Characters in the Epic of Gilgamesh

Gilgamesh (, ; ; originally ) was a hero in ancient Mesopotamian mythology and the protagonist of the Epic of Gilgamesh, an epic poem written in Akkadian during the late 2nd millennium BC. He was possibly a historical king of the Sumerian city-state of Uruk, who was posthumously deified. His rule probably would have taken place sometime in the beginning of the Early Dynastic Period, 2900–2350 BC, though he became a major figure in Sumerian legend during the Third Dynasty of Ur ().

Inanna is the ancient Mesopotamian goddess of war, love, and sex. She is also associated with political power, divine law, sensuality, and procreation. Originally worshipped in Sumer, she was known by the Akkadians, Babylonians, and Assyrians as Ishtar. Her primary title is "the Queen of Heaven".

thumb|Fighting scene between a beast and a man with horns, hooves and a tail, who has been compared to the Mesopotamian bull-man, suggestive of Indus–Mesopotamia relations. [[Mohenjo-daro (seal 1357), Indus Valley civilization.]]

Shamash (Akkadian: šamaš), also known as Utu (written ; Sumerian: dutu, literally "Sun"), was the ancient Mesopotamian sun god. He was believed to see everything that happened in the world every day, and was therefore responsible for justice and protection of travelers. As a divine judge, he could be associated with the underworld. Additionally, he could serve as the god of divination, typically alongside the weather god Adad. While he was universally regarded as one of the primary gods, he was particularly venerated in Sippar and Larsa. The moon god Nanna (Sin) and his wife Ningal were regard

Dumuzid, Dumuzi, or Tammuz (; ; ), known to the Sumerians as Dumuzid the Shepherd () and to the Canaanites as Adon (; Proto-Hebrew: 𐤀𐤃𐤍), is an ancient Mesopotamian and Levantine deity associated with agriculture and shepherds, who was also the first and primary consort of the goddess Inanna (later known as Ishtar). In Sumerian mythology, Dumuzid's sister was Geshtinanna, the goddess of agriculture, fertility, and dream interpretation. In the Sumerian King List, Dumuzid is listed as an antediluvian king of the city of Bad-tibira and also an early king of the city of Uruk.

Enmerkar () was an ancient Sumerian ruler to whom the construction of the city of Uruk and a 420-year reign was attributed. According to literary sources, he led various campaigns against the land of Aratta.

thumb|Cuneiform script|Cuneiform tablet with the [[Atra-Hasis epic in the British Museum]] Uta-napishtim or Utnapishtim (, "he has found life") was a legendary mortal king of the ancient city of Shuruppak in southern Iraq who, according to the Gilgamesh flood myth, survived the Flood by making and occupying a boat.

thumb|The story of Lugalbanda in the Mountain Cave, Old-Babylonian period, from southern Iraq. Sulaymaniyah Museum, Iraqi Kurdistan. Lugalbanda was a deified Sumerian king of Uruk who, according to various sources of Mesopotamian literature, was the father of Gilgamesh. Early sources mention his consort Ninsun and his heroic deeds in an expedition to Aratta by King Enmerkar.

Humbaba (Ḫumbaba; , Ḫumbāba, with an optional determinative ), originally known as Ḫuwawa in Sumerian (, Ḫuwāwa), was a figure in Mesopotamian mythology. The origin and meaning of his name are unknown. He was portrayed as an anthropomorphic figure comparable to an ogre or giant. He is best known from Sumerian and Akkadian narratives focused on the hero Gilgamesh, including short compositions belonging to the curriculum of scribal schools, various versions of the Epic of Gilgamesh, and several Hurrian and Hittite adaptations. He is invariably portrayed as the inhabitant or guardian of the cedar

Ninsun (also called Ninsumun, cuneiform: dNIN.SUMUN2; Sumerian: Nin-sumun(ak) "lady of the wild cows") was a Mesopotamian goddess. She is best known as the mother of the hero Gilgamesh and wife of deified legendary king Lugalbanda, and appears in this role in most versions of the Epic of Gilgamesh. She was associated with Uruk, where she lives in this composition, but she was also worshiped in other cities of ancient Mesopotamia, such as Nippur and Ur, and her main cult center was the settlement KI.KALki.

Enmebaragesi (Sumerian: Enmebárgisi [EN-ME-BARA2-GI4-SE]; ) originally Mebarasi () was the penultimate king of the first dynasty of Kish and is recorded as having reigned 900 years in the Sumerian King List. Like his son and successor Aga, he reigned during a period when Kish had hegemony over Sumer. Enmebaragesi signals a momentous documentary leap from mytho-history to history, since he is the earliest ruler on the king list whose name is attested directly from archaeology.

figure in ancient Mesopotamian mythology

ancient Mesopotamian king

Mesopotamian goddess

Shamhat (; also called Shamkat in the old Babylonian version of Gilgamesh") is a character who appears in Tablets I and II of the Epic of Gilgamesh and is mentioned in Tablet VII. She is often characterized as a sacred prostitute, though this identification has been contested, and she plays a significant role in bringing the wild man Enkidu into contact with civilization.

Siduri, or more accurately Šiduri (pronounced Shiduri), is a character in the Epic of Gilgamesh. She is described as an alewife. The oldest preserved version of the composition to contain the episode involving her leaves her nameless, and in the later standard edition compiled by Sîn-lēqi-unninni her name only appears in a single line. She is named Naḫmazulel or Naḫmizulen in the preserved fragments of Hurrian and Hittite translations. It has been proposed that her name in the standard edition is derived from an epithet applied to her by the Hurrian translator, šiduri, "young woman." An altern

Urshanabi, also known as Sursunabu, was a figure in Mesopotamian mythology. His name is considered unusual and difficult to interpret, and consists of a prefix common in Sumerian names and a cuneiform numeral which could be read as either or 40. Most likely it was an artificial scholarly construction. He is known from the Old Babylonian and Standard Babylonian versions of the Epic of Gilgamesh, as well as from its Hittite adaptation. He is described as a boatman in the service of the flood hero Utnapishtim, and is responsible for taking Gilgamesh to Utnapishtim's domain. In the Standard Babylo

Ennugi () was a Mesopotamian god associated with agriculture, especially irrigation, and with the underworld. According to an incantation he was also considered to be the creator of grubs. He was a member of the court of Enlil, and appears in god lists alongside its other members, such as Ninimma and Kusu. He was worshiped in Nippur, where his temple Erabriri was most likely located. He is also mentioned in a number of myths, including Atra-Hasis and the Epic of Gilgamesh.

mesopotamian goddess