Pantheon:
Deity Of:
Plants
Other Names (a.k.a.):
Ninma, Ninmu, Ninsar, Ninšar, Urbadgumgum
Ninsar was the daughter of Enki and Ninhursag.
She had a daughter named Ninkur with Enki, in just nine days.
Ninsar had a big job preparing meat, like a divine butcher.
She was good at making food taste great, showing how important she was for food and maybe even growing plants.
Her name means “Lady Greenery” or “Lady Greens,” linking her to nature and life.
Ninsar also took care of divine houses. She could make things, showing she had many skills in the divine world.
Parents:
Ninhursag – goddess of Earth, Animals, Wildlife, Birth, Fertility
Enki – god of Water, Fish, Justice, Wisdom, Magic, Shipmenders, Crafts, Healing, Fertility, Art, Exorcism
Siblings:
None Known
Consorts:
None Known
Children:
Ninkurru – goddess of Land, Artisans, Sculptors
Artists showed Ninsar as a young and beautiful woman.
People knew her as “she who makes the food good,” showing her role in making food.
In pictures or statues, you might see her with knives or tools. These tools show her jobs as a divine housekeeper and carpenter.
Her name means “Lady Greenery” or “Lady Greens,” so her images included green plants or symbols of nature.
Because she was associated with meat, her images showed animals like cattle and sheep. This showed that she was involved in taking care of them.
Any temples or objects dedicated to Ninsar showed her doing her important job with food and offerings to the gods. You could see scenes of her working with food in these places.
Weapons:
Knives – People connected Ninsar with knives, especially in her role as a cook.
Sacred Animals:
None Known
Symbolism:
Ninsar’s name means “Lady Greenery” or “Lady Greens,” showing her connection to plants and nature.
Celestial Associations:
None Known
Realms:
E-Kur: The Sumerian Garden Of The Gods
Worship Places:
People worshiped Ninsar in Nippur and Shuruppak.
AB.NAGAR was her main worship place.
Ninsar also had a temple in Nippur during the Kassite and Middle Babylonian times. This temple was called E-šuluhhatumma. Which means “house worthy of the cleansing ritual.”
Rituals & Divinations:
Ninsar played a role in divine housekeeping. She also had skills in crafting, like a carpenter.
In Enki and Ninmah: Ninsar helped the goddess Ninmah with her divine tasks as one of her seven assistants.
In Enki and Ninhursag: She was born to Enki and Ninhursag and later had Ninkur, showing a story of the divine family.
The First Brick: Ninsar was one of the gods Enki made from clay to help humans. Showing she played a part in keeping humans and culture going.
Visit All Sumerian Gods & Goddesses
- Charles Russell Coulter and Patricia Turner, Encyclopedia of Ancient Deities (McFarland Myth and Legend Encyclopedias) (McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers Jefferson, North Carolina, 1997)
- J.A. Coleman, The Dictionary of Mythology: An A-Z of Themes, Legends, and Heroes (Barnes & Noble, Inc., 2007)
- Matt Clayton, Sumerian Mythology: Captivating Myths Of Gods, Goddesses, And Legendary Creatures of Ancient Sumer and Their Importance To The Sumerians (Captivating History, 2019)
- Multiple Authors, Ninsar (Wikipedia Free Encyclopedia, January 30, 2023) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nin%C5%A1ar
- Samuel Noah Kramer, Sumerian Mythology: A Study of Spiritual And Literary Achievement in the Third Millenium B.C. (General Press, 2021)