Epic of Gilgamesh

Glossary

• Anu: the god of the firmament, the heavens
• Anunnaki: the great gods
• Aruru: the great goddess of creation
• Ashnan: the grain goddess
• Atrahasis: king of the Sumerian city Shuruppak in the years before the flood
• Beletili: a mother goddess
• bitumen: a viscous tarlike substance
• cubit: an ancient unit of length based on the length of the forearm
• Ea: the cleverest god and the god of wisdom
• ellu: possibly a reference to the brightness and shininess of copper and bronze
• Enlil: the god of earth, wind, and air
• Ennugi: the god of irrigation
• Erra: god of mayhem and pestilence
• Hanish: a mountain herald
• Igigi gods: great gods of the younger generation, headed by Enlil
• Ishtar: Anu’s daughter, the goddess of war and love
• lapis lazuli: an azure blue semiprecious stone
• league: a unit of length, roughly one and a half miles
• magillu-boat: a type of oceangoing boat typically used to travel long distances
• Ninurta: the god of war and of wells
• Shullat: a mountain herald
• Sumukan: the anointed priest of the gods
• ziggurat: a tiered or terraced temple
• zikru: word, speech