Ancient Sumerian Myths

Paper Summary:

This paper is an examination of the ancient Mesopotamian creation and flood myth in the story of Atrahasis. Comparisons are briefly made to other Indo-European tales and myths, including Ulysses, Prometheus and Noah from the Judeo-Christian bible. The paper primarily looks at evidence of daily life in the myth of Atrahasis itself with only some comparison to outside tales.

From the Paper:

"Archaeology has recovered numerous myths from ancient Mesopotamia in the form of stone steles, wall carvings, and especially clay tablets. Most of these stories were written in Akkadian, the general term for a few of the languages of the ancient Sumerians. The stories were originally passed down in an oral cultural history for many hundreds or even possibly thousands of years before they were written in cuneiform. From the Atrahasis and Creation myths of ancient Sumeria and Mesopotamia one can learn a great deal about the beliefs and daily lives of the people that told and wrote them down."

More papers on Ancient Sumerian Myths:

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• Analytical Essay # 149408 : "The Biblical Flood and the "Epic of Gilgamesh"

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