Mezulla was a minor Hittite goddess. She and her daughter Zintuḫi were closely associated with the

Sun goddess of Arinna The Sun goddess of Arinna, also sometimes identified as Arinniti or as Wuru(n)šemu, is the chief goddess and companion of the weather god Tarḫunna in Hittite mythology. She protected the Hittite kingdom and was called the "Queen of all lands." ...

; together they formed a

triple deity A triple deity is a deity with three apparent forms that function as a singular whole. Such deities may sometimes be referred to as threefold, tripled, triplicate, tripartite, triune, triadic, or as a trinity. The number three has a long history ...

. Mezulla had only local importance and is not mentioned in the oath lists of Hittite interstate treaties.

Family

Mezulla was the daughter of the Sun goddess of Arinna and the weather god

Tarḫunna Tarḫunna or Tarḫuna/i was the Hittite weather god. He was also referred to as the "Weather god of Heaven" or the "Lord of the Land of Hatti". Name Tarḫunna is a cognate of the Hittite verb ''tarḫu-zi'', "to prevail, conquer, be powe ...

. Her daughter Zintuḫi was a goddess who had no special role. From the 13th century BC onwards, the corn god

Telipinu Telipinu was the last king of the Hittites Old Kingdom, living in 16th century BC, reigned c. 1525-1500 BC in middle chronology. At the beginning of his reign, the Hittite Empire had contracted to its core territories, having long since lost all ...

, the

Weather god of Zippalanda The Weather god of Zippalanda was a Hittite weather god, who was worshipped in the Hittite city of Zippalanda. The weather god of Zippalanda had several names, such as Ziplantil, Wašezzili,Piotr Taracha: ''Religions of Second Millennium Anatolia ...

and the

Weather god of Nerik The Weather god of Nerik is a Hittite weather god, who was mainly worshipped in the Hittite city of Nerik, whose cult was relocated to Kaštama and Takupša for two hundred years after the Hittites lost Nerik to the Kaskians. He was also referred t ...

are attested as her brothers.

Role

Like her mother, Mezulla was of Hattian origin and she was also known as Tappinu ( Hattian: "her daughter"). As the daughter of the two chief Hittite deities, she could be called upon to act as an intermediary with either of them, especially their mother. She also aided military campaigns. Mezulla had a temple in the holy city of

Arinna Arinna was the major cult center of the Hittite sun-goddess known as dUTU URU''Arinna'' or " Sun-Goddess of Arinna", who is also sometimes identified as ''Arinniti'' or as ''Wuru(n)šemu''. Arinna was located near Hattusa, the Hittite capital. ...

, which was the second most important in the city after that of her mother. No other temples of Mezulla are known, but worship of her is also attested in

Ḫattuša Hattusa (also Ḫattuša or Hattusas ; Hittite: URU''Ḫa-at-tu-ša'',Turkish: Hattuşaş , Hattic: Hattush) was the capital of the Hittite Empire in the late Bronze Age. Its ruins lie near modern Boğazkale, Turkey, within the great loop of the ...

, Taḫurpa, and other north Hittite cities. Like her mother she could also be worshipped in the form of a silver solar disc.

Zintuḫi

Zintuḫi, whose name is Hattian for "granddaughter", was worshipped along with her mother and grandmother. Like her mother, she could be invoked as an intermediary with the Sun goddess of Arinna. Queen

Puduḫepa Puduḫepa or Pudu-Kheba ( fl. 13th century BC) was a Hittite queen, her companion being the King Hattusili III Ḫattušili (''Ḫattušiliš'' in the inflected nominative case) was the regnal name of three Hittite kings: * Ḫattušili I (Labarn ...

mentions her with the unclear epithet "Clothes pin on her breast." She had her own temple in Arinna, but she was not otherwise worshipped separately from the Sun goddess of Arinna.

Bibliography

Maciej Popko Maciej (Polish pronunciation: ) is a Polish given name, the etymological equivalent of Matthias. Its diminutive forms are Maciek, Maciuś. Namedays according to Polish calendar: 30 January, 24 February, 14 May Maciej may refer to: Arts and ente ...

: ''Arinna. Eine heilige Stadt der Hethiter.'' (Studien zu den Boğazköy-Texten, Vol. 50). Wiesbaden 2009, . *

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 Graa ...

: ''Geschichte der hethitischen Religion.'' (Handbuch der Orientalistik, Part. 1, Vol. 15). Brill, Leiden/ New York/ Köln 1994, {{ISBN, 90-04-09799-6. Hittite deities Hattian deities