The Splintered Divine: A Study of Istar, Baal, and Yahweh Divine Names and Divine Multiplicity in the Ancient Near East

Spencer L. Allen

Published by De Gruyter 2015

The Splintered Divine

A Study of Istar, Baal, and Yahweh Divine Names and Divine Multiplicity in the Ancient Near East

Spencer L. Allen

Volume 5 in the series Studies in Ancient Near Eastern Records (SANER)

https://doi.org/10.1515/9781614512363

Overview
Contents

About this book

This book investigates the issue of the singularity versus the multiplicity of ancient Near Eastern deities who are known by a common first name but differentiated by their last names, or geographic epithets. It focuses primarily on the Ištar divine names in Mesopotamia, Baal names in the Levant, and Yahweh names in Israel, and it is structured around four key questions: How did the ancients define what it meant to be a god - or more pragmatically, what kind of treatment did a personality or object need to receive in order to be considered a god by the ancients? Upon what bases and according to which texts do modern scholars determine when a personality or object is a god in an ancient culture? In what ways are deities with both first and last names treated the same and differently from deities with only first names? Under what circumstances are deities with common first names and different last names recognizable as distinct independent deities, and under what circumstances are they merely local manifestations of an overarching deity? The conclusions drawn about the singularity of local manifestations versus the multiplicity of independent deities are specific to each individual first name examined in accordance with the data and texts available for each divine first name.

Author / Editor information

Spencer Allen, Rogers, AR, USA.

Reviews

"[...] Allen's work stands as an example of a meticulously researched approach to comparative analysis that will be of use to scholars from each of three fields."
Gina Konstantopoulos in: BMCR 2016.02.33

Supplementary Materials

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Preface Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	vii
Acknowledgments Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	xi
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	xv
Abbreviations Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	xvii
Additional Abbreviations Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	xxi
0. Introduction Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
1. Considering Multiplicity and Defining Deity Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	12
2. Comparative Insights Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	58
3. The Divine Hierarchy and Embedded God Lists (EGLs) Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	95
4. The Ištar Goddesses of Neo-Assyria Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	141
5. Geographic Epithets in the West Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	200
6. A Kuntillet ‘Ajrud Awakening Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	247
7. Conclusions Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	310
Bibliography Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	321
Maps Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	343
Appendix: Tables 1.1–7.1 Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	349
Indices Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	431

(Deutsch)

Language: English
Publisher: De Gruyter
Audience: All those interested in ancient Near Eastern religion, in particular Assyriologists and scholars of the Hebrew Bible.
Pages
- Front matter: 21
- Main content: 457
Keywords: Divine epithets; Ancient Near Eastern deities

eBook

Published: March 5, 2015
ISBN: 9781614512363

Hardcover

Published: February 16, 2015
ISBN: 9781614512936

Paperback

Published: June 26, 2017
ISBN: 9781501515750