Sin (Nanna)CINZIA PAPPI

Sin (or Suen) in Akkadian is the Mesopotamian

moon god; his name in Sumerian texts is

Nanna. Nanna/Suen was the son of ENLIL and

Ninlil. The story of the rape of Ninlil is told in

a Sumerian poem; Enlil was banished by the

other gods, but Ninlil followed him, already

pregnant with Nanna/Suen. Nanna/Suen’s

spouse was the goddess Ningal, and they pro-

duced the gods Shamash and Ishtar (see

SHAMASH (UTU); INANNA (ISHTAR)). The most

important temple of Nanna/Suen was in UR.

In the story “Nanna’s Journey to Nippur,”

Nanna travels to Nippur, home of Enlil, by

boat, bringing his father the first fruits of the

season. As a lunar deity the symbol of Nanna/

Suen was a crescent moon, sometimes shown

in a boat.

The entu high-priestess of Nanna/Suen

was first appointed by SARGON OF AKKAD; his

daughter ENHEDUANNA wrote famous poems in

Sumerian. Later kings celebrated their rule

over Ur by appointing new entu priestesses

there. In the first millennium BCE, the worship

of Sin was especially important in Harran in

northern Syria. NABONIDUS, the Babylonian

king, venerated Sin at Harran since his mother

had been a priestess there.

SEE ALSO: En, entu; Sumerian language.

REFERENCES AND SUGGESTED READINGS

Black, J. et al. (2004) The literature of ancient

Sumer. Oxford.

Foster, B. R. (2005) Before the muses: an anthology

of Akkadian literature, 3rd ed. Bethesda, MD.

Hall, M. G. (1985) A study of the Sumerian moon-

god Nanna/Suen. Ann Arbor.

Krebernik, M. (1995) “Mondgott. A. I. ” Reallexikon

der Assyriologie und Vorderasiatischen

Archaologie, vol. 8: 101–11. Berlin.

Sallaberger, W. (1993) Der kultische Kalender der

Ur III-Zeit. Berlin.

Theuer, G. (2000) Der Mondgott in der Religionen

Syrien-Palastinas. Gottingen.

The Encyclopedia of Ancient History, First Edition. Edited by Roger S. Bagnall, Kai Brodersen, Craige B. Champion, Andrew Erskine,

and Sabine R. Huebner, print page 6261.

© 2013 Blackwell Publishing Ltd. Published 2013 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

DOI: 10.1002/9781444338386.wbeah24194

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