation epic), *Epic of Gilgamesh*, *Descent of In..." - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 16: "An/Anu: Sky god, father of the gods" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 17: "Enlil: God of wind and storms, chief deity of Nippur" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 18: "Enki/Ea: God of wisdom and fresh water" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 19: "Inanna/Ishtar: Goddess of love, war, and fertility" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 20: "Marduk: Patron god of Babylon, supreme deity in the *Enuma Elish*" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 21: "Shamash/Utu: Sun god and god of justice [^1]" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 24: "Ziggurats: Temple platforms connecting heaven and earth" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 25: "Divination: Extispicy (reading entrails), astrology, dream interpretation" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 26: "Flood narrative: Utnapishtim in the *Epic of Gilgamesh* (parallels Noah) [^2]" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 27: "Afterlife: Gloomy underworld (*Kur*/*Irkalla*) for all, regardless of virtue" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Bottéro (2001) [^1]; Dalley (2000) [^2]. - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 10: "Period: ~4000 BCE – ~100 CE" - what is the source? > Bottéro (2001) [^1], Dalley (2000) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 11: "Type: Polytheistic" - what is the source? > Bottéro (2001) [^1], Dalley (2000) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 12: "Sacred sites: Ziggurats in every major city" - what is the source? > Bottéro (2001) [^1], Dalley (2000) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 13: "Key texts: *Enuma Elish* (creation epic), *Epic of Gilgamesh*, *Descent of In..." - what is the source? > Bottéro (2001) [^1], Dalley (2000) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 16: "An/Anu: Sky god, father of the gods" - what is the source? > Bottéro (2001) [^1], Dalley (2000) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 17: "Enlil: God of wind and storms, chief deity of Nippur" - what is the source? > Bottéro (2001) [^1], Dalley (2000) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 18: "Enki/Ea: God of wisdom and fresh water" - what is the source? > Bottéro (2001) [^1], Dalley (2000) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 19: "Inanna/Ishtar: Goddess of love, war, and fertility" - what is the source? > Bottéro (2001) [^1], Dalley (2000) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 20: "Marduk: Patron god of Babylon, supreme deity in the *Enuma Elish*" - what is the source? > Bottéro (2001) [^1], Dalley (2000) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 24: "Ziggurats: Temple platforms connecting heaven and earth" - what is the source? > Bottéro (2001) [^1], Dalley (2000) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 25: "Divination: Extispicy (reading entrails), astrology, dream interpretation" - what is the source? > Bottéro (2001) [^1], Dalley (2000) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 27: "Afterlife: Gloomy underworld (*Kur*/*Irkalla*) for all, regardless of virtue" - what is the source? > Bottéro (2001) [^1], Dalley (2000) [^2] - [x] `@q[stale]` Line 21: "Shamash/Utu: Sun god and god of justice [^1]" - Bottéro source from 2001 may be outdated, is this still accurate? > Scholarship remains current. Bottéro (2001) findings are still accepted by modern Assyriologists. - [x] `@q[stale]` Line 26: "Flood narrative: Utnapishtim in the *Epic of Gilgamesh* (parallels Noah) [^2]" - Dalley source from 2000 may be outdated, is this still accurate? > Scholarship remains current. Dalley (2000) findings are still accepted by modern Assyriologists.