Enlil

Enlil, later known as Elil and Ellil, is an ancient Mesopotamian god associated with wind, air, earth, and storms. He was first recognized as the chief deity of the Sumerian pantheon, before being worshipped by the Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians, and Hurrians.

Enlil's main center of worship was the Ekur temple in the city of Nippur, which was believed to have been built by Enlil himself and was considered the "mooring-rope" of heaven and earth. In Sumerian texts, he is sometimes called Nunamnir. According to one Sumerian hymn, Enlil was so holy that even other gods could not look upon him.

Enlil rose to prominence during the twenty-fourth century BC with the rise of Nippur. His cult declined after Nippur was sacked by the Elamites in 1230 BC, and he was eventually replaced as the chief god of the Mesopotamian pantheon by the Babylonian national god Marduk.

In ancient Near Eastern cosmology, Enlil plays a crucial role by separating An (heaven) from Ki (earth), making the world habitable for humans. In the Sumerian flood myth Eridu Genesis, Enlil rewards Ziusudra with immortality for surviving the flood. In the Babylonian flood myth, Enlil causes the flood himself, sending it to exterminate humanity because their noise prevented him from sleeping. The cuneiform tablets of Atra-Hasis document these connections in a relatively well-preserved state.

The myth of "Enlil and Ninlil" describes Enlil's serial seduction of the goddess Ninlil in various disguises, resulting in the conception of the moon-god Nanna and the Underworld deities Nergal, Ninazu, and Enbilulu. Enlil was considered the inventor of the mattock and the patron of agriculture. He also features prominently in several myths involving his son Ninurta, including "Anzû and the Tablet of Destinies" and "Lugale."