Ziusudra

Ziusudra (Sisouthros, Ziudsuddu) In Near Eastern mythology (Sumerian), hero of the flood myth, which is fragmentary and has in part been reconstructed. Told of a coming deluge, Ziusudra wrote down the history and traditions of his people and placed the tablets at Sippar, the city of the sun god. Then, taking his wife, daughter, and a pilot, he embarked in an ark, which eventually landed on the top of a mountain as the waters of the flood receded. When the four disembarked from the ark, they offered sacrifices to the gods. The gods Anu and Enlil gave Ziusudra “breath eternal like that of a god” as a reward for his faithfulness. Many of the incidents in the Sumerian version of the flood myth are also found in the Hebrew narrative of the flood in the Old Testament (Gen. 6–9).

SOURCE:

Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend, Third Edition – Written by Anthony S. Mercatante & James R. Dow
– Copyright © 2009 by Anthony S. Mercatante

NOTE:

Since the Sumerians, Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians and others all shared essentially the same pantheon and belief systems, these articles are all combined under the Mesopotamian mythology / deities / legendary creatures category.