The Akkadian/Sumerian poet Enheduanna (2285-2250 BCE) is the world’s first author known by name and was the daugher of Sargon of Akkad (Sargon the Great). Whether Enheduanna was, in fact, a blood relative of Sargon’s or the title was figurative is not known. It is clear, however, that Sargon placed enormous trust in Enheduanna in elevating her to the position of high priestess of the most importanttemple in Sumer and leaving to her the responsibility for melding the Sumerian gods with the Akkadian ones to create the stability his empire needed to thrive. Further, she is credited for creating the paradigms of poetry, psalms, and prayers used throughout the ancient world. The historian Paul Kriwaczek writes, "Her compositions, though only rediscovered in modern times, remained models of petitionary prayer for even longer. Through the Babylonians, they influenced and inspired the prayers and psalms of the HebrewBible and the Homeric hymns of Greece. Through them, faint echoes of Enheduanna, the first named literary author in history, can even be heard in the hymnody of the early Christian church" (121). Her influence during her lifetime was as impressive as the legacy she bequeated to literature.
Enheduanna[pronunciation?] (Akkadian: 𒂗𒃶𒁺𒀭𒈾; 2285–2250 BCE),[1] also transliterated as Enheduana, En-hedu-ana or EnHeduAnna[2] ("en" means High Priest or High Priestess, and "hedu" means adornment, so this name translates to "high priestess adornment of the god, An"[3][4]), was an Akkadian princess as well as High Priestess of the Moon god Nanna (Sin)[5] in the Sumerian city-state of Ur. She was the first known holder of the title "En Priestess", a role of great political importance that was often held by royal daughters.[6] Enheduanna was an aunt of Akkadian king Narām-Sîn and was one of the earliest women in history whose name is known.
Regarded by literary and historical scholars as possibly the earliest known author and poet, Enheduanna served as the High Priestess during the third millennium BCE.[1] She was appointed to the role by her father, King Sargon of Akkad. Her mother was Queen Tashlultum.[7][8] Enheduanna has left behind a corpus of literary works, definitively ascribed to her, that include several personal devotions to the goddess Inanna and a collection of hymns known as the "Sumerian Temple Hymns," regarded as one of the first attempts at a systematic theology. In addition, scholars, such as Hallo and Van Dijk, suggest that certain texts not ascribed to her may also be her works.[9]
Enheduanna was appointed to the role of High Priestess in what is considered to be a shrewd political move by Sargon to help cement power in the Sumerian south where the City of Ur was located.[10]
She continued to hold office during the reign of Rimush, her brother. It was during the reign of Rimush that she was involved in some form of political turmoil, expelled, then eventually reinstated as high priestess. Her composition 'The Exaltation of Inanna' or ‘nin me sar2-ra’[11] details her expulsion from Ur and eventual reinstatement (Franke 1995: 835). This correlates with 'The Curse of Akkade'[12] in which Naram-Sin, under whom Enheduanna may have also served, is cursed and cast out by Enlil. After her death, Enheduanna continued to be remembered as an important figure, perhaps even attaining semi-divine status.[13]