Mummu

Mummu (Cuneiform: 𒀭𒌣 ^dumum , 𒀭𒈬𒌝𒈬 ^dmu-um-mu) is a Mesopotamian deity. His name is an Akkadian loanword from Sumerian "umun", which translates as "main body, bulk, life-giving force" and "knowledge", as the active part, in contrary to the more lethargic primordial forces of Tiamat and Apsû (Sumerian Abzu).^[1]

He appeared in the Babylonian creation myth, the Enuma Elish, as the vizier of the primeval gods Apsû, the fresh water, and Tiamat, the salt water.^[2] and sometimes referred to as their son. Towards the middle of Enuma Elish, Ea locks Mummu and Apsu away.

Mummu is also one of the names given to Marduk, the ultimate victor over Tiamat.^[1] Mummu was sometimes also identified with Papsukkal and Ilabrat.^[3]

Mummu is a craftsman, the personification of practical knowledge and technical skill. As the third of the primordial gods, Mummu is said to symbolize the mental world, the logos, according to the Neo-Platonist Damascius.^[4] Franz Böhl arrived at this association as well, deriving mummu as a participle of the root "to speak" and calling it a precursor of the Hellenistic logos, although Heidel disputed this etymology.^[5]

^ ^a ^b "Enuma Elish - The Babylonian Epic of Creation - Full Text". World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2019-05-02.
^ Liebowitz Knapp, Bettina (1997). Women in myth. SUNY Press. p. 270. ISBN 9780791431634. Retrieved 17 June 2009.
^ Cite error: The named reference CAD was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference Sandars was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Heidel, Alexander (April 1948). "The Meaning of Mummu in Akkadian Literature". Journal of Near Eastern Studies. 7 (2): 98–105. doi:10.1086/370863. JSTOR 542674. S2CID 161113802. Retrieved 2021-09-14.

[:0-1] "Enuma Elish - The Babylonian Epic of Creation - Full Text". World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2019-05-02.

[2] Liebowitz Knapp, Bettina (1997). Women in myth. SUNY Press. p. 270. ISBN 9780791431634. Retrieved 17 June 2009.

[CAD-3] Cite error: The named reference CAD was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[Sandars-4] Cite error: The named reference Sandars was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[5] Heidel, Alexander (April 1948). "The Meaning of Mummu in Akkadian Literature". Journal of Near Eastern Studies. 7 (2): 98–105. doi:10.1086/370863. JSTOR 542674. S2CID 161113802. Retrieved 2021-09-14.

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