Nammu (ð’€ð’‡‰ dENGUR = dLAGAB×ḪAL; also read Namma[1]) was a Mesopotamian goddess regarded as a creator deity in the local theology of Eridu.
From the Old Babylonian period onwards, she was considered to be the mother of An (Heaven) and Ki (Earth),[2] as well as a representation of the primeval sea/ocean, an association that may have come from influence from the goddess Tiamat.
In the Old Babylonian myth Enki and Ninmah, Nammu is one of the deities involved in the creation of mankind alongside the eponymous pair and a group of seven minor goddesses.
[4] Lexical lists provide evidence for multiple readings, including Nammu, Namma and longer, reduplicated variants such as Namnamu and Nannama.
"[4][6] This interpretation depends on the theory that it is etymologically related to the element imma (SIG7) in the name of the goddess Ninimma, which could be explained in Akkadian as nabnītu or bunnannû,[7] two terms pertaining to creation.
[9] Another related possibility is to interpret it as a genitive compound, (e)n + amma(k), "lady of the cosmic river,"[10] but it is similarly not free of criticism, and it has been argued no clear evidence for the etymology for Nammu's name exists.
[7] No explicit references to Nammu being identical with the sea are known,[17] and Manuel Ceccarelli in a recent study suggests she might have represented groundwater.
[19] In a single incantation she is called bēlet egubbê, "mistress of the holy water basin", but this epithet was usually regarded as belonging to Ningirima, rather than her.
[19] An early literary text known from a copy from Ebla mentions a grouping of deities presumed to share judiciary functions which includes Nammu, Shamash, Ishtaran and Idlurugu.
[27] Additionally, while the presumed theogony focused on Nammu is the closest possible parallel to Tiamat's role in Enūma Eliš,[28] according to Manuel Ceccarelli the two were not closely connected.
[33] She received offerings in Ur in the Old Babylonian period, and texts from this location mention the existence of a temple and clergy (including gudu4 priests) dedicated to her, as well as a field named after her.
[38] Texts dealing with the study of calendars (hemerologies) indicate that the twenty seventh day of the month could be regarded as a festival of Nammu and Nergal, and prescribe royal offerings to these two deities during it.
[41] In the beginning of the composition, Nammu wakes up her son Enki to inform him that other gods are complaining about the heavy tasks assigned to them.
As a solution, he suggests the creation of mankind, and instructs Nammu how to form men from clay with the help of Ninmah and her assistants (Ninimma, Shuzianna, Ninmada, Ninšar, Ninmug, Mumudu and Ninnigina according to Wilfred G. Lambert's translation).
After the task is finished, Enki prepares a banquet for Nammu and Ninmah, which other deities, such as Anu, Enlil and the seven assistants, also attend.