Ninshubur
Ninshubur (; also spelled Ninšubur, Ninšubura or Nincubur) was the "sukkal" (vizier) of the goddess Inanna in Sumerian mythology. Ninshubur also served as the vizier of the sky god An and by extension as the messenger of the assembly of the gods, similar to Greek Hermes or Iris. Her name means "Queen of servants" or "Queen of Subartu" in Sumerian. She was originally worshiped in Akkil, but in the Early Dynastic Period she was already worshiped in other cities, including Lagash, Nippur, Shuruppak and Uruk. Many kings of Lagash regarded her as their personal deity. Due to the belief that  she could intercede with higher ranking deities, she was popular in everyday religion, and many theophoric names invoking her and other references to personal worship are known from ancient sources. In myths Ninshubur accompanied Inanna during many of her most famous exploits. She helped Inanna fight Enki's servants from the Apsu after Inanna's theft of the sacred "me". In another myth, when Inanna became trapped in the Underworld, it was Ninshubur who pleaded with Enki for her mistress's release. She was syncretised with other messenger deities, most notably Ilabrat and Papsukkal. In the second half of the  first millennium BCE the latter replaced her in the role of primary servant of An. While originally regarded as a goddess, Ninshubur came to be viewed as a male deity in many sources, most likely due to syncretism. Name. Frans Wiggermann translates Ninshubur's name as "Queen of Subartu" or alternatively "Lady of servants" (or "Lady of Subarian servants") based on another meaning of "shubur," "servant," and on Ninshubur's role as a benevolent intercessory deity. Sometimes the name was written simply as Shubur. Two forms of the name in the Emesal dialect are also known, Gashanshubur (referring to the  female Ninshubur) and Umunshubur (referring to the male one). "Nin-"ŠUBUR.AL, appearing in documents from the Early Dynastic period, might be either an alternate form of Ninshubur's name or a separate, though similarly named, deity. Names of Sumerian deities were often a combination of "Nin" and either a place, product or concept. While "nin" can often be translated as "lady" (or "queen", "mistress"), it is a grammatically neutral term and can be found in the names of both female (Ninisina, Ninkasi, Ninmena) and male (Ningirsu, Ninazu, Ningishzida) deities. Some forty percent of earliest Sumerian deities had such names, including city  gods, but also servants and children of major deities. The Sumerian term Shubur or Subir (Subartu) designated areas north of Mesopotamia. Both in ancient documents and in past scholarship the terms "Subartu" and "Subarians" usually refer to Hurrians. Assyriologist Beate Pongratz-Leisten notes that Hurrians were never regarded as outsiders in Mesopotamian sources, unlike other neighboring groups such as the Gutians, most likely due to their culture also having an urban character. According to Tonia Sharlach, the inhabitants of Subartu were viewed as "neighbors whose language (and perhaps culture) were worthy of closer knowledge," as evidenced for example by the  mentions of king Shulgi communicating with "Subareans" in their own language. High-ranking courtiers of Hurrian origin are known from administrative texts from the reign of Third Dynasty of Ur, one notable example being the diviner Tahish-atal who served Amar-Sin and Shu-Sin. Diviners at times served as royal advisor. It is possible that echoes of Ninshubur's association with Subartu survived as late as in the neo-Assyrian period in documents pertaining to Papsukkal. Early translations of Ninshubur's name (for example Wilfred G. Lambert's from 1976) relying on two lexical texts from the first millennium  BCE explaining it as "bel erseti" - "lord of the earth" or "lord of the underworld" - are regarded as erroneous, as no other sources explain the meaning of "shubur" as "erseti". It is possible this uncommon understanding was based on a local tradition associating Ninshubur with Nergal. Gender. It is agreed that Ninshubur was always identified as female when associated with Inanna. Many authors propose that Ninshubur was male when associated with An. While the second millennium BCE god list "An=Anu ša āmeli" explains that "Ninshubur is Papsukkal when Anu is concerned," Papsukkal being the name of a male  messenger deity, Frans Wiggermann argues that the only