Dr. Alice C. Linsley
Noah’s territory was in the region of Lake Chad and his Hebrew descendants ruled over territories in Africa, Anatolia, Arabia, Canaan, and Mesopotamia. One of Noah’s grandsons was named Cush (Gen. 10:6) whose territory was in the Nile Valley. Cush’s son Nimrod was sent away to establish himself at a distance from Cush’s proper heir. Genesis 10 states that Nimrod went to Southern Mesopotamia where he began building cities.
Nimrod is remembered as a great city builder. He began his building projects in “Shinar” in Southern Mesopotamia. This is explained in Genesis 10:10 – “The beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.” Apparently, his marriage to a daughter of Asshur the Elder gave him authority to undertake monumental building projects in Northern Mesopotamia. This is explained in Genesis 10:11-12. “From that land he went into Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-Ir, Calah, and Resen between Nineveh and Calah; that is the great city.”
Nimrod's wife was Hebrew, but her cultural context was Sumerian. She named their firstborn son Asshur, after her father. This "cousin bride's naming prerogative" is a distinctive feature of the marriage and ascendancy pattern of the early Hebrew (4200-2000 BC).
Typically, the Hebrew ruler's cousin bride named her firstborn son after her father. This is why it is necessary to distinguish between Asshur the Elder and Asshur the Younger. The pattern is evident in the case of Methuselah's cousin bride Naamah (Gen. 4).
The wedding of Asshur’s daughter to Nimrod would have been a grand affair that solidified political relations between the royal families of Nimrod and Asshur. The ceremony probably took place at the palace in Uruk, on a channel of the Euphrates River between 4000-3200 B.C. The site of Uruk (Unug in Sumerian, Erech in Hebrew Torah) is known today as Warka. Settlement at the site began in the Ubaid period (c.5500-4000 B.C.). Uruk was the largest settlement in Mesopotamia at the time that Nimrod lived.
The name of Nimrod’s wife is not found in the Bible. According to the historian Eusebius, Nimrod's wife was called Semiramis or Sammur-amat. However, this queen lived long after the time of Nimrod. She was the wife of the Neo-Assyrian ruler Shamshi-Adad V (r. 824-811 B.C). She was the queen regent between 811 and 806 B.C., holding the throne for her young son Adad Nirari III until he reached maturity.
The practice of marrying high-status women to form political alliances and to become established in a new territory is illustrated by Nimrod’s marriage to a Sumerian princess. Nimrod was a Kushite kingdom builder (Gen. 10) and his marriage to Asshur’s daughter is evidence of the close connection between the rulers of the Nile Valley and the rulers of Mesopotamia, two early riverine civilizations.
By the time Nimrod married a daughter of Asshur, long-distance trade had become a source of wealth for the Mesopotamian lords and ladies. Ships coming from Bahrain (Sumerian "Dilmun") brought wool, gold, copper, lapis lazuli, and carnelian to the Sumerian cities of Ur, Nippur, and Uruk. As early as 7000 B.C., the island of Bahrain served as a major trade depot with its own commercial seal. Ancient documents speak of Dilmun's trade in gold, silver, ivory, sesame oil, wool, carnelian beads, lapis lazuli, and copper. One document details a cargo of eighteen tons of refined copper purchased in Dilmun. Dilmun was a maritime connection between Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley.
Sumerian ships brought cargo to Dilmun and to port cities in the Indus valley. Ships sailed southeast on the Tigris or Euphrates to the Persian Gulf, making stops at the port city of Dilmun, passing the Oman Peninsula, and entering the Arabian Sea. From there the ships sailed northeast on the Indus River to Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa. Trade in lapis lazuli and carnelian beads ran between Egypt, Mesopotamia, India, and Afghanistan as early as 4000 B.C. Indus seals with Harappan inscriptions have been found in Mesopotamia. Indus pottery and seals have been found along the maritime routes between the Indian subcontinent and Mesopotamia.
The Sumerian city of Erech is mentioned in connection with Nimrod in Genesis 10:10. As early as 5000 B.C., Eridu was an important trade center in southern Mesopotamia. The Sumerian King List cites Eridu as the “city of the first kings”, stating, “After the kingship descended from heaven, the kingship was in Eridu”.
Archaeologists discovered a 4,000-year-old boat at Uruk. The boat was constructed out of organic materials, probably marsh reeds, and covered in bitumen, a tar-like substance used for waterproofing. This technique was used in the construction of Noah’s ark (Gen. 6:14).
This was a period of monumental construction by the Mesopotamian rulers. The ziggurat at Uruk was a pyramidal structure that dates to around 4000 B.C. It was dedicated to the High God who was called Anu. Anu’s symbol was the sun. The White Temple of Anu was built on top of it between 3500-3000 B.C. Anu’s counterpart was Ra, the High God of the Nilotic Annu people.
Asshur and his royal household enjoyed opulent riches and were served by craftsmen of great skill. These artisans crafted ritual objects to be used by the royal priests. These include the Warka Vase, the marble Mask of Warka, the earliest known naturalistic sculpture of the human face. The mask is also known as the "Lady of Uruk" and was found in the temple precinct of Inanna in Uruk.
