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an (cuneiform)

{{see also|Dingir}}

Image:B010_(Old_Assyrian_an_%E2%80%93_FreeIdg_dingir).jpg

File:Kassite vocabulary.jpg vocabulary list.
The first two gods in column 2, God Sin, and God Shamash; (Shamash again as God #3).
Gods #4/5 (identical), are the "Wind Gods", Adad, and Rammânu.]]

The cuneiform an sign (or sumerogram AN, in Akkadian consisting of ASH 𒀸 and MAŠ 𒈦), is a common, multi-use sign, a syllabic for an, and an alphabetic sign used for a, or n; it is common in both the Epic of Gilgamesh over hundreds of years, and the 1350 BC Amarna letters, and other cuneiform texts. It is also used for the designation of a "god", and is sometimes represented as a superscript: d, or capitalized: D, for "dingir", English language, "god". The example photo at right shows (2nd list), a list of 14 named gods, all with "an"; the first pair on the list AN-UTU, or DUTU, refers to the "sun-god", using Ud (cuneiform), as the sumerogram, namely UTU (sun Sumerogram).

Cuneiform an can also be found in compound form with another cuneiform sign, an example being DAGAL, 100x24px. The older version of DAGAL used the 'god symbol' as a star within the sign: 100x24px; (older version of DAGAL, incorporating "star": 100x24px).

''Epic of Gilgamesh'' usage

In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Tablets I-XII, "an" is used for the following meanings by the following numbers: an-(120) times, ìl-(0) times, d-(593), AN-(27), and DINGIR-(76) times.Parpola, 1971. The Standard Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh, Sign List, pp. 155-165, Sign no. 013, p. 155.

List of Babylonian gods, etc.

From Budge's revised book on Babylonian Life and History, a list of many of the major gods from Babylonian history (and Sumerian):Budge. Babylonian Life and History, E.A. Wallace Budge (Barnes & Noble edition), c 2005 (c 1883, revised 1925), 245 pages, Chapter: "Babylonian Religious Beliefs", pp. 80-95, list: pp. 94-95.

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=List of gods and associated temples, towns, etc.=

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References

{{commons category|An (cuneiform)}}

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  • Budge. Babylonian Life and History, Budge, E.A. Wallace (Barnes & Noble edition), c 2005 (c 1883, revised 1925), 245 pages. (softcover, {{ISBN|978-0-7607-6549-4}})
  • Moran, William L. 1987, 1992. The Amarna Letters. Johns Hopkins University Press, 1987, 1992. 393 pages.(softcover, {{ISBN|0-8018-6715-0}})
  • Parpola, 1971. The Standard Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh, Parpola, Simo, Neo-Assyrian Text Corpus Project, c 1997, Tablet I thru Tablet XII, Index of Names, Sign List, and Glossary-(pp. 119–145), 165 pages.(softcover, {{ISBN|951-45-7760-4}})-(Volume 1)

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File:MLC 1805.jpg|Line drawing with usage of an sign.
Used in lines 1-(=0), 4, and 10.

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File:Amran Kudurru 03.jpg|Amran Kudurru
(used at beginning of 1st line)

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Category:Cuneiform signs