Ninegal

Ninegal (also spelled Ninegalla) or Belet Ekallim ("mistress of the palace")[1] was a Mesopotamian and West Semitic goddess, as well as a title of other goddesses. As indicated by her name, her role was likely linked to royal palaces.[2]

Deities of the ancient Near East
Ancient Egyptian
Arabian
Eblaite and Syrian
Elamite
Hurrian
Levantine (Canaanite and Ugaritic)
Mesopotamian
Religions of the ancient Near East

Attestations and cult

She's already attested in the pre-Sargonic Fara god list, and evidence of her worship as a minor deity can be found in documents from most major Sumerian settlements (for example Nippur, Lagash, Umma, Eresh[lower-alpha 1] and Ur). Ur-Nammu built a temple dedicated to her. Rim-Sin's wife Simat-Ěstar was responsible for rebuilding her temple in Larsa. In god lists she frequently appeared in sections dedicated to "Inanna group" goddesses, often close to Ninsianna.[3]

A letter from Mar-Issar, an Assyrian official involved in various temple restoration projects, to Esarhaddon mentions an unfinished statue of Belet Ekallim meant for Esagila.[4]

In names and personal documents

A number of male theophoric names invoking Ninegal are known.[5] Her Akkadian name Belet Ekallim appears in personal names too.[6]

In personal letters from the Old Babylonian period Ninegal is only mentioned sporadically, though with comparable frequency to the prominent goddess Ninlil.[7]

Outside Mesopotamia

From Mesopotamia Ninegal was introduced to cities such as Emar, Mari and Qatna (whose inhabitants regarded her as the tutelary goddess of their city). In Mari she appeared in offering lists in a prominent position, between Ninhursag and Ningal.[8] There is evidence that during Zimri-Lim's during some festivals she received the same number of sacrifices as the eight other most honored gods: the local dynasty's tutelary deity Itūr-Mēr, Dagan, Annunitum (Ishtar), Nergal, Shamash, Ea, Ninhursag, Addu (Hadad). In a letter Zimri-Lim's wife Šibtu enumerated Dagan, Shamash, Itūr-Mēr, Belet Ekalli and Addu as "the allies for me" and the deities who "go by my lord's side."[9]

Due to her importance in Syria she was later incorporated into Hurrian religion. In Hurrian kaluti lists she was often mentioned alongside Nikkal.[10]

Ninegal (often under the Akkadian name Belet Ekallim) also appears in documents from Hatti, Mitanni, Elam and Ugarit. In some economic texts from Susa a trinity consisting out of Ninegal, Enki and Nergal is mentioned.[11] A dossier of texts dealing with the sale of sheep in Susa indicates clergy of Ninegal existed in that city as well.[12]

A Hurrian form of the name, Pentikalli, is also known.[13] In some Hurro-Hittite offering lists she appears as a concubine of Teshub.[14][15]

In the treaty between Hittite king Suppiluliuma I and Mitanni king Šattiwaza Ninegal appears after the couples Enlil and Ninlil and Anu and Antu in a list of "primeval gods" meant to serve as divine witnesses.[16]

The minor judge deity Dikkum (also spelled Diqum) was Ninegal's sukkal.[17][18]

Urash, the tutelary god of Dilbat and father of Nanaya[19] and Lagamar,[20] was regarded as her husband, and they had a joint temple in the aforementioned city.[21][22] Like spouses of many other gods, Ninegal was believed to be able to intercede with her husband on behalf of humans.[23]

As a title

Of Inanna

Starting with Old Babylonian period in some texts "Ninegal" is used as a title of Inanna.[24][25]

Of Nungal

Nungal was sporadically referred to with the epithet Ninegal, with the "palace" being the prison described in texts such as the hymn to Nungal in this context.[26][27] However Nungal was also herself associated with royal palaces and received offerings in them. In Dilbat Ninegal and Nungal were seemingly interchangeable.[28]

See also

Notes
  1. The identity of Eresh is uncertain; it may be Uruk or Abu Salabikh.