texts from the third millennium BCE which identify Ninshubur's gender state that she was a goddess, rather than a god. Gábor Zólyomi also translates a passage related to Ninshubur's role as a servant of An as referring to a female deity. Texts from Lagash from the Early Dynastic period refer to Ninshubur exclusively as a goddess according to Toshiko Kobayashi. In most Akkadian texts Ninshubur was regarded as male, though it is possible exceptions did exist. In Old Babylonian and Kassite periods in Nippur Ninshubur was considered female. However, whether  Ninshubur mentioned on Kassite seals is male or female is presently unknown. Uri Gabbay proposed that Ninshubur's identity was a mirror of the "gala" clergy, but this view is not supported by other researchers, as regardless of gender Ninshubur was never described as a "gala", and the only similarity between her and the class of priests was their shared ability to appease specific deities. Wolfgang Heimpel suggested another solution, namely that three separate deities shared the same name, one female (according to him found for example in association with Inanna in Ur) and two male (one associated with An  and yet another in Girsu) , with no ambiguity of gender in any case. However, the matter of Ninshubur's gender was in some cases unclear to ancient scribes, with one Old Babylonian hymn ( CBS 15119+) possibly being an attempt at reconciling conflicting accounts by describing Ninshubur (identified as female in this context by Frans Wiggermann) as dressed in both feminine (left side) and masculine (right side) robes. The view that Ninshubur was male as a servant of An in Sumerian texts from the third millennium BCE relies on the widely accepted assumption that a deity's "sukkal" matched their  gender, though exceptions from it are known. Namtar, Ereshkigal's "sukkal", was male. The "sukkal" of the medicine goddess Gula, Urmašum, was a male deity too. A text from Hattusa written in Akkadian names Ellabrat (Ilabrat) the "sukkal" of the goddess Pinikir, there identified with Ishtar. Amasagnudi, regarded as a goddess in known sources and in one case equated with female Ninshubur, was also said to be a "sukkal" of Anu in one Old Babylonian document. Ninshubur herself appears as the "sukkal" of Nergal instead of Ugur or Ishum (both of them male) in one Sumerian text dated to the  Old Babylonian period. In addition to these cases, Papsukkal takes Ninshubur's role in an Akkadian translation of "Inanna's Descent", but he is not directly designated as Ishtar's personal servant, and the text states that he was serving "the great gods" as a group. Ninshubur was not the only Mesopotamian deity whose gender varied in ancient sources, other examples include Ninkasi (the deity of beer, female in earlier sources but at times male later on), the couple Ninsikila and Lisin, whose genders were in some instances switched around, the minor underworld deity Lagamal, who was male in sources  from Dilbat but female in these from Terqa, Usuramassu, described as a son of Adad in the god list "An = Anum" but as his daughter in sources from Uruk from the first millennium BCE, and the Venus deity Ninsianna, whose varying gender might be connected to dual role as personification of both the morning star and the evening star. Syncretism with male deities. It has been proposed that the variance in Ninshubur's gender is related to syncretism with the male Akkadian god Ilabrat. In texts from the second millennium BCE, Ninshubur and Ilabrat coexisted and in at least  some cases Ninshubur's name, when treated as masculine, was a logographic spelling of Ilabrat's, for example in Mari in personal names. Ninshubur was additionally syncretised with Papsukkal, originally the "sukkal" of Zababa, tutelary god of Kish. Papsukkal's rise to prominence at the expense of other similar figures, such as Ninshubur, was likely rooted simply in the presence of the word "sukkal" in his name. While an association between the two is attested in the god list "An = Anum" already, the conflation was only finalized in the Seleucid period in Uruk. Papsukkal was not worshiped in that  city in earlier periods, and in contrast with Ninshubur appeared only infrequently as a family deity or in personal names, but in the context of the so-called "antiquarian theology" relying largely on god lists, which developed in Uruk under Achaemenid rule, he was