Asherah

Asherah (/ˈæʃərə/; Hebrew: אֲשֵׁרָה), in Semitic mythology, is a mother goddess who appears in a number of ancient sources. She appears in Akkadian writings by the name of Ashratum/Ashratu, and in Hittite as Asherdu(s) or Ashertu(s) or Aserdu(s) or Asertu(s). Asherah is generally considered identical with the Ugaritic goddess ʼAṯirat.

Asherah is identified as the consort of the Sumerian god Anu, and Ugaritic El, the oldest deities of their respective pantheons, as well as Yahweh, the god of Israel and Judah. This role gave her a similarly high rank in the Ugaritic pantheon. The name Dione, which like ‘Elat means “Goddess,” is clearly associated with Asherah in the Phoenician History of Sanchuniathon, because the same common epithet (‘Elat) of “the Goddess par excellence” was used to describe her at Ugarit. The Book of Jeremiah, written circa 628 BC, possibly refers to Asherah when it uses the title “Queen of Heaven,” stating: “pray thou not for this people...the children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the Queen of Heaven, and to pour out drink offerings to other gods, that they may provoke me to anger.” (Hebrew: לִמְלֶכֶת הַשָּׁמַיִם) in Jeremiah 7:18 and Jeremiah 44:17–19, 25. (For a discussion of “Queen of Heaven” in the Hebrew Bible, see Queen of Heaven.)

In the Ugaritic texts (before 1200 BCE) Athirat is almost always given her full title rbt ʼaṯrt ym, rabat ʼAṯirat yammi, ‘Lady Athirat of the Sea’ or as more fully translated ‘she who treads on the sea’.

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Author: Wikipedia

Keywords: Grove, Asherah, Asherim, Assur, Asir, Ishtar, Ashtoreth, Ashtaroth, Ashratum, Ashratu, Ashtart, Astarte, goddess of fertility, moon goddess, Moon god, God of fertility, Assyrian deity, Idol, Foreign god, Idolatry, Fertility god, Asherah pole, queen of heaven, female deity, female goddess, goddess

Bible reference(s): 1 Kings 14:15, 1 Kings 15:12, 1 Kings 18:19, 2 Kings 21:7, 2 Kings 23:7, Hosea 4:14, Jeremiah 11:13, Jeremiah 44:16, Jeremiah 7:18, Judges 3:7, Judges 6:25, Exodus 34:13, Deuteronomy 7:5, Deuteronomy 12:3, Judges 2:13, Judges 10:6, 1 Samuel 7:3, 1 Samuel 7:4, 1 Samuel 12:10, 1 Samuel 31:10, 1 Kings 11:5, 1 Kings 11:33, 1 Kings 14:15, 1 Kings 14:23, 2 Kings 17:10, 2 Kings 23:13, 2 Kings 23:14, 2 Chronicles 14:3, 2 Chronicles 17:6, 2 Chronicles 24:18, 2 Chronicles 31:1, 2 Chronicles 33:19, 2 Chronicles 34:3, 2 Chronicles 34:4, 2 Chronicles 34:7, Isaiah 17:8, Isaiah 27:9, Jeremiah 17:2, Jer 44:17-19, Jer 44:25, Micah 5:14

Source: This article uses material from the Wikipedia article “Asherah,” which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.

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