Kubaba (Sumerian:𒆬𒀭𒁀𒌑,kug-Dba-u₂) was a legendaryMesopotamian queen who according to theSumerian King List ruled overKish for a hundred years before the rise of the dynasty ofAkshak. It is typically assumed that she was not a historical figure.[1]
Kubaba's name was written incuneiform askù-dba-ú,kù-dbu-ú,ku-ub-ba-bu-ú orku-ub-ba-bu-ú.[1] It is alsoromanized as Ku-Baba, with a hyphen separating the elements and the first letter of thetheonym capitalized.[2][3] The first sign can be transcribed askug rather thanku, which is reflected by the title of the corresponding entry in the Reallexikon der Assyriologie, Ku(g)-Baba.[4] This name can be translated from Sumerian as "radiant Baba"[3] or "silver of Baba".[5] The correct reading of the last sign in the theonym used as the second element of this theophoric name remains a matter of debate, with /u/ and /wu/ proposed in addition to /ba/.[6] The name of the queen can accordingly be alternatively romanized as Kug-Bau[7] or Kug-Bawu.[1]
Due to spatial and temporal differences, a connection between the names of Kubaba and the similarly named goddessKubaba cannot be established.[8] Gonzalo Rubio stresses that the name of the latter has no clear etymology and cannot be interpreted as originating in either Sumerian or any of theSemitic languages.[9] It was written in cuneiform asdku-ba-ba ordku-pa-pa.[8]
Arguments have been made that Kubaba might have been a historical ruler, though this view is not regarded as plausible today.[1] Earliest sources mentioning her were only composed centuries after she supposedly lived.[10]Assyriologists consider her a "legendary"[2] or "mythical" ruler.[7] As noted by Gianni Marchesi, names starting with the elementku- are not attested before theUr III period, and placing a ruler bearing one of them in theEarly Dynastic period constitutes ananachronism.[1] Claus Wilcke points out that in theSumerian King List Kubaba's reign is supernaturally long, lasting 100 years.[11] It has been pointed out that the SKL does not accurately reflect Early Dynastic history, as indicated by the complete omission ofLagash, which was a major political power, especially during the reign ofEannatum.[12] Kubaba is also not mentioned in any of the discovered inscriptions of historical Early Dynastic rulers.[3] Martel Stol concludes that texts mentioning Kubaba should only be interpreted as speculation about traditional folk stories.[13]
Kubaba is mentioned in theSumerian King List, though due to her gender her inclusion is considered unusual.[10] While some modern authors refer to her as a queen,[2] the Sumerian title applied to her islugal ("king"), which had no feminine counterpart.[14] A recension fromUr instead states that there was no king while Kubaba reigned.[15] She is the only ruler from the third dynasty of Kish listed.[16] The list describes her as aninnkeeper (míLÚ.KAŠ.TIN-na), credits her with "strengthening the foundation of Kish" and attributes a 100 years long reign culminating in a temporary transfer of power from Kish toAkshak before it was regained byPuzur-Suen.[17] The latter ruler is said to be Kubaba's son, which makes her the grandmother ofUr-Zababa, a legendary opponent of historicalSargon of Akkad; Piotr Steinkeller points out that the historicity of these rulers of Kish and the related Sargon tradition is contradicted by an inscription which mentions the city was sacked byEnshakushanna ofUruk, who might have been a contemporary of Sargon, and its king at the time, who was taken as a captive, was named Enbi-Eštar.[18] The oldest known copies of the SKL date back to theUr III period.[19] While names of some rulers, for exampleMesannepada, were likely sourced from votive inscriptions, others, likeBazi and Zizi, might have been ordinary given names copied fromlexical lists, such as theEarly Dynastic so-calledNames and Professions List, or outright inventions.[20] Early versions of the SKL do not contain anecdotes about individual rulers, including Kubaba, which indicates they most likely were a later invention.[21] The compilers used few, if any, historical accounts.[22] Accordingly, Kubaba's background is treated as fantastical, and has been compared to other unusual stories or members of various professions becoming kings in the same composition, including the fullerSusuda, the sailor Mamagal, and the stone worker Nanniya.[21]
In the so-calledWeidner Chronicle, which is considered a derivative of theSumerian King List,[23] the order of Kubaba's dynasty and the dynasty of Akshak is switched around, withPuzur-Niraḫ [pl] reigning before her rather than later on.[24] The section dedicated to her is poorly preserved.[25] It relays how Kubaba was granted kingship byMarduk after he delivered an offering of fish to his templeEsagil.[26] The composition is focused on conveying the message that kings who neglected to worship Marduk were rendered powerless, and to that end employs a number of anachronisms,[27] this account being one of them.[13] It is known fromNeo-Assyrian andNeo-Babylonian copies, and was originally composed no earlier than around 1100 BCE.[27]
References to Kubaba are also known from texts focused onomens linked toliver divination.[10] As noted by Beate Pongratz-Leisten, references to legendary rulers such as her,Gušur,Etana orGilgamesh in works belonging to this category were meant to establish them as paradigmatic models of kingship.[28] In one of the omen compendiums, the "omen of Kubaba" is the birth of anandrogynous being with both a penis and a vagina.[10] It is possible the birth of a sheep rather than a human is meant.[2] Such an event is said to foretell that "the country of the king shall be ruined".[10] Marten Stol argues that its negative character reflected a negative perception of a woman fulfilling a typically masculine role, that of a ruler.[2] Other omens preserve a tradition according to which Kubaba was a warrior.[10]
Marchesi, Gianni (2010)."The Sumerian King List and the Early History of Mesopotamia".Ana turri gimilli: studi dedicati al padre Werner R. Mayer, S.J., da amici e allievi. Quaderni di Vicino Oriente. Università di Roma La Sapienza. Retrieved2023-05-19.
Wilcke, Claus (1988). "Die Sumerische Königsliste und erzählte Vergangenheit".Vergangenheit in mündlicher Überlieferung. De Gruyter. pp. 113–140.doi:10.1515/9783110975246.113.ISBN9783110975246.
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