fully identified with Ninshubur and thus became Anu's "sukkal" and one of the eighteen major deities of the city. The late syncretic Papsukkal was not regarded as the "sukkal" of Anu and Ishtar, but rather Anu and Antu as a pair instead. Despite the syncretism leading to perception of Ninshubur as a male deity, it  is possible that the goddess Amasagnudi, worshiped alongside Papsukkal in Seleucid Uruk, was originally an epithet of (female) Ninshubur, a manifestation of her or at least a similar goddess sharing Ninshubur's role as "sukkal" of Anu. Frans Wiggermann translates Amasagnudi's name as "mother who cannot be pushed aside." Attributes and iconography. Ninshubur's attribute was a staff, a sign of her office as a "sukkal" representing right to rule granted to her by her masters, It is possible that it was believed Ninshubur therefore bestowed similar privileges upon kings. Other symbols associated with her were doors and  shoes, and Inanna addresses her with the epithet "pure minister of the lapis lazuli shoes" in one text. Other gods' divine viziers were depicted holding staffs too, including Alla (Ningishzida's), Isimud (Enki's) and Nusku (Enlil's). A "sukkal" was expected to walk in front of their master, leading the way with their staff. Figures of Ninshubur were buried under temples of other gods in some cases during building rituals. Very few depictions of female Ninshubur have been identified with certainty, though it is possible she is the deity on seals of Lugal-ushumgal, governor of Lagash during the  reigns of Naram-Sin of Akkad and his son Shar-Kali-Sharri. A letter-prayer possibly referring to a statue mentions that the deity had a "face exuding allure," and describes Ninshubur's physique in terms similar to these sometimes applied to Inanna. It has been proposed that in Girsu, where Ninshubur was regarded as the wife of Meslamtaea (Nergal), she can be identified as a goddess accompanied by his symbolic animal, the "lion-griffin," similar to how Geshtinanna was accompanied by mushussu, a symbol of her husband Ningishzida, and that on Old Babylonian seals the double lion-headed mace  associated with Nergal might represent Ninshubur in the role of a deity related to him. The constellation Orion, known in ancient Mesopotamia as Sipazianna, "the true shepherd of heaven," was regarded as the astral symbol of Ninshubur, as well as Ilabrat and Papsukkal. Character and functions. Ninshubur is regarded by Assyriologists as "the earliest and most important" "sukkal", linked to the deities she served "not as cause and effect, but as command and execution." Her two main functions were these of "intercessory goddess" and "archetypal vizier of the gods," serving Inanna, but also An and by extension the entire divine  assembly. One hymn (CBS 14073) describes her as a servant of not only her usual masters, but also Enlil, Enki, his wife Damgalnunna, Nanna, Ningal, Ninurta, Ninhursag and Utu. She was addressed as "sukkal anna," "heavenly vizier." The association with An is known from sources from the reign of Third Dynasty of Ur onward, and might be a secondary development, with Inanna being her primary and original mistress. As Inanna's "sukkal", Ninshubur was believed to implement divine rules and regulations on her behalf. Her role as a popular intercessory deity in Sumerian religion was derived from her position as  a servant of major deities, which resulted in the belief that she was capable of mediating with her masters on behalf of human petitioners. A number of references to Ninshubur as "mother of the earth" or "mother of the land" are known. A theological text composed during the reign of the Third Dynasty of Ur states that "Ninshubur occupies the land" and includes her among the highest ranking gods, alongside Enlil, Ninlil, Nanna, Inanna, Enki, Nergal, Ninurta and Nuska. The deified hero Gilgamesh appears in it as well, seemingly to elevate his standing among gods due to his role in  the royal ideology of that time period. Gábor Zólyomi notes that the one known hymn focusing on Ninshubur in the role of "mother of the land" (BL 195, known from the tablet Ash. 1911.326 from the Ashmolean Museum) employs multiple topoi related to abundance in Sumerian literature (for example building of cattle pens and sheepfolds under her command), otherwise not associated with her. Another hymn (CBS 14073) mentions both her role as a divine