References
  1. J. M. Asher-Greve, J. G. Westenholz, ''Goddesses in Context: On Divine Powers, Roles, Relationships and Gender in Mesopotamian Textual and Visual Sources, 2013, p. 111
  2. H. Behrens, A. Klein, Ninegalla [in:] Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol 9, 1998, p. 342-343
  3. H. Behrens, A. Klein, Ninegalla [in:] Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol 9, 1998, p. 343-345
  4. H. Behrens, A. Klein, Ninegalla [in:] Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol 9, 1998, p. 346
  5. H. Behrens, A. Klein, Ninegalla [in:] Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol 9, 1998, p. 344
  6. H. Behrens, A. Klein, Ninegalla [in:] Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol 9, 1998, p. 346
  7. J. M. Asher-Greve, J. G. Westenholz, ''Goddesses in Context: On Divine Powers, Roles, Relationships and Gender in Mesopotamian Textual and Visual Sources, 2013, p. 251
  8. H. Behrens, A. Klein, Ninegalla [in:] Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol 9, 1998, p. 346
  9. I. Nakata, The god Itūr-Mēr in the middle Euphrates region during the Old Babylonian period, Revue d'assyriologie et d'archéologie orientale 1 (101), 2011, p. 130-131
  10. A. Archi, The West Hurrian Pantheon and Its Background [in:] B. J. Collins, P. Michalowski, Beyond Hatti. A tribute to Gary Beckman, 2013, p. 12
  11. H. Behrens, A. Klein, Ninegalla [in:] Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol 9, 1998, p. 345
  12. K. De Graef, Count Your Sheep! Doings and Dealings of Kûyâ, Trader in Small Stock during the Early Sukkalmaḫat, Revue d'assyriologie et d'archéologie orientale 1 (103), 2009, p. 8: "This tablet is sealed by a scribe in the service of Ninegal"
  13. A. Archi, The Names of the Primeval Gods, Orientalia NOVA SERIES, Vol. 59, No. 2, 1990, p. 116
  14. H. Behrens, A. Klein, Ninegalla [in:] Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol 9, 1998, p. 346
  15. A. Archi, The West Hurrian Pantheon and Its Background [in:] B. J. Collins, P. Michalowski, Beyond Hatti. A tribute to Gary Beckman, 2013, p. 12-13
  16. A. Archi, Translation of Gods: Kumarpi, Enlil, Dagan/NISABA, Ḫalki, Orientalia NOVA SERIES, Vol. 73, No. 4, 2004, p. 322
  17. E. Ebeling, Diqum [in] Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol. 2, 1938, p. 228
  18. R. L. Litke, A Reconstruction of the Assyro-Babylonian God-lists, AN:dA-nu-um and AN:Anu Ŝá Amēli, 1998, p. 155
  19. O. Drewnowska-Rymarz, Mesopotamian Goddess Nanajā, 2008, p. 139
  20. K. van der Torn, Migration and the Spread of Local Cults [in:] A. Schoors, K. Van Lerberghe (eds.), Immigration and Emigration Within the Ancient Near East: Festschrift E. Lipinski, 1995, p. 368
  21. S. W. Holloway, Aššur is King! Aššur is King!: Religion in the Exercise of Power in the Neo-Assyrian Empire, 2002, p. 254
  22. G. De Clercq, Die Göttin Ninegal/Bēlet-ekallim nach den altorientalischen Quellen des 3. und 2. Jt. v. Chr. mit einer Zusammenfassung der hethitischen Belegstellen sowie der des 1.Jt. v. Chr. (dissertation), 2004, p. 17, footnote 80: "Ninegal und Uraš, der Stadtgott von Dilbat, formen hier ein Paar. Siehe Unger, RlA 2 ("Dilbat") 222 über den Tempel der Ninegal in Dilbat und ihre Verehrung als Gemahlin des Uraš. Über die doppelte Gestalt der Gottheit Uraš schreibt auch Kienast, in: Fs van Dijk (1985) 112f.: Er ist als männlicher Gott bekannt, als Stadtgott von Dilbat und allgemein in Nordbabylonien; andererseits kann die Gottheit weiblich sein ("die Erde") und mit An verbunden werden."
  23. J. M. Asher-Greve, J. G. Westenholz, Goddesses in Context: On Divine Powers, Roles, Relationships and Gender in Mesopotamian Textual and Visual Sources, 2013, p. 119
  24. H. Behrens, A. Klein, Ninegalla [in:] Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol 9, 1998, p. 343-345
  25. The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature. "Hymn to Inana as Ninegala (Inana D): translation Archived 2010-02-20 at the Wayback Machine"
  26. H. Behrens, A. Klein, Ninegalla [in:] Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol 9, 1998, p. 345
  27. A. Cavigneaux, M. Krebernik, Nungal [in:] Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol 9, 1998, p. 615
  28. A. Cavigneaux, M. Krebernik, Nungal [in:] Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol 9, 1998, p. 618
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