Nabu in the context of "Babylonian astronomy"

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⭐ Core Definition: Nabu

Nabu (Akkadian: 𒀭𒀝, romanized: Nabû, Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: נְבוֹ‏, romanized: Nəḇo) is the Babylonian patron god of literacy, scribes, wisdom, and the rational arts. He is associated with the classical planet Mercury in Babylonian astronomy.

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Nabu in the context of Nebuchadnezzar II

Nebuchadnezzar II, also Nebuchadrezzar II, meaning "Nabu, watch over my heir", was the second king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, ruling from the death of his father Nabopolassar in 605 BC to his own death in 562 BC. Often titled Nebuchadnezzar the Great, he is regarded as the empire's greatest king, famous for his military campaigns in the Levant and their role in Jewish history, and for his construction projects in his capital of Babylon, including the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Ruling for 43 years, Nebuchadnezzar was the longest-reigning king of the Babylonian dynasty. By the time of his death, he was among the most powerful rulers in the world.

Possibly named after his grandfather of the same name or after Nebuchadnezzar I, one of Babylon's greatest warrior-kings, Nebuchadnezzar II had already secured renown for himself during his father's reign, leading armies in the Medo-Babylonian conquest of the Assyrian Empire. At the Battle of Carchemish in 605 BC, Nebuchadnezzar inflicted a crushing defeat on an Egyptian army led by Pharaoh Necho II and ensured that the Neo-Babylonian Empire would succeed the Neo-Assyrian Empire as the dominant power in the ancient Near East. Shortly after this victory, Nabopolassar died and Nebuchadnezzar became king.

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Nabu in the context of Nabopolassar

Nabopolassar (Neo-Babylonian Akkadian: 𒀭𒉺𒀀𒉽, romanized: Nabû-apla-uṣur, meaning "Nabu, protect the son") was the founder and first king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, ruling from his coronation as king of Babylon in 626 BC to his death in 605 BC. Though initially only aimed at restoring and securing the independence of Babylonia, Nabopolassar's uprising against the Neo-Assyrian Empire, which had ruled Babylonia for more than a century, eventually led to the complete destruction of the Assyrian Empire and the rise of the Neo-Babylonian Empire in its place.

Of unclear, possibly Chaldean, origin and potentially connected to a powerful political family in the southern city of Uruk, Nabopolassar revolted against the Neo-Assyrian king Sinsharishkun at an opportune moment when Babylonia was already plagued by political instability. Though the advantage shifted back and forth dramatically several times, Nabopolassar managed to decisively push the Assyrians out of Babylonia after nearly ten years of fighting. Subsequent campaigns were intended to hinder the possibility of an Assyrian campaign directed at Babylonia through securing the border, but the intervention of the eastern Median Empire under Cyaxares in Nabopolassar's favor shifted the goals and the possibilities of the war.

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Nabu in the context of Nabonidus

Nabuna'eed (Neo-Babylonian Akkadian: 𒀭𒀝𒈾𒀪𒀉, romanized: Nabû-naʾid, Hellenized as Nabonidus meaning "May Nabu be exalted" or "Nabu is praised") was the last king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, ruling from 556 BC to the fall of Babylon to the Achaemenian Empire under Cyrus the Great in 539 BC. Nabonidus was the last native ruler of ancient Mesopotamia, the end of his reign marking the end of thousands of years of Sumero-Akkadian states, kingdoms and empires. He was also the last independent king of Babylon. Regarded as one of the most vibrant and individualistic rulers of his time, Nabonidus is characterised by some scholars as an unorthodox religious reformer and as the first archaeologist.

The origins of Nabonidus, his connection to previous royalty, and subsequently what claim he had to the throne remain unclear, given that Nabonidus made no genealogical claims of kinship to previous kings. This suggests that he was neither related nor connected to the Chaldean dynasty of Babylonian rulers. However, he is known to have had a prominent career of some kind before he became king. It is possible that he was connected to the Chaldean kings via marriage, possibly having married a daughter of Nebuchadnezzar II (r.605–562 BC). Nabonidus's mother, Adad-guppi, was of Assyrian ancestry. His father, Nabu-balatsu-iqbi, of whom little is known, may also have been either Assyrian or Babylonian. Some historians have speculated that either Adad-guppi or Nabu-balatsu-iqbi were members of the Sargonid dynasty, rulers of the Neo-Assyrian Empire until its fall in 609 BC.

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Nabu in the context of Nebuchadnezzar (governor of Uruk)

Nebuchadnezzar (Babylonian cuneiform: Nabû-kudurri-uṣur, meaning "Nabu, watch over my heir"), also spelled Nebuchadrezzar, and most commonly known under the nickname Kudurru, was a governor of the city Uruk in Babylonia under the rule of Ashurbanipal (r.669–631 BC) of the Neo-Assyrian Empire, appointed after the defeat of Shamash-shum-ukin of Babylon, Ashurbanipal's brother who had rebelled against Assyria, c. 648 BC. He was likely the son of the high priest Nabonassar.

