The Creation of Humanity in Sumerian Religion

There is no singular version of the Creation of Humanity In Sumerian Religion. We have many interesting references over almost a thousand years of Sumerian History — and many more when we consider greater Mesopotamian Religion which bloomed from the traditions of Sumer, then Akkad, Babylonians, Assyrians and more throughout the Near East into many children.

With that being said, we can use the words of the Sumerians themselves to reveal their beliefs on creation:

“Lord Enlil, who made the world come into being in its correct form … whose rose the human seed from the Earth, and made it possible for humanity to grow in the land “where flesh came forth” by raising the axis of the world at Duranki.” — from the Song of the Hoe [1]

Quite explicitly, Lord Enlil created the world, created humanity, and gave us a land to grow in (“where flesh came forth”) which was somehow made possible by raising the axis of the world at Duranki. [1]

The parallels here between Sumerian Religion and Hebrew Religion are obvious. Change a couple of names and they are the same tradition. With the many Connections Between Hebrew Religion and Sumerian Religion included with the above details, it is clear where the traditions of Hebrew Religion came from (and also might explain why they were so vehemently opposed to idolatry, idol-worshippers, and false gods — because they were veering from ancient tradition).

[Note: I am only concerned here with the creation of humanity specifically in Sumerian Myths, and then its immediate descendants. I consider these to be important both for comparison (to see how a myth alters across the shift between three different cultural empires over only about 600 years, and the shift in dominant language) and also to account for the very real possibility that there are — or were — a number of variant traditions concurrently in existence at one time, which were only ever orally transmitted or whose written versions did not survive, which surfaced with time as a “new version” based on our dating of when its recording is from.]

Song of the Hoe Details On Creation

In the Sumerian myth called the Song of the Hoe we get a number of important details elucidating the creation of humanity according to the Sumerians:

• Enlil creates mankind with the hoe — In the tradition found in Song of the Hoe Enlil — not Enki — is the creator of humanity. (Note: we can expect varying traditions within Sumerian Religion.) In this telling of the creation of humanity, Enlil uses his well-wrought hoe to fashion a mudbrick mould out of which we were created.
• The land “Where Flesh Came Forth” was created by Enlil for humanity to grow — some scholars belief this to be a “cosmic location”, a place of pure myth. I am more literal. I belief there is historical truth to the memory, and I believe it is where

In earlier traditions, it was Enki who created humanity, while in later Babylonian it was Marduk. Once we get a thousand years after the fall of Sumer — the last Sumerian Dynasty of Kings, called the Ur III period which came to an end c.1800 BCE — a thousand years after that c.800 BCE Sumerian Religion had fract

The Location Of Where Flesh Came Forth

This following passage:

“Lord Enlil, who made the world come into being in its correct form … whose rose the human seed from the Earth, and made it possible for humanity to grow in the land “where flesh came forth” by raising the axis of the world at Duranki.” [1]

This passage is filled with information. Enlil created humanity, rose the human seed from the Earth, and made it possible for humanity to grow in the land “where flesh came forth” by raising the “axis of the world” at “Duranki”.

Here we have an explicit reference to the creation of humanity, the land we grew in (by name) in addition to a place-name, and the widespread “axis of the world”.