vizier and that of "mother of the land." In addition to this metaphorical role, Ninshubur was also referred to as a "mother" in personal names. However , references to her as an actual "birth mother" are uncommon and unusual according to Joan Goodnick Westenholz. Some ancient hymns indicate that the role of a divine healer was occasionally ascribed to Ninshubur. Association with other deities. No clear evidence exists regarding Ninshubur's parentage. In early sources she usually did not have a spouse. Ninshubur and Inanna. Ninshubur, under the variant name Nin-Akkil ("lady of Akkil"), was already regarded as a servant of Inanna in a "zami" hymn from Early Dynastic Abu Salabikh. Frans Wiggermann describes the relation between them as very close. It was believed that Inanna  bestowed Ninshubur's titles upon her and made her a "sukkal". In one text, Inanna addressed Ninshubur endearingly as "my mother." In another, she is called the "beloved vizier" and appears right after Dumuzi and before other relatives. Ninshubur was regarded as a guardian of Inanna's secrets and as her adviser, though according to one text the latter could scoff at offered advice, both incorrect and correct. Ninshubur was also capable of "appeasing" Inanna, and one of her epithets was "who flatters the heart of Inanna." Epithets related to this function were preserved in the god list "An =  Anum". Additionally, a temple dedicated to her whose location is not presently known bore the name E-shatezu, "house which knows the soothing of the heart." The role of a mediator between a major deity and worshipers played by Ninshubur in the cult of Inanna/Ishtar was similar to that played by the spouses of other major gods, for example Aya in the cult of Shamash or Shala in Adad's. Sumerian literary catalogs list at least 7 hymns dedicated to Ninshubur which based on surviving incipits described her lamenting over something that happened to Inanna. Ninshubur and the Lamma  goddesses. Ninshubur was associated with the Lamma class of goddesses, likely due to their shared role in intercession between mortals and higher ranking gods. An association with Lamma was also attributed to Nanaya, regarded as "lady of Lamma." She was viewed as a servant of Inanna much like Ninshubur, and in god lists she usually appears right after the latter, before any further courtiers (such as Kanisurra and Gazbaba). Joan Goodnick Westenholz explains the purpose of Lamma as that of "protective and tutelary goddesses" and notes that they are the figures most commonly appearing in so-called "presentation scenes" in  ancient Mesopotamian art, in which a minor goddess (Lamma) leads a human to a more prominent, seated deity. Lamma could also be a designation for specific gods and goddesses in contexts in which their functions were analogous to these usually fulfilled by this category of deities, with Gudea going as far as occasionally calling the Anuna (a collective term for the major deities) gods "Lamma of all countries." The nature of Lamma can be compared to that of the modern concept of guardian angel. Other associations. In Girsu, Ninshubur was the spouse of Meslamtaea, a name used to refer to  Nergal in early sources from southern Mesopotamian cities. Frans Wiggermann notes that the pairing of Nergal with Ninshubur is unusual, as she was the only goddess sometimes regarded as his wife who had a well defined role other than that of his spouse, the other exception being Ereshkigal. He assumes that since many of Nergal's occasional spouses, such as Mammitum or Admu, were possibly associated with the earth, this role of Ninshubur was tied to her function as "lady of the earth." No other examples of Ninshubur being regarded as another deity's wife are known. A single source  refers to Ninshubur as Nergal's "sukkal" rather than wife. In Mari Kakka, a local healing goddess, attested only in personal names, was associated with Ninshubur, but also with the medicine goddess Ninkarrak. This goddess most likely should be regarded as distinct from Kakka, the "sukkal" of Anshar, known from the god list "An = Anum" (where the medicine goddess Kakka appears separately in Ninkarrak's section) and from the later myth Enuma Elish. Ninshubur was identified with the latter Kakka in "An = Anum" but only in the specific role of "one who holds the great scepter." A single  Old Babylonian letter associates Ninshubur with