Lelwani

Lelwani or Leluwani was a Hittite deity of the underworld of Hattic origin. While originally regarded as male and addressed as a "king," due to influence of Hurrian beliefs on the Hittites, Lelwani started to be viewed as female in later periods.

==Gender and syncretism== Lelwani was originally a male Hattic chthonic god incorporated into Hittite religion, referred to as "lord" and "king" (Hattic: katte, logographically: LUGAL-uš). However, due to syncretism with female deities during the period of growing Hurrian influence on Hittite state religion, Lelwani started to be regarded as a goddess instead. The change happened no later than during the reign of Ḫattušili III. An early attestation of this phenomenon is known from a text attributed to queen Puduḫepa.