Long ago in ancient Mesopotamia there was a civilization known as the Anunnaki. Since their discovery several years ago, much has been speculated about them, such as that they were deities or even that they were extraterrestrials. But what is the truth in all of this? If we will never know exactly, so much information has been lost over time, we can only get an idea of what they were or could have been through the traces of history found by expeditions. archeologists and what they found.
A bit of history about the Anunnaki
According to Mesopotamian mythology, the Anunnas were initially the most powerful gods and lived with Anu in the sky. Later, without a clear reason for this change being established, it was the Igigi who were considered the celestial gods; the term ‘anunna’ was used to refer to the gods of the underworld, especially the seven gods who acted as judges in the underworld.
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Likewise, texts from cuneiform literature (2100 BC) indicate that the Anunna or Anunnaki were a group of gods belonging to the Mesopotamian pantheon. Some pseudoscientific theories have attempted to interpret them as extraterrestrial entities that have colonized Earth.
One possible meaning of the Sumerian term ‘a-nun’ or ‘a-nun-na’ points to the meaning of “princely offspring”, which could mean that they have royal ancestry, so to speak.
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Likewise, the Anunnaki were also mentioned in 12th century BC rituals used to fight witches and send them to hell. The Anunnaki were invoked with the god Šamaš, the sun god of justice, and Gilgameš, the semi-divine hero who tried to conquer death. These facts have led the Anunnaki to gain popularity in popular culture and among researchers of extraterrestrial life. In fact, in popular culture, we can see references to them in the saga of comic books created by Marvel Comics, Eternals.
Their connection to extraterrestrials
There are countless books and even pseudo-scientific documentaries that claim that the Anunnaki were actually beings from other planets who came to colonize Earth and create a new civilization alongside humans. In fact, on several occasions, in various texts and documentaries, it is mentioned that they were able to contribute to the technological advancement of ancient civilizations, Sumerian being the most cited.
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The book The Twelfth Planet recounts the arrival of the Anunnaki on Earth from a supposed planet called Nibiru (yes, the same wandering planet that was or will collide with Earth) around 450,000 years ago: tall beings of about three meters with white skin, long hair and beard, who would have settled in Mesopotamia and who, through genetic engineering, accelerated the evolution of humanity.
The pseudo-scientific author Zecharia Sitchin (1920-2010) claimed the existence of a supposed extraterrestrial social organization, the Anunnaki, would have arrived on Earth to subjugate humanity. Concretely, they would have enslaved the Sumerians and would have forced them to work in gold mines. According to Sitchin, this raw material was essential for extraterrestrial visitors to build a huge shield of suspended gold particles to protect their planet. Over the years, although the author claimed to understand cuneiform reading, what Zecharia mentioned in his books was later refuted and considered a mistake due to inconsistencies found by several scholars.
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What other myths are there about them?
In the myth of Atrahasis, it is said that before the creation of human beings, the gods had to work in order to live. Then the Anunnas designated a category of lower gods, the Igigis, to work for them until their revolt; they decided to exterminate them. Enki created humans to take responsibility for completing the tasks that the Igigi had abandoned, and through “worship” they would provide food and gold to the gods.
In the poem Enūma Elish, it was Marduk who created humanity, he then divided the Anunnas between Heaven and Earth, and assigned them tasks. The Anunnas, grateful to Marduk, then founded Babylon and built a temple in his honor, called Esagila. In the poem of Gilgameshthe secret abode of the Anunnas was in the Forest of Cedars.
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In the Sumerian version of Inanna’s Journey to the Underworldthe Anunnas act as judges of the underworld and condemn the goddess Inanna to death in her confrontation with her sister Ereshkigal.
The reinvention of the term “anunnas”, through its Akkadian form “anunnaki”, was born in 1964, after the publication of the book Ancient Mesopotamia: Portrait of a Dead Civilizationby Assyriologist Adolph Leo Oppenheim, who popularized this concept.
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Although much remains to be discovered, at the moment it is assumed that these were deities created by the civilizations of the time, such as Zeus or Ra, among other gods for other civilizations throughout the ages throughout history. Or also that it was a very advanced and powerful civilization for its time like other civilizations around the world. Although, as mentioned, this is all speculative until more research is done and reveals more information about them. What do you think? Was it a civilization like any other? Were they deities or aliens? Hopefully over the years we can learn more about them and the oldest civilizations in the history of mankind.
Story originally published in Spanish in collective culture
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