A piece about the history of Armenia

Mitanni – Mita – Mitra / Maryannu – Marianne – Maria

Hayastan: Khaldi/Haik/Kali/Hel/Kel – The sky – the stars
Armenia: Ereshkigal/Ares/Uras+An/Uranus/Varuna – The sky god

Haya (god) is known both as a “door-keeper” and associated with the scribal arts. Haya is also characterised, beyond being the spouse of Nidaba/Nissaba, as an “agrig”-official of the god Enlil. The god-list AN = Anu ša amēli (lines 97-98) designates him as “the Nissaba of wealth”, as opposed to his wife, who is the “Nissaba of Wisdom” (Litke 1998: 235).

Attempts have also been made to connect the remote origins of dha-ià with those of the god Ea (Ebla Ḥayya), although there remain serious doubts concerning this hypothesis (Weeden 2009: 98-103; on Ḥayya at Ebla see Archi 2010). How or whether both are related to a further western deity called Ḥayya is also unclear.

Traditions vary regarding the genealogy of Nidaba. She appears on separate occasions as the daughter of Enlil, of Uraš, of Ea, and of Anu. Nidaba’s spouse is Haya and together they have a daughter, Sud/Ninlil. Two myths (ETCSL 1.2.1 and ETCSL 1.2.2) describe the marriage of Sud/Ninlil with Enlil. This implies that Nidaba could be at once the daughter and the mother-in-law of Enlil.

Nidaba is also the sister of Ninsumun, the mother of Gilgameš. Nidaba is frequently mentioned together with the goddess Nanibgal who also appears as an epithet of Nidaba, although most god lists treat her as a distinct goddess (McEwan 1998-2001: 151).

In a debate between Nidaba and Grain (Lambert 1996: 168-75), Nidaba is syncretised with Ereškigal as “Mistress of the Underworld”. Nidaba is also identified with the goddess of grain Ašnan, and with Nanibgal/Nidaba-ursag/Geme-Dukuga, the throne bearer of Ninlil and wife of Ennugi, throne bearer of Enlil (Michalowski 1998-2001: 577).

Nidaba (goddess)

Haya (god)