Manuzi (also spelled Manuzzi) was a mountain god worshiped in

Kizzuwatna Kizzuwatna (or Kizzuwadna; in Ancient Egyptian ''Kode'' or ''Qode''), was an ancient Anatolian kingdom in the 2nd millennium BC. It was situated in the highlands of southeastern Anatolia, near the Gulf of İskenderun, in modern-day Turkey. It en ...

. He shared his name with the mountain he represented and with a village. He is best attested from sources pertaining to the ''hišuwa'' festival, which indicate he was the husband of the goddess

Lelluri Lelluri (also spelled Lilluri, Liluri) was a Hurrian goddess worshiped in southeastern Anatolia and northern Syria. She was associated with mountains, and in known sources appears in connection with the god Manuzi. Character Lelluri most lik ...

. He could be identified as a form of the

Hurrian The Hurrians (; cuneiform: ; transliteration: ''Ḫu-ur-ri''; also called Hari, Khurrites, Hourri, Churri, Hurri or Hurriter) were a people of the Bronze Age Near East. They spoke a Hurrian language and lived in Anatolia, Syria and Northern ...

weather god

Teshub Teshub (also written Teshup, Teššup, or Tešup; cuneiform ; hieroglyphic Luwian , read as ''Tarhunzas'';Annick Payne (2014), ''Hieroglyphic Luwian: An Introduction with Original Texts'', 3rd revised edition, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, p. ...

as well, and as such was referred to as Teshub Manuzi.

Character

Manuzi was a mountain god, but he could also be identified as a form of Teshub, and as such could be referred to as "Teshub Manuzi." He was associated with a mountain and a settlement which both shared his name. According to

Volkert Haas Volkert may refer to: People * Edward Charles Volkert (1871–1935), American painter * Georg Volkert (1945–2020), German footballer * Stephan Volkert (born 1971), German rower * Volkert Doeksen (born 1963), Dutch money manager * Volkert van der ...

, the latter was not historically notable. It was located in the proximity of the Gulf of Alexandretta. Documentation pertaining to the ''hišuwa'' festival mentions an eagle who sat on the shoulder of Manuzi, Eribuški, whose name has

origin. A separate ritual involved washing a golden statue of him. Eagles were also a symbol of other mountain gods in ancient Syria and

Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The r ...

, for example a Hittite text describing the appearance of various deities mentions that the cult statue of the mountain god Kuwarri was accompanied by an iron eagle, while an eagle made out of ivory was an attribute of Iškiša.

notes the association of deified mountains with eagles is already attested in the case of the

Ebla Ebla (Sumerian: ''eb₂-la'', ar, إبلا, modern: , Tell Mardikh) was one of the earliest kingdoms in Syria. Its remains constitute a tell located about southwest of Aleppo near the village of Mardikh. Ebla was an important center thr ...

ite Adarwan in the third millennium BCE. An Eblaite incantation (ARET 5.16) refers to ''^dA-dar-wa-an'' BE ''ti''₈^MUŠEN.''ti''₈^MUŠEN, "Adarwan, lord of the eagles." Manuzi was not the only mountain god from southern Anatolia and northern Syria who could be labeled as a weather deity - Hittite documents refer to a weather god labeled as "Lord of Amaruk," apparently a derivative of the mountain god Ammarik known from texts from Ebla. The corresponding landmark was located somewhere in the land of Mukish. Manuzi's spouse was the Hurrian goddess

Worship

Manuzi was worshiped in

Kummanni Kummanni ( Hittite: ''Kummiya'') was the name of the main center of the Anatolian kingdom of Kizzuwatna. Its location is uncertain, but it may have been near the classical settlement of Comana in Cappadocia. Recent research also proposed as a loca ...

. A temple dedicated to him existed in that city. He was worshiped during nine day ''hišuwa'' festival, known from a set of tablets with instructions pertaining to it prepared for queen Puduḫepa. Other deities mentioned alongside him include Lelluri,

Allani Allani, also known under the Akkadian name Allatu (or Allatum) was the Hurrian goddess of the underworld, incorporated into Hittite and Mesopotamian pantheons as well. Name and epithets The name Allani is derived from a Hurrian word meaning " ...

Ishara Ishara (Išḫara) was the tutelary goddess of the ancient Syrian city of Ebla. The origin of her name is unknown. Both Hurrian and West Semitic etymologies have been proposed, but they found no broad support and today it is often assumed th ...

, two manifestations of

Nupatik Nupatik, also known as Lubadag, was a Hurrian god of uncertain character. He is attested in the earliest inscriptions from Urkesh, as well as in texts from many other Hurrian settlements, and possibly continued to be worshiped as late as in the n ...

and the

Luwian The Luwians were a group of Anatolian peoples who lived in central, western, and southern Anatolia, in present-day Turkey, during the Bronze Age and the Iron Age. They spoke the Luwian language, an Indo-European language of the Anatolian sub- ...

goddess Maliya. Hittite documents attest the existence of a ritual dedicated to Manuzi which took place in the main temple of the storm god of Hatti.

References

Bibliography

* * *{{cite book, first=Piotr, last=Taracha, title=Religions of Second Millennium Anatolia, publisher=Harrassowitz, year=2009, isbn=978-3447058858 Hurrian deities Hittite deities Mountain gods Sky and weather gods