Anunnaki
/ˌænʊˈnɑːki/noun
A group of deities in ancient Mesopotamian mythology whose identity and role vary across Sumerian and Akkadian texts.
Did you know?In the earliest Sumerian sources, the Anunnaki were divine beings associated with the god An, but surviving texts do not support the popular extraterrestrial interpretation.
Etymological Timeline
Late 3rd Millennium BCE
Sumerian
a-nun-na-ke₄-ne
“A plural expression referring to the Anunna deities; the exact grammatical and literal analysis remains debated.”
Early 2nd Millennium BCE
Sumerian
Anunna
“A collective name for a class or assembly of gods, often connected with the sky god An.”
2nd Millennium BCE
Akkadian
Anunnakū
“Akkadian rendering of the Sumerian divine group, used in mythological and religious texts.”
1st Millennium BCE
Akkadian
Anunnaki
“A group of deities whose roles could include judging the dead or inhabiting the underworld, depending on the text.”
19th–20th Century
English
Anunnaki
“A scholarly transliteration used in English-language study of ancient Mesopotamian religion.”
Modern English
English
Anunnaki
“A term used both for ancient Mesopotamian gods and, in popular pseudohistory, for alleged extraterrestrial beings.”