Kataḫzipuri (also known as Kataḫziwuri[1]) was a goddess worshiped by Hattians, Hittites and Palaians in Bronze Age Anatolia.
[2] Multiple spellings reflecting two variant forms, Kataḫzipuri and Kataḫziwuri, are attested in cuneiform texts discovered during excavations in Boğazköy (Hattusa) and Ortaköy (Šapinuwa).
[4] Oğuz Soysal disagrees with this interpretation and notes that in contrast with kattaḫ, Kataḫzipuri's name was always written with a single t.[5] He speculatively suggests that it might mean "evil under the land", though he stresses this would not indicate she was viewed as malevolent, but rather that certain types of problems could be entrusted to her so that through her intervention they can metaphorically remain "under the land", perhaps to be understood as "in the underworld".
[7] Oğuz Soysal stresses that while Kataḫzipuri often functioned as a divine healer, there is also evidence for her spells sometimes being perceived as potentially dangerous, as reflected in the use of the Hattic term katakumi and its Hittite equivalent alwanzena, "sorceress", to refer to her, and on this basis he states describing her as a goddess of magic is preferable.
[6] Some of the ritual texts invoking her start with the phrase "Kataḫzipuri saw from heaven",[9] which prefaces the reveal of a solution to a specific issue, framed as the speech of the goddess.
[15] In the ritual text KUB 56.17, Kataḫzipuri is invoked alongside Papaya to dispel omens revealed in an unfavorable dream (Ù ḪUL).