Nanaya

Nanaya (Sumerian 𒀭𒈾𒈾𒀀, DNA.NA.A; also transcribed as "Nanāy", "Nanaja", "Nanāja", '"Nanāya", or "Nanai"; antiquated transcription: "Nanâ"; in Greek: Ναναια or Νανα; Imperial Aramaic: נני, Classical Syriac: ܢܢܝ) was a Mesopotamian goddess of love closely associated with Inanna. While she is well attested in Mesopotamian textual sources from many periods, from the times of the Third Dynasty of Ur to the Fall of Babylon and beyond, and was among the most commonly-worshipped goddesses through much of Mesopotamian history, both her origin and the meaning of her name are unknown. It has been proposed that she originated either as a minor Akkadian goddess or as a hypostasis of Sumerian Inanna, but the evidence is inconclusive. Her primary role was that of a goddess of love, and she was associated with eroticism and sensuality, though she was also a patron of lovers, including rejected or betrayed ones. Especially in early scholarship, she was often assumed to be a goddess of the planet Venus like Inanna, but this view is no longer supported by most Assyriologists. In addition to Inanna, she could be associated with other deities connected either to love or to the city of Uruk, such as Išḫara, Kanisurra or Uṣur-amāssu.