Akitu or Akitum () () is a spring

festival A festival is an event celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, Melā, mela, or Muslim holidays, eid. A ...

and New Year's celebration, held on the first day of the Assyrian and Babylonian

Nisan Nisan (or Nissan; from ) in the Babylonian and Hebrew calendars is the month of the barley ripening and first month of spring. The name of the month is an Akkadian language borrowing, although it ultimately originates in Sumerian ''nisag' ...

in ancient

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

and in Assyrian communities around the world, to celebrate the sowing of

barley Barley (), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains; it was domesticated in the Fertile Crescent around 9000 BC, giving it nonshattering spikele ...

. Akitu originates from the Sumerian spring New Year festival of Zagmuk.

Babylonian Akitu

The Babylonian festival traditionally started on 4

Nissan is a Japanese multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer headquartered in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the ''Nissan'' and ''Infiniti'' brands, and formerly the ''Datsun'' brand, with in-house ...

, the first month of the year, as a celebration of the sowing of barley. All the people in the city would celebrate, including the ''awilu'' (upper class), ''muskena'' (middle class), ''wardu'' (lower class), High Priest, and the King.

First to Third Day

The priest of Ésagila (Marduk's house) would recite sad prayers with the other priests and the people would answer with equally sad prayers which expressed humanity's fear of the unknown. This fear of the unknown explains why the high priest would head to the Ésagila every day asking for

Marduk Marduk (; cuneiform: Dingir, ᵈAMAR.UTU; Sumerian language, Sumerian: "calf of the sun; solar calf"; ) is a god from ancient Mesopotamia and patron deity of Babylon who eventually rose to prominence in the 1st millennium BC. In B ...

's forgiveness, begging him to protect Babylon, his holy city, and asking him to have favor on the city. This prayer was called "The Secret Of Ésagila". It reads: On the second day the high priest would bathe in the Euphrates River before performing special prayers at the temple with the other priests. On the third day special craftsmen would create two puppets made of wood, gold, and precious stones and dress them in red. These puppets were set aside and would be used on the sixth day. Meanwhile, the priests and the people would pray before sunset. The king took a statue of

Nabu Nabu (, ) is the Babylonian patron god of literacy, scribes, wisdom, and the rational arts. He is associated with the classical planet Mercury in Babylonian astronomy. Etymology and meaning The Akkadian means 'announcer' or 'authorised pe ...

son of

into the

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...

to be worshipped.

Fourth Day

The fourth day involved memorials and celebration. The priests would tell creation stories while the people would sing and dance.

Fifth Day

On this day the public would gather at the river to eat together and celebrate. Meanwhile, the king was brought to the temple, where he would show humility before the gods. The high priest would slap the king as a way to further induce humility; the king's tears were seen as a good omen for the coming year. The priests would then reintroduce the king to the public.

Sixth Day

Before the gods arrived, the day would be filled with commotion. The puppets that were made on the third day would be burned and mock battle would be taking place as well. This commotion signified that without Marduk, the city would be in constant chaos."Middle Eastern religion". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. The priests would also collect all statues of the gods on this day and bring them inside the temple.

Seventh Day

Marduk was said to disappear on this day to go fight the goddess

Tiamat In Mesopotamian religion, Tiamat ( or , ) is the primordial sea, mating with Abzû (Apsu), the groundwater, to produce the gods in the Babylonian epic '' Enûma Elish'', which translates as "when on high". She is referred to as a woman, an ...

. Nabu and other gods were said to go out to go rescue Marduk from a prison in the mountains of the universe.

Eighth Day

It was said that on this day the other gods would give their power to Marduk, making him the supreme god.

Ninth Day

On this day a large procession was held with the king and the gods, adorned with gold and precious stones.

Tenth Day

It is said that on this day Marduk began celebrating his victory alongside the other gods. He returned to the capital to perform a ritual marriage ceremony to ensure the fertility of the land.

