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Ninagal
Ninagal (Sumerian: 𒀭𒎏𒀉𒃲) or Ninagala was a Mesopotamian god regarded as a divine smith. He was commonly associated with other deities connected to craftsmanship. Texts from the reign of Ur-Baba of Lagash indicate that he was the personal deity of this king, who built a temple dedicated to him, most likely in Girsu. He is well attested in texts dealing with the preparation of statues of deities, as well as other cultic paraphernalia.
Ninagal was regarded a divine smith. He could be called the "chief smith" (simug gal) of An. His name was written in cuneiform as dNin-á-gal, and can be translated from Sumerian as "lord of the big arm". It could also be represented logographically using the sign SIMUG, "smith", and writings such as dSIMUG or dNIN.SIMUG are also attested. However, in a single incantation a separate god named Ninsimug appears alongside Ninagal, with the two seemingly described as responsible for different types of metalworking. In the lexical list Diri Nippur the meaning of dSIMUG is apparently switched around with dBAḪAR, with the former explained as the potter god Nunura and the latter as Ninagal.
In the Epic of Erra Ninagal is described as the "wielder of the upper and lower millstone", possibly either an anvil and a hammer or elements of bellows. The following verses address him as a god "who grinds up hard copper like hide and who forges tools".
While Luděk Vacín refers to Ninagal as a goddess, the consensus view presented in Reallexikon der Assyriologie und Vorderasiatischen Archäologie is that he was a male deity.
An incantation recited during temple renovations, When Anu had created the heavens (enuma danu ibnû šamê) mentions Ninagal among deities created by Ea with clay from the Apsu.
Ninagal was regarded as a member of a category of deities referred to as "gods of the craftsmen" (ilī mārē ummâni), which also included the likes of Ninkurra, Ninildu or Kusibanda. According to Antoine Cavigneaux and Manfred Krebernik, he was particularly commonly associated with the last of the aforementioned deities, who was a divine goldsmith. In late sources, all of the craftsmanship deities could be identified as aspects of Ea.
According to the god list An = Anum (tablet II, line 348), Ninagal's wife was the goddess Ninimin, "lady seven" of "lady of the seven".
Multiple texts from the reign of Ur-Baba of Lagash indicate that Ninagal was his personal deity. In one of his inscriptions, he describes himself as the son of this god. He also built a temple dedicated to him, according to Andrew R. George possibly in Girsu. This assumption about its location is also supported by Joan Goodnick Westenholz. However, neither Early Dynastic texts from Lagash nor royal inscriptions and administrative texts from the reign of Ur-Baba's successor Gudea mention Ninagal, and he only reappears in sources from Girsu during the reign of Shulgi of Ur.
Ninagal
Ninagal (Sumerian: 𒀭𒎏𒀉𒃲) or Ninagala was a Mesopotamian god regarded as a divine smith. He was commonly associated with other deities connected to craftsmanship. Texts from the reign of Ur-Baba of Lagash indicate that he was the personal deity of this king, who built a temple dedicated to him, most likely in Girsu. He is well attested in texts dealing with the preparation of statues of deities, as well as other cultic paraphernalia.
Ninagal was regarded a divine smith. He could be called the "chief smith" (simug gal) of An. His name was written in cuneiform as dNin-á-gal, and can be translated from Sumerian as "lord of the big arm". It could also be represented logographically using the sign SIMUG, "smith", and writings such as dSIMUG or dNIN.SIMUG are also attested. However, in a single incantation a separate god named Ninsimug appears alongside Ninagal, with the two seemingly described as responsible for different types of metalworking. In the lexical list Diri Nippur the meaning of dSIMUG is apparently switched around with dBAḪAR, with the former explained as the potter god Nunura and the latter as Ninagal.
In the Epic of Erra Ninagal is described as the "wielder of the upper and lower millstone", possibly either an anvil and a hammer or elements of bellows. The following verses address him as a god "who grinds up hard copper like hide and who forges tools".
While Luděk Vacín refers to Ninagal as a goddess, the consensus view presented in Reallexikon der Assyriologie und Vorderasiatischen Archäologie is that he was a male deity.
An incantation recited during temple renovations, When Anu had created the heavens (enuma danu ibnû šamê) mentions Ninagal among deities created by Ea with clay from the Apsu.
Ninagal was regarded as a member of a category of deities referred to as "gods of the craftsmen" (ilī mārē ummâni), which also included the likes of Ninkurra, Ninildu or Kusibanda. According to Antoine Cavigneaux and Manfred Krebernik, he was particularly commonly associated with the last of the aforementioned deities, who was a divine goldsmith. In late sources, all of the craftsmanship deities could be identified as aspects of Ea.
According to the god list An = Anum (tablet II, line 348), Ninagal's wife was the goddess Ninimin, "lady seven" of "lady of the seven".
Multiple texts from the reign of Ur-Baba of Lagash indicate that Ninagal was his personal deity. In one of his inscriptions, he describes himself as the son of this god. He also built a temple dedicated to him, according to Andrew R. George possibly in Girsu. This assumption about its location is also supported by Joan Goodnick Westenholz. However, neither Early Dynastic texts from Lagash nor royal inscriptions and administrative texts from the reign of Ur-Baba's successor Gudea mention Ninagal, and he only reappears in sources from Girsu during the reign of Shulgi of Ur.