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Tablet I · Before anything had a name
1.1-2
Enūma eliš 1.1-2 · When on high
The opening of the poem. Its first two words, enūma eliš, “when on high”, became its name.
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1𒂊𒉡𒈠𒂊𒇺𒆷𒈾𒁍𒌋𒊭𒈠𒈬
2𒉺𒅁𒇺𒄠𒈠𒌈𒋗𒈠𒆷𒍠𒋥
the lines as the scribe pressed them into the clay, read left to right
e-nu-ma1
𒂊e-𒉡nu-𒈠ma1
enūma
When
e-liš2
𒂊e-𒇺liš2
eliš
on highabove
ša-ma-mu3
𒊭ša-𒈠ma-𒈬mu3
šamāmū
the heavens
la4
𒆷la4
lā
not
na-bu-u5
𒈾na-𒁍bu-𒌋u5
nabû
namedwere named
, šap-liš6
𒉺𒅁šap-𒇺liš6
šapliš
belowbeneath
am-ma-tum7
𒄠am-𒈠ma-𒌈tum7
ammatum
the earththe ground
la8
𒆷la8
lā
not
zak-rat9
𒍠zak-𒋥rat9
zakrat
calledwas named
šu-ma10
𒋗šu-𒈠ma10
šuma
by namea name
, When on high the heavens had not been named, [and] below the earth had not been called by name,
When on high the heavens had not been named, [and] below the earth had not been called by name,
1.3-4
Enūma eliš 1.3-4 · Apsû and Tiamat
Before the gods, there are two waters: Apsû, the sweet water under the earth, and Tiamat, the sea.
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3𒍪𒀊𒈠𒊕𒌅𒌑𒍝𒊒𒋗𒌦
4𒈬𒌝𒈬𒋾𒊩𒆳𒈬𒀠𒇷𒁕𒀜𒁶𒊑𒂠𒌦
the lines as the scribe pressed them into the clay, read left to right
Apsû, the first, their begetter, [and] Mummu-Tiamat, who bore them all,
The poem opens with a “when” and keeps the reader waiting nine lines for the main verb. Genesis 1 does something similar in Hebrew: its first words are often translated “When God began to create the heavens and the earth”, with the earth still formless in the next verse.
Here nothing exists yet because nothing has a name. Heaven above and earth below are both “not named”. Langdon’s word for the earth, ammatu, is unusual; he traces it from “forearm” to “threshold” to “home”, the way Hebrew ʾammâ went from forearm to cubit to door sill.