Eleventh Day

The gods return accompanied by their Lord Marduk to meet again in the Destinies Hall "Upshu Ukkina", where they met for the first time on the eighth day, this time they will decide the fate of the people of Marduk. In ancient Assyrian philosophy Creation in general was considered as a covenant between heaven and earth as long as a human serves the gods till his death, therefore, gods' happiness isn't complete except if humans are happy as well, thus a human's destiny will be to be given happiness on the condition that he serves the gods. So Marduk and the gods renew their covenant with Babylon, by promising the city another cycle of seasons. After the fate of mankind is decided, Marduk returns to the heavens.

Twelfth Day

On the last day of the festival it was believed that the gods returned to the temple.

Legacy

The festival was also adopted in the

Neo-Assyrian Empire The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the fourth and penultimate stage of ancient Assyrian history. Beginning with the accession of Adad-nirari II in 911 BC, the Neo-Assyrian Empire grew to dominate the ancient Near East and parts of South Caucasus, Nort ...

following the destruction of

Babylon Babylon ( ) was an ancient city located on the lower Euphrates river in southern Mesopotamia, within modern-day Hillah, Iraq, about south of modern-day Baghdad. Babylon functioned as the main cultural and political centre of the Akkadian-s ...

. King

Sennacherib Sennacherib ( or , meaning "Sin (mythology), Sîn has replaced the brothers") was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 705BC until his assassination in 681BC. The second king of the Sargonid dynasty, Sennacherib is one of the most famous A ...

in 683 BC built an "Akitu house" outside the walls of

Assur Aššur (; AN.ŠAR2KI, Assyrian cuneiform: ''Aš-šurKI'', "City of God Aššur"; ''Āšūr''; ''Aθur'', ''Āšūr''; ', ), also known as Ashur and Qal'at Sherqat, was the capital of the Old Assyrian city-state (2025–1364 BC), the Midd ...

. Another Akitu house was built outside

Nineveh Nineveh ( ; , ''URUNI.NU.A, Ninua''; , ''Nīnəwē''; , ''Nīnawā''; , ''Nīnwē''), was an ancient Assyrian city of Upper Mesopotamia, located in the modern-day city of Mosul (itself built out of the Assyrian town of Mepsila) in northern ...

. The Akitu festival was continued throughout the

Seleucid Empire The Seleucid Empire ( ) was a Greek state in West Asia during the Hellenistic period. It was founded in 312 BC by the Macedonian general Seleucus I Nicator, following the division of the Macedonian Empire founded by Alexander the Great ...

and into the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

period. At the beginning of the 3rd century, it was still celebrated in Emessa,

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

, in honour of the god Elagabal. The Roman emperor

Elagabalus Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Sextus Varius Avitus Bassianus, 204 – 13 March 222), better known by his posthumous nicknames Elagabalus ( ) and Heliogabalus ( ), was Roman emperor from 218 to 222, while he was still a teenager. His short r ...

(r. 218-222), who was of Syrian origin, even introduced the festival in Italy (

Herodian Herodian or Herodianus () of Syria, sometimes referred to as "Herodian of Antioch" (c. 170 – c. 240), was a minor Roman civil servant who wrote a colourful history in Greek titled ''History of the Empire from the Death of Marcus'' (τῆς με ...

, ''Roman History'', 5.6). The new moon of

Aviv Aviv () means "spring (season)" in Hebrew language, Hebrew. Aviv is the first month of the year in the Pentateuch, and is later called Nisan in the book of Esther and in subsequent post-exilic history up to the present day. These names are sometim ...

, the month of barley ripening, marks the beginning of the Jewish ecclesiastical year. ( ) Since the

Babylonian captivity The Babylonian captivity or Babylonian exile was the period in Jewish history during which a large number of Judeans from the ancient Kingdom of Judah were forcibly relocated to Babylonia by the Neo-Babylonian Empire. The deportations occurred ...

, this month has mainly been called

( ) Kha b-Nisan is the name of the spring festival among the

Assyrians Assyrians (, ) are an ethnic group indigenous to Mesopotamia, a geographical region in West Asia. Modern Assyrians share descent directly from the ancient Assyrians, one of the key civilizations of Mesopotamia. While they are distinct from ot ...