In the reign of Ashurbanipal's son Sinsharishkun (r.627–612 BC), the grave of Nebuchadnezzar was desecrated, with the perpetrators going so far as dragging his body through the streets of Uruk. This was done as a response to the anti-Assyrian activities of his two sons. In 2007, Assyriologist Michael Jursa identified Nebuchadnezzar as the father of Nabopolassar, the founder of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, who rebelled against Sinsharishkun in 626 BC (this being the anti-Assyrian activities). If Nabopolassar was his son, Nabopolassar would go on to name his own son, Nebuchadnezzar II, after his father.

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Nabu in the context of Nebuchadnezzar I

Nebuchadnezzar I (/ˌnɛbjʊkədˈnɛzər/ NEB-yuu-kəd-NEZ-ər; Babylonian: Nabû-kudurrī-úṣur (AN-AG-ŠA-DU-ŠIŠ) or Nábû-ku-dúr-uṣur, meaning "Nabû, protect my eldest son" or "Nabû, protect the border"; reigned c. 1121–1100 BC) was the fourth king of the Second Dynasty of Isin and Fourth Dynasty of Babylon. He ruled for 22 years according to the Babylonian King List C, and was the most prominent monarch of this dynasty. He is best known for his victory over Elam and the recovery of the cultic idol of Marduk.

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Nabu in the context of Borsippa

Borsippa (Sumerian: BAD.SI.(A).AB.BA or Birs Nimrud, having been identified with Nimrod) is an archeological site in Babylon Governorate, Iraq, built on both sides of a lake about 17.7 km (11.0 mi) southwest of Babylon on the east bank of the Euphrates. It lies 15 kilometers from the ancient site of Dilbat.

It is today one of the most vividly identifiable surviving ziggurats, identified in the later Arabic culture with the Tower of Babel due to King Nebuchadnezzar referring to it as the "Tower of Borsippa" or "tongue tower", as stated in the stele recovered on site in the 19th century. However, modern scholarship concludes that the Babylonian builders of the ziggurat erected it as a religious edifice in honour of the local god Nabu, called the "son" of Babylon's Marduk, as would be appropriate for Babylon's lesser sister-city.

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Nabu in the context of Nergal

Nergal (Sumerian: 𒀭𒄊𒀕𒃲 KIŠ.UNU or GÌR.UNU.GAL; Hebrew: נֵרְגַל, Modern: Nerəgal, Tiberian: Nērəgal; Aramaic: ܢܸܪܓܲܠ; Latin: Nirgal) was a Mesopotamian god worshiped through all periods of Mesopotamian history, from Early Dynastic to Neo-Babylonian times, with a few attestations indicating that his cult survived into the period of Achaemenid domination. He was primarily associated with war, death, and disease, and has been described as the "god of inflicted death". He reigned over Kur, the Mesopotamian underworld, depending on the myth either on behalf of his parents Enlil and Ninlil, or in later periods as a result of his marriage with the goddess Ereshkigal. Originally either Mammitum, a goddess possibly connected to frost, or Laṣ, sometimes assumed to be a minor medicine goddess, were regarded as his wife, though other traditions existed, too.

His primary cult center was Kutha, located in the north of historical Babylonia. His main temple bore the ceremonial name E-Meslam and he was also known by the name Meslamtaea, "he who comes out of Meslam". Initially he was only worshiped in the north, with a notable exception being Girsu during the reign of Gudea of Lagash, but starting with the Ur III period he became a major deity in the south too. He remained prominent in both Babylonia and Assyria in later periods, and in the Neo-Babylonian state pantheon he was regarded as the third most important god, after Marduk and Nabu.

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Nabu in the context of Nabu (comics)

Nabu (also known as Nabu the Wise) is a fictional deity in American comic books published by DC Comics. An adaptation of the eponymous Mesopotamian patron god, the character was adapted by Gardner Fox and Howard Sherman, first appearing in More Fun Comics #67 (May, 1941). Featuring various departures from Babylonian mythology, Nabu is a major supporting and recurring character in Doctor Fate titles.

Aa cosmic entity among the Lords of Order with varying origins, he is often a dissident and fierce personality among his brethren with an obsession with defeating chaos at any costs. He is the creator of the Helmet of Fate and progenitor of the sorcerous Doctor Fate line in the 20th century after tiring his human form fighting evil and aiding ancient Egyptian deities. His first agent was archaeologist Kent Nelson whom he manipulated, often supplanting his agency and will with his own. Nabu would continue being a significant presence among several incarnations of Doctor Fate such as Eric and Linda Strauss, Hector Hall, and Khalid Nassour.

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Nabu in the context of Kulullû

Kulullû, inscribed 𒄩𒇽𒍇𒇻, "Fish-Man", was an ancient Mesopotamian mythical monster possibly inherited by Marduk from his father Ea. In later Assyrian mythology, he was associated with kuliltu, "Fish-Woman", and statues of them were apparently located in the Nabû temple in Nimrud, ancient Kalhu, as referenced on a contemporary administrative text.

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