Lugal-namtarra, a deity possibly analogous to Namtar, and invokes both of them to bless the recipient. Lugal-namtarra, as well as a deity whose name was written as SUKKAL, who according to Odette Boivin might be analogous to Ninshubur, both appear in association with Shamash in texts from the archives of the First Sealand dynasty in place of his usual attendants (such as Bunene). In Isin, Ninshubur was seemingly incorporated into the entourage of the medicine goddess Ninisina. Worship. Akkil, where Ninshubur was associated with Inanna, was the most important location related to  her cult. A number of objects dedicated to "Ninshubur of Akkil" are known, including artifacts from the Early Dynastic period and a vessel inscribed by a "sanga" priests of Inanna from Uruk in the Ur III period. Ninshubur's temple located in that settlement was E-(a)akkil, whose name has been translated as "house of lamentation" by Andrew R. George. Ninakkil ("lady of Akkil"), a name found in documents from the Early Dynastic period and from the reign of Third Dynasty of Ur, was likely used to refer to Ninshubur. While older publications show uncertainty over whether Akkil was a town  or a temple, it is now known that it was a small settlement close to Bad-tibira. However, in later times a temple of Papsukkal in Kish was also known as Akkil, and a temple of Manungal, the goddess of prisons, bearing such a name is also attested in some documents. In the Early Dynastic period Ninshubur's cult was already established in Uruk, possibly transferred there from Akkil. She was also worshiped in Shuruppak in that era. In Lagash her cult existed already during the reign of Lugalanda (c. 2400 BCE), and she was celebrated during festivals of Nanshe  and Ningirsu and received offerings from the king's wife, Barnamtarra. There is no evidence pertaining to Ninshubur from the reign of Lugalanda's predecessor Enentarzi, which makes it possible she was only a deity worshiped by commoners at first, and only started to receive offerings from the official administration under Lugalanda's rule. A temple dedicated to her, E-eshbarmeluhha, "house of decisions, which cleans the "me"," existed in nearby Girsu. It is possible, though not certain, that E-mekilibbasagil, "house which lifts on high all the me," known from later royal inscriptions, was also located in this city . She also appeared in royal inscriptions of kings Meskigal of Adab and Urukagina of Lagash, in both cases addressed as "dingir", "deity," while some other goddesses were addressed as "ama", "mother," in similar contexts. Urukagina additionally regarded Ninshubur as his personal deity, and in offering lists from his reign she was placed above Mesandu, who possibly had an analogous role during the reigns of earlier rulers of Lagash. There is also evidence for creation of cult statues and votive offerings dedicated to Ninshubur from various locations in the Early Dynastic period. Puzer-Mama, who ruled Lagash around 2200 BCE, mentioned  Ninshubur in his royal inscriptions, possibly in reference to Urukagina's reverence for her; it is regarded as plausible that they came from the same family and thus shared the same tutelary goddess. It has been proposed that Puzer-Mama considered Ninshubur a divine mediator guaranteeing Lagash its territorial rights, regained from Akkadian rulers. Another ruler of Lagash who regarded her as his personal goddess was Nammahani, brother in law of Gudea. Gudea himself referred to Ninshubur as his "nin" ("mistress"). Statues dedicated for the life of a ruler to Ninshubur and to Ninhishzida are also known from the periods  of Nammahani's and Ur-Ningirsu II's rule. King Shulgi of Ur likewise referred to Ninshubur as "mistress." However, she does not appear in the official cultic calendars and offering lists from Ur from the reign of his dynasty, despite her popularity in everyday religion (a situation analogous to Nanshe's). E-ninbitum ("house fit for a lady"), a temple of Ninshubur (or a cella in Inanna's temple, according to Wolfgang Heimpel) is nonetheless attested from Ur. It might be the same temple as E-aggasummmu, "house which gives decrees," also presumed to be located in Ur. Chapels  of Ninshubur and another commonly worshiped servant deity, Hendursaga, as well as votive objects to dedicated to them, are attested from Ur in the Isin-Larsa period. It is uncertain if a statue found in the