. The festival is celebrated on April 1, corresponding to the start of the Assyrian calendar. The

Assyria Assyria (Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , ''māt Aššur'') was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization that existed as a city-state from the 21st century BC to the 14th century BC and eventually expanded into an empire from the 14th century BC t ...

n and

Babylonia Babylonia (; , ) was an Ancient history, ancient Akkadian language, Akkadian-speaking state and cultural area based in the city of Babylon in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq and parts of Kuwait, Syria and Iran). It emerged as a ...

n Akitu festival has played a pivotal role in the development of theories of religion,

myth Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...

and

ritual A ritual is a repeated, structured sequence of actions or behaviors that alters the internal or external state of an individual, group, or environment, regardless of conscious understanding, emotional context, or symbolic meaning. Traditionally ...

. While the purpose of the festival remains a point of contention among both historians of religion and Assyriologists, it is certain to have played a pivotal role in the regular setting of an agenda, priorities, and in the overall advancement of Western Civilization as being one of the first regularly occurring forums where proposals for social maintenance or change could consistently be made and crucial issues readily addressed.

Modern observances

The modern observance of Akitu began in the 1960s during the Assyrian intellectual renaissance.'''' Due to political oppression, however, the celebrations were largely private until the 1990s.'''' It is interchangeably referred to as Akitu and Assyrian New Year, and unlike the historical festival it is only celebrated for one day, the first of April.'''' Assyrians continue to observe and celebrate Akitu with parades, picnics, and parties both in Iraq and in the diaspora. Those celebrating will wear traditional Assyrian clothing and poppies and use the greetings ''Reesh Shato Brikhto, Reesha D’Sheeta Brikhta'' or ''Akitu Breekha.'' Some people will dress up as ancient Assyrian royalty.'''' Due to its modern alignment with

April Fool's Day April Fools' Day or April Fool's Day (rarely called All Fools' Day) is an annual custom on the 1st of April consisting of practical jokes, hoaxes, and pranks. Jokesters often expose their actions by shouting "April Fool " at the recipient. Mas ...

, the festival is often more lighthearted than its historical counterpart.'''' One tradition, ''Deqna Nissan'' or "The Beard of April", involves Assyrian women gathering plants and flowers and fashioning them into a garland for a home's front door.'''' Newer traditions have also arisen in diaspora communities. The Assyrian community in

Yonkers, New York Yonkers () is the List of municipalities in New York, third-most populous city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and the most-populous City (New York), city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County. A centrally locate ...

has a tradition of raising the Assyrian flag in front of City Hall on April 1.

References

Bibliography

* Julye Bidmead (2004). ''The Akitu Festival: Religious Continuity and Royal Legitimation in Mesopotamia''. Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press. . * Svend A. Pallis (1926). ''The Babylonian Akitu Festival'', Copenhagen. * Abraham Sachs (1969). "Akkadian Rituals", in: J. B. Pritchard,

ANET Anet () is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of north-central France. It lies 14 km north-northeast of Dreux between the rivers Eure and Vesgre, the latter flowing into the former some 4 km n ...

, 3rd. ed., Princeton, pp. 331–4. * Karel van der Toorn (1990). 'Het Babylonische Nieuwjaarsfeest' in ''Phoenix. Bulletin van het Vooraziatisch-Egyptisch Genootschap Ex Oriente Lux'' 36/1, 10-2
online link
* Heinrich Zimmern (1906), ''Zum babylonischen Neujahrhfest,'' BVSGW, vol. 58, pp. 126–56; vol. 70 (1918), pt. 3, 52 pp.

External links

- The Babylonian Akītu Festival and the Ritual Humiliation of the King - Sam Mirelman - ANE Today - Sep 2022

Akitu Festival
at livius.org {{Iraq topics Babylonia Enūma Eliš Mesopotamian religion New Year celebrations Spring festivals Assyrian culture