Sebiumeker was a major supreme god of procreation and fertility in

Nubian mythology Kushite religion is the traditional belief system and pantheon of deities associated with the Ancient Kushites, who founded the Kingdom of Kush in the land of Nubia (also known as Ta-Seti) in present-day Sudan. The recorded origins of traditiona ...

who was primarily worshipped in Meroe,

Kush KUSH 1600 AM is a radio station licensed to Cushing, Oklahoma. The station broadcasts a Full service format, consisting of local and national talk, sports Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, tha ...

, in present-day

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

. He is sometimes thought of as a guardian of gateways as his statues are sometimes found near doorways. He has many similarities with

Atum Atum (, Egyptian: ''jtm(w)'' or ''tm(w)'', ''reconstructed'' ; Coptic ''Atoum''), sometimes rendered as Atem, Temu, or Tem, is the primordial God in Egyptian mythology from whom all else arose. He created himself and is the father of Shu and ...

, but has Nubian characteristics, and is also considered the god of agriculture.

Etymology

His Meroitic name was probably Sabomakal, which became Sebiumeker in the ancient Egyptian language.

Role in ancient Kush

Sebiumeker was a major supreme god of procreation and fertility in Meroe,

(present-day

). He was referred to as Lord of Musawwarat. His statues have often been found near doorways at the Nubian sites Tabo (Nubia) and

Musawwarat es-Sufra Musawwarat es-Sufra (Arabic: , Meroitic: Aborepi, Old Egyptian: jbrp, jpbr-ˁnḫ), also known as Al-Musawarat Al-Sufra, is a large Meroitic temple complex in modern Sudan, dating back to the early Meroitic period of the 3rd century BC. It is ...

, giving rise to the interpretation that he was a guardian god. But another interpretation is that he represented transformation which is why he was placed at the doorways of temples. Though certainly a Nubian god, he has many Egyptian symbols and legends.

Family

His partner (or maybe brother) was Arensnuphis. This close association with Arensnuphis is similar to the relationship with

Set Set, The Set, SET or SETS may refer to: Science, technology, and mathematics Mathematics *Set (mathematics), a collection of elements *Category of sets, the category whose objects and morphisms are sets and total functions, respectively Electro ...

and

Osiris Osiris (, from Egyptian ''wikt:wsjr, wsjr'') was the ancient Egyptian deities, god of fertility, agriculture, the Ancient Egyptian religion#Afterlife, afterlife, the dead, resurrection, life, and vegetation in ancient Egyptian religion. He was ...

Image

He wore the ancient double crown with a beard and

uraeus drawing of a Uraeus The Uraeus () or Ouraeus (Ancient Greek: , ; Egyptian: ', "rearing cobra", plural: ''Uraei'') is the stylized, upright form of an Egyptian cobra, used as a symbol of sovereignty, royalty, deity and divine authority in anci ...

and had big ears, a mark of importance. With his double crown, false beard, kilt, and tunic, he resembles Atum. A sandstone head without inscription stands in Meroe. It also has the double crown with uraeus. It has several Egyptian looking features, but also has the formal broad Nubian unmodeled planes.

In popular culture

His worship is invoked in the Gifts of the Nile scenario in the strategy video game ''

Civilization VI ''Sid Meier's Civilization VI'' is a 2016 4X turn-based strategy video game developed by Firaxis Games and published by 2K (company), 2K. The mobile and Nintendo Switch ports were published by Aspyr Media. It is the sequel to ''Civilization V'' ...

''.

References

{{Kushite religion footer Egyptian gods Fertility gods Liminal gods Nubian gods Tutelary gods