Allani

Allani, also known under the Akkadian name Allatu (or Allatum), was the Hurrian goddess of the underworld. She was also associated with the determination of fate. She was closely linked with Išḫara, and they could be invoked or receive offerings together. She also developed connection with other underworld deities from neighboring cultures, such as Mesopotamian Ereshkigal (who eventually came to be equated with her), Anatolian Sun goddess of the Earth and Lelwani, and possibly Ugaritic Arsay. It is presumed she was chiefly worshiped in western areas inhabited by the Hurrians, though the location of her main cult center is uncertain. She is attested in texts from sites such as Tigunani, Tuttul and Ugarit. She was also incorporated into the Mesopotamian pantheon, and was venerated in Ur, Nippur and Sippar. Hittite sources mentioning her are known too.

==Name== The theonym Allani has Hurrian origin and consists of the word allai, lady, and the article -ni. It has been noted that simple epithet-like theonyms were common in Hurrian tradition, another well attested example being Šauška, "the great". In texts written in the Ugaritic alphabetic script, Allani's name was rendered as aln. The Akkadian form is Allatum. In 1980 Wilfred G. Lambert proposed that Allatum, who he understood as the same deity as Ereshkigal in origin, was the feminine counterpart, and possibly wife, of a minor Mesopotamian god associated with the underworld, Alla. However, already stated in 1989 that no convincing Akkadian etymology has been proposed for the name Allatum, and it is now agreed that it was a derivative of Allani. Alfonso Archi suggests