- Ninkasi
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Fertile Crescent
myth seriesMesopotamian Levantine Arabian Mesopotamia Primordial beings 7 gods who decree Demigods & heroes Spirits & monsters Tales from Babylon The Great Gods Adad · Ashnan
Asaruludu · Enbilulu
Enkimdu · Ereshkigal
Inanna · Lahar
Nanshe · Nergal
· Nidaba
Ningal · Ninisinna
Ninkasi · Ninlil
Ninurta · Nusku
Uttu ·
AnnunakiNinkasi is the ancient Sumerian matron goddess of the intoxicating beverage[1], beer.
Her father was Enki, the lord Nudimmud, and her mother was Ninti, the queen of the Abzu. She is also one of the eight children created in order to heal one of the eight wounds that Enki receives. Furthermore, she is the goddess of alcohol. She was also borne of "sparkling fresh water." She is the goddess made to "satisfy the desire" and "sate the heart." She would prepare the beverage daily.[1]
Contents
Hymn to Ninkasi
The Sumerian written language and the associated clay tablets are among the earliest human writings. Scholarly works from the early 1800's onward have developed some facility translating the various Sumerian documents. Among these is a poem with the English title, “A hymn to Ninkasi”. The poem is, in effect, a recipe for the making of beer. A translation from the University of Oxford describes combining bread, a source for yeast, with malted and soaked grains and keeping the liquid in a fermentation vessel until finally filtering it into a collecting vessel. [2]
See also
References
- ^ a b Ninkasi at Encyclopedia Mythica
- ^ "ETCSLtranslation : t.4.23.1". University of Oxford. http://etcsl.orinst.ox.ac.uk/cgi-bin/etcsl.cgi?text=t.4.23.1&display=Crit&charenc=gcirc&lineid=t4231.p1#t4231.p1. Retrieved 9 February 2011.
External links
Categories:- Mesopotamian deities
- Beer culture
- History of Iraq
- Middle East mythology stubs
- Beer and brewery stubs
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