Ninshubur chapel represents any deity, or a human (for example a princess or "en" priestess), though it has been noted that she lacks the horned crown associated with divinity. A letter-prayer to Ninshubur (UET 6/1, 7) which indicates that such texts were presented to a statue of the deity, is also assumed to be from Ur, though it is regarded as likely that  it was sent by a king of Larsa in the Old Babylonian period, possibly Rim-Sin I of Larsa. Records indicate that he built temples of both female and male Ninshubur, and it is likely he was particularly devoted to this deity. Worship of Ninshubur is also attested from Nippur, where in the Old Babylonian and Middle Babylonian periods she had her own temple, E-akkilduku, "house of lamentation, the pure mound." She also received offerings in temple complexes of both Enlil and Ninurta. Her cult is attested in Nippur in the Early Dynastic period already, and it is possible  it was introduced from Akkil, like in the case of Uruk. In the administrative texts from Puzrish-Dagan, there are mentions of offerings made to Ninshubur in Enegi, the cult center of the underworld god Ninazu. It has been proposed that she was introduced there from Uruk, as the local pantheon included other typically Urukean deities as well, such as the demigod Gilgamesh and his mother Ninsun. Other cities where according to textual sources (mostly from the Old Babylonian period) Ninshubur was worshiped include Babylon, Isin, Kish, Larsa, Malgium, Mari and Nerebtum (possibly Tell Ishchali), but it is difficult to  tell if the deity in mention was female Ninshubur, male Ninshubur, or Ilabrat. Due to her intercessory role, Ninshubur was popular in the sphere of personal worship, for example as a family deity. She was also among the deities invoked in theophoric names in many periods. Sometimes her title "sukkal anna," written with a dingir sign in front of it like divine names, was used in them too. Mythology. Ninshubur was an important figure in Mesopotamian mythology and she played an integral role in several myths involving her mistress, Inanna. Inanna's descent to the Underworld. In the Sumerian myth  of Inanna's descent into the Netherworld, before Inanna embarks on her journey, she instructs Ninshubur what to do if she will not return after three days. This introductory scene is meant to establish right from the beginning that Inanna is not going to be trapped in Kur (the Sumerian underworld) permanently. Ninshubur, following her mistress' instructions, mourns her death by lamenting and wearing rags and pleads with the major gods in an effort to persuade them to rescue Inanna. While Enlil and Nanna refuse to help her, she manages to secure Enki's aid. After returning to the world  of the living Inanna protects her from the "galla" demons searching for a substitute to take to the land of the dead in her stead. Inanna states that she cannot let them take a faithful servant who followed all her instructions and mourned her death, and the galla ultimately are only allowed to take Dumuzi, who unlike Ninshubur didn't mourn her. Victor Avigdor Hurowitz considered it possible that the terms in which Ninshubur describes the possible dreadful fate of Inanna in the netherworld during her attempts to persuade other gods to help her might be a mythical reflection  of a ritual of renewal of a damaged statue. Inanna and Enki. In the Sumerian myth of Inanna and Enki, Ninshubur is described as the one who rescues Inanna from the monsters that Enki has sent after her to recover the stolen "me"s. In this myth, Ninshubur plays a similar role to Isimud, who acts as Enki's messenger to Inanna. Poem of Agushaya. In an Akkadian myth known under the title "Poem of Agushaya" or "Hymn of Agushaya" Ninshubur is tasked with providing Ishtar (the counterpart of Inanna) with information about the fearsome Saltu ("discord"), an opponent Ea (the  counterpart of Enki) created for her, meant to serve as her mirror image. A peculiarity of this text are recurring misspellings of specific words in Ninshubur's speech. While it has been proposed that they are simply scribal errors, Benjamin R. Foster assumes this is implausible as all of them occur in two successive lines, and proposes that they were employed purposely to represent Ninshubur stuttering in shock due to Saltu's fearsome nature and her resemblance to Ishtar, translating the text accordingly: