06 What Deities did they worship? Nammu (Sumerian Mythology)
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This article is from the Sumerian Mythology FAQ, by Christopher Siren cbsiren@cisunix.unh.edu with numerous contributions by others.
06 What Deities did they worship? Nammu (Sumerian Mythology)
* Nammu
Nammu is the Goddess of the watery abyss, the primeval sea. She may
be the earliest of deities within Sumerian cosmology as she gave birth to
heaven and earth. (Kramer 1961 p. 39) She is elsewhere described both
as the mother of all the gods and as the wife of An">An. (Kramer 1961
p. 114) She is Enki">Enki's mother. She prompts him to create servants
for the gods and is then directed by him on how, with the help of
Nimmah/Ninhursag to create man. (Kramer 1963 p. 150; Kramer 1961 p. 70)
A. The Primary Deities - It is notable that the Sumerians themselves
may not have grouped these four as a set and that the grouping has been
made because of the observations of Sumerologists.
An
An, god of heaven, may have been the main god of the pantheon prior to
2500 BC., although his importance gradually waned. (Kramer 1963 p. 118)
In the early days he carried off heaven, while Enlil">Enlil carried away
the earth. (Kramer 1961 p. 37-39) It seems likely that he and Ki/Ninhursag
were the progenitors of most of the gods. although in one place Nammu is
listed as his wife. (Kramer 1961 p. 114) Among his children and followers
were the Anunnaki. (Kramer 1961 p. 53) His primary temple was in Erech.
He and Enlil give various gods, goddesses, and kings their earthly regions
of influence and their laws. (Kramer 1963 p. 124) Enki seats him at the
first seat of the table in Nippur at the feast celebrating his new house
in Eridu. (Kramer 1961 p. 63) He hears Inanna's complaint about Mount
Ebih (Kur?), but discourages her from attacking it because of its fearsome
power. (Kramer 1961 pp. 82-83) After the flood, he and Enlil make Ziusudra
immortal and make him live in Dilmun. (Kramer 1961 p. 98)
(See also Anu, his Babylonian analog, in the Assyro-Babylonian Mythology FAQ.)
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