The practice of marrying high-status women to form political alliances and to become established in a new territory is illustrated by Nimrod’s marriage to a Sumerian princess. Nimrod was a Kushite kingdom builder (Gen. 10) and his marriage to Asshur’s daughter is evidence of the close connection between the rulers of the Nile Valley and the rulers of Mesopotamia, two early riverine civilizations.
By the time Nimrod married a daughter of Asshur, long-distance trade had become a source of wealth for the Mesopotamian lords and ladies. Ships coming from Bahrain (Sumerian "Dilmun") brought wool, gold, copper, lapis lazuli, and carnelian to the Sumerian cities of Ur, Nippur, and Uruk. As early as 7000 B.C., the island of Bahrain served as a major trade depot with its own commercial seal. Ancient documents speak of Dilmun's trade in gold, silver, ivory, sesame oil, wool, carnelian beads, lapis lazuli, and copper. One document details a cargo of eighteen tons of refined copper purchased in Dilmun. Dilmun was a maritime connection between Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley.
Sumerian ships brought cargo to Dilmun and to port cities in the Indus valley. Ships sailed southeast on the Tigris or Euphrates to the Persian Gulf, making stops at the port city of Dilmun, passing the Oman Peninsula, and entering the Arabian Sea. From there the ships sailed northeast on the Indus River to Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa. Trade in lapis lazuli and carnelian beads ran between Egypt, Mesopotamia, India, and Afghanistan as early as 4000 B.C. Indus seals with Harappan inscriptions have been found in Mesopotamia. Indus pottery and seals have been found along the maritime routes between the Indian subcontinent and Mesopotamia.
The Sumerian city of Erech is mentioned in connection with Nimrod in Genesis 10:10. As early as 5000 B.C., Eridu was an important trade center in southern Mesopotamia. The Sumerian King List cites Eridu as the “city of the first kings”, stating, “After the kingship descended from heaven, the kingship was in Eridu”.
Archaeologists discovered a 4,000-year-old boat at Uruk. The boat was constructed out of organic materials, probably marsh reeds, and covered in bitumen, a tar-like substance used for waterproofing. This technique was used in the construction of Noah’s ark (Gen. 6:14).
This was a period of monumental construction by the Mesopotamian rulers. The ziggurat at Uruk was a pyramidal structure that dates to around 4000 B.C. It was dedicated to the High God who was called Anu. Anu’s symbol was the sun. The White Temple of Anu was built on top of it between 3500-3000 B.C. Anu’s counterpart was Ra, the High God of the Nilotic Annu people.
Asshur and his royal household enjoyed opulent riches and were served by craftsmen of great skill. These artisans crafted ritual objects to be used by the royal priests. These include the Warka Vase, the marble Mask of Warka, the earliest known naturalistic sculpture of the human face. The mask is also known as the "Lady of Uruk" and was found in the temple precinct of Inanna in Uruk.
Inanna receiving offerings from a priest.
Nimrod's wife likely was a devotee of Inanna, the Sumerian version of Hathor. Inanna, like Hathor, was often shown wearing a headdress of bull horns. Both goddesses appear to have been venerated as early as 4000 B.C. Hathor's worship began long before Egypt became a political entity.
Nimrod's wife would have had authority over at least one water shrine dedicated to Inanna. High status women had administrative responsibilities at the water shrines. The water shrines were under the control of regional lords, but visitors were welcome to drink the water, and to take a ritual bath (similar to the Jewish mikveh). Women came to these places seeking to conceive and deliver healthy children. They prayed and made offerings to Inanna/Hathor.
Nimrod's wife would have had authority over at least one water shrine dedicated to Inanna. High status women had administrative responsibilities at the water shrines. The water shrines were under the control of regional lords, but visitors were welcome to drink the water, and to take a ritual bath (similar to the Jewish mikveh). Women came to these places seeking to conceive and deliver healthy children. They prayed and made offerings to Inanna/Hathor.
The Sumerians and the early cattle herding Nilotes have so much in common that it is difficult to distinguish between them. It is likely that the rulers of ancient Sumer had more in common culturally and linguistically with the peoples of East Africa and Arabia than with the peoples of southern Europe. The Sumerian and Akkadian languages share many common roots and Akkadian is the oldest known Semitic language.
Nimrod's homeland was in East Africa. He is designated a son of Kush in Genesis 10:8. As a sent-away son, he established a territory of his own in Mesopotamia by marrying a Sumerian princess. This couple enjoyed a life of opulence and prestige. They were among the first lords and ladies, and people of great influence and power in the ancient world.
Nimrod's homeland was in East Africa. He is designated a son of Kush in Genesis 10:8. As a sent-away son, he established a territory of his own in Mesopotamia by marrying a Sumerian princess. This couple enjoyed a life of opulence and prestige. They were among the first lords and ladies, and people of great influence and power in the ancient world.
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