Ancient Mesopotamian and Babylonian Cosmogony Vocabulary

A comprehensive vocabulary review of Ancient Mesopotamian civilizations, Babylonian cosmogony concepts, Latin and Greek mythological terminology, and key deities from the Enuma Elish creation epic.

Mesopotamia

A region whose name comes from the Greek for 'between two rivers', home to major civilizations including the Sumerians, Akkadians, Assyrians, and Babylonians.

Fertile Crescent

A crescent-shaped region in the Middle East extending along the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, encompassing Mesopotamia, Phoenicia, and Palestine.

Cosmogony

As a religious framework, an explanation of the founding myths, origin, and creation of the gods and the universe, including interactions and rituals with and among the gods.

Ex nihilo

Latin for 'from nothing'; in theology and philosophy, the position that matter is not eternal but had to be created by an eternal uncaused cause, frequently defined as God.

Creatio ex Materia

Latin for 'creation from [pre-existing] matter'; in theology and philosophy, the position that matter is eternal, and the universe was formed from it.

Primeval

Derived from Latin primus ('first') and aevum ('age'), defined as 'of or relating to the earliest ages'; before writing.

Theomachy

Derived from Greek the#s ('god') and m#kh# ('battle'), defined as a fight between or against the gods.

Ancient Babylonian Cosmogony

A six-level universe with three heavens and three earths: two heavens above the sky, the heaven of the stars, the earth, the underground of the Apsu, and the netherworld.

Pantheon

The collective deities of a group of people, culture, or society.

Mythos

The underlying system of beliefs, values, and attitudes, especially those dealing with supernatural forces, characteristic of a particular cultural group.

Enuma Elish

The ancient Babylonian epic creation story, written in cuneiform, detailing the birth of the gods, the conflict between Marduk and Tiamat, and the creation of the universe.

Apsu

The primordial male god deified as sweet fresh water who represents the 1st generation of gods in the Enuma Elish.

Tiamat

The primordial female deity deified as bitter/sea salt water and chaos, darkness, disorder, and evil, who created an army of monsters to avenge Apsu.

Marduk

The 6th generation male god produced by Ea and Damkina who defeated Tiamat, divided her corpse to form the earth and sky, and became the chief deity.

Ea

The 5th generation male god born from Anu who devised a plan to kill Apsu, built a home on Apsu's body with Damkina, and fathered Marduk.

Kingu

The god married by Tiamat after the death of Apsu and put in charge of her army of monsters during the war against Ea and the other gods.

Ziggurat

A stepped pyramid structure, with a temple or shrine located on top, often used as religious shrines that symbolized a bridge between man on earth, and the gods in heaven.