Edin (Sumerian term)
Encyclopedia
Edin is a Sumerian
term meaning "steppe" or "plain", written ideographically with the cuneiform signs . It is featured on the Gudea cylinders
as the name of a watercourse from which plaster is taken to build a temple for Ningirsu. "Clay plaster, harmoniously blended clay taken from the Edin canal, has been chosen by Lord Ningirsu with his holy heart, and was painted by Gudea
with the splendors of heaven, as if kohl
were being poured all over it." Thorkild Jacobsen called it the "Idedin" canal, suggesting it was an as yet unidentified "Desert Canal", which he considered "probably refers to an abandoned canal bed that had filled with the characteristic purplish dune sand still seen in southern Iraq
." Friedrich Delitzsch
was the first amongst numerous scholars to suggest the Jewish and Christian
term Eden
traced back to this term. It has also been connected with the later Babylonian term "Edinu".
Sumerian language
Sumerian is the language of ancient Sumer, which was spoken in southern Mesopotamia since at least the 4th millennium BC. During the 3rd millennium BC, there developed a very intimate cultural symbiosis between the Sumerians and the Akkadians, which included widespread bilingualism...
term meaning "steppe" or "plain", written ideographically with the cuneiform signs . It is featured on the Gudea cylinders
Gudea cylinders
The Gudea cylinders are a pair of terracotta cylinders dating to circa 2125 BC, on which is written in cuneiform a Sumerian myth called the Building of Ningursu's temple. The cylinders were found in 1877 during excavations at Telloh , Iraq and are now displayed in the Louvre in Paris, France...
as the name of a watercourse from which plaster is taken to build a temple for Ningirsu. "Clay plaster, harmoniously blended clay taken from the Edin canal, has been chosen by Lord Ningirsu with his holy heart, and was painted by Gudea
Gudea
Gudea was a ruler of the state of Lagash in Southern Mesopotamia who ruled ca. 2144 - 2124 BC. He probably did not come from the city, but had married Ninalla, daughter of the ruler Urbaba of Lagash, thus gaining entrance to the royal house of Lagash...
with the splendors of heaven, as if kohl
Kohl
Kohl is a German word meaning cabbage.Kohl may stand for*Kohl , a traditional Middle Eastern cosmetic*Kohl's, a company that operates department stores located in the United States*KOHL, a radio station in Fremont, California...
were being poured all over it." Thorkild Jacobsen called it the "Idedin" canal, suggesting it was an as yet unidentified "Desert Canal", which he considered "probably refers to an abandoned canal bed that had filled with the characteristic purplish dune sand still seen in southern Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
." Friedrich Delitzsch
Friedrich Delitzsch
Friedrich Delitzsch was a German Assyriologist. Born in Erlangen, he studied in Leipzig and Berlin, and in 1874 was habilitated as a lecturer of Semitic languages and Assyriology in Leipzig. In 1885 he became a "full professor" at Leipzig, and afterwards a professor at the Universities of Breslau ...
was the first amongst numerous scholars to suggest the Jewish and Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
term Eden
Garden of Eden
The Garden of Eden is in the Bible's Book of Genesis as being the place where the first man, Adam, and his wife, Eve, lived after they were created by God. Literally, the Bible speaks about a garden in Eden...
traced back to this term. It has also been connected with the later Babylonian term "Edinu".