2026-05-05T21:48:05Zhttps://uvadoc.uva.es/oai/request

oai:uvadoc.uva.es:10324/838792026-04-08T12:47:54Zcom_10324_1142com_10324_931com_10324_894col_10324_1259

Gods, Temples, and Music in Ancient Mesopotamia: An Exploratiomn of their Relationships according to Sumerian Ceremonial Temple Names (for full PDF, write to daniel.sanchez.munoz@uva.es) Sánchez Muñoz, Daniel Mesopotamia Sumerian Temples Inana/Ishtar Ninurta Drums Songs Onomastics Mesopotamian cultic structures had Sumerian names that referred to an aspect of the building itself or the god(dess) that inhabited it. Nevertheless, the meaning of a particular Sumerian “temple” name must be determined on a case-by-case basis. At least two of these names include words related to singing techniques and musical instruments. The first, e2-i-lu-zi-u3-li (“house of the calming i-lu and u3-li(-li/la)”), was the name of a temple dedicated to the hypostasis of Inana/Ištar in the Sealand region. The second, a2-la2-gu3-de2 (“thundering drum”), referred to a hallway in the Ešarra temple of Aššur, the seat of the god Šul-šagana. Since scholars specializing in both Mesopotamian “temple onomastics” and music have never studied these names, the aspects they celebrated have remained uncovered. Through philological analysis, this paper argues that i-lu and u3-li(-li/la) refer to Inana/ Ištar as a regular performer of these vocal techniques. The name A2-la2-gu3-de2 would compare the magnificence of Šul-šagana’s seat at the Ešarra temple to the sound (gu3-de2) and perhaps the physical appearance of a giant drum (a2-la2). 2026-03-29T16:48:29Z 2026-03-29T16:48:29Z 2026-03-29T16:48:29Z 2026 info:eu-repo/semantics/bookPart Bellia, Angela (ed.). Architectural Structures for Music, Sonic Events, and Dance in the Ancient World. Pisa/Rome, 2026, p. 57-68 978-88-8147-551-3 https://uvadoc.uva.es/handle/10324/83879 10.5281/zenodo.19319615 57 68 Gods, Temples, and Music in Ancient Mesopotamia: An Exploratiomn of their Relationships according to Sumerian Ceremonial Temple Names eng https://www.libraweb.net/index.php?dettagliononpdf=1&chiave=3962&valore=sku&name=9788881475520.JPG&h=843&w=600 info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internacional Fabrizio Serra editore