Sumerian·Book

Position in chronology

A tigi to Inana (Inana E)

~1800 BCE·Old Babylonian

Written in modern English

Inana, whom Ningal adorned with beauty and joy, has also been given the power of destruction — fierce as a dragon's. She rides the south wind and holds the divine powers drawn up from the abzu, the cosmic underground waters. She has placed King Ama-ucumgal-ana on her sacred throne. The closing lines credit her with granting something to a hero and elevating her divine powers above all others, but the surface is damaged and the key words are lost.

A modern paraphrase of the literal translation — same content, contemporary voice.

Translation — scholar edition

ETCSL
High confidence
Lady whom Ningal has joyously made attractive with beauty, destruction has been given to you as to a dragon. Inana whom Ningal has joyously made attractive with beauty, destruction has been given to you as to a dragon. Riding on the south wind, you are she who has received the divine powers from the abzu. You have seated King Ama-ucumgal-ana upon your holy dais. Inana, riding on the south wind, you are she who has received the divine powers from the abzu. You have seated King Ama-ucumgal-ana upon your holy dais. Goddess, you have provided ...... to the hero and made your divine powers excel…

Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature — scholar edition (Oxford, Black/Cunningham/Robson/Zólyomi).

Scholarly note

Composition c.4.07.5 in the ETCSL catalogue. Sumerian literary text reconstructed from multiple cuneiform manuscripts, the great majority Old Babylonian (c. 1900–1600 BCE). Translation reproduced from the ETCSL edition.

Attribution

Image: .
Translation excerpted from ETCSL c.4.07.5: A tigi to Inana (Inana E). Black, J.A., Cunningham, G., Robson, E. & Zólyomi, G. (eds.), The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature, Faculty of Oriental Studies, University of Oxford. https://etcsl.orinst.ox.ac.uk/cgi-bin/etcsl.cgi?text=c.4.07.5.

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