Life

En’Hedu’anna was a Sumerian scientist born circa 2354 BCE. She is the first named author, male or female, in history and is known for her contributions to early astronomical thought. 

Sumer was a Mesopotamian civilization known for its advances in science and technology. Records of ancient Sumer suggest that women were treated equally to their male counterparts, and had a great deal of power. Women were able to own land, trade, and hold high positions within the government.¹ These power balances stemmed from Sumerian perspectives on divinity and the hierarchies within their religious beliefs, however, may stray from the gender equality notion mentioned before. 

En’Hedu’anna’s name carries importance. While it is not her birth name, “en” is a title of leadership, and “Hedu’anna” means “ornament of heaven”.² Her leadership title was bestowed upon her by her prolific father, Sargon of Akkad. Sargon founded the first empire in world history, the Akkadian Empire of Mesopotamia, and developed large-scale political and administrative strategies that shaped the future empires.³ Under her father’s rule, En’Hedu’anna became the “chief astronomer-priestess”, managing the temple complex in Ur, Akkadia’s capital city.⁴ Sargon also appointed his daughter as the priestess to the sky god, An. This political choice appealed to the kingdom as femininity was associated with fertility and thus, power.⁵ In this way, women were an important part of the Akkadian Empire and the Sumerian social hierarchy. En’Hedu’anna’s position of power derived from these values and her father’s prominence. As the “Queen of Heaven”, she served the king and Sargon used her “divinity” to promote his governmental agendas. In analyzing ancient history, it is difficult to determine the true extent of gender equality in Sumer.

Restored alabaster disk showing En’Hedu’anna in procession. She is the third from the right.⁶

Research

Ancient Sumerian cosmology’s foundational concept was the marriage of the sky or heaven, and the earth.⁷ Ur’s main temple complex oversaw scientific development and multiple observatories dedicated to exploring the night sky.⁸ Most notably, the sexagesimal (base-60) system, which is still used in modern mathematics (360-degree circles), timekeeping (60 seconds in one minute), and geographic coordinates, originated in Ur and Sumerian astronomy during the 3rd millennium BC.⁹

Aside from science, there are records of En’Hedu’anna’s poetry and literary pursuits, making her the earliest recorded author. 

66. gi6-par3 ku3-ga hu-mu-si-in-ku4-re-en
67. en-me-en en-he2-du7-an-na-me-en
68. s,ma-sa2-ab i3-gur3-ru asil-la2 i3-dug4
69. ki-si3-ga bi2-ib-gar ga-e nu-mu-un-til3-le-en
70. u4-de ba-te ud mu-da-bil2
71. gissu-de3 ba-te u18-lu-da im-mi-dul
72. ka lal3-gu10 su uh3-a ba-ab-dug4
73. nig2 ur5 sag9-sag9-gu10 sahar-ta ba-da-gi4
nam-gu10 dsuen lugal-an-ne2
75. an-ra dug4-mu-na-ab an-ne2 ha-ma-du8-e

67. “I am the en-priestess, I am Enduhana,
66. I entered the bright gipar for you,
68. I carried the masab-basket and sang in jubilation.
69. (In spite of the fact that) funeral offerings were brought (for me) as if I had not
lived there at all.
70. I neared the light, but the light burned me.
71. I neared the shadow, but I was covered by a storm.
72. My honey mouth was . . . with scum,
73. My exceedingly joyful heart turned into dust!
74. Suen, tell An about my fate and Lugal-ane,
75. So that An may free me.¹⁰

Bibliography

Gadotti, Alhena. “Portraits of the Feminine in Sumerian Literature.” Journal of the American Oriental Society 131, no. 2 (2011): 195–206.

Howard, Sethanne. “SCIENCE HAS NO GENDER: The History of Women in Science.” Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences 93, no. 1 (2007): 1–15.

Mathematical Mysteries. “Sexagesimal Number System,” August 9, 2022. https://mathematicalmysteries.org/sexagesimal-number-system/.

“Sargon of Akkad – World History Encyclopedia.” Accessed November 20, 2024. https://www.worldhistory.org/Sargon_of_Akkad/.

Wakeman, Mary K. “Ancient Sumer and the Women’s Movement: The Process of Reaching behind, Encompassing and Going Beyond.” Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion 1, no. 2 (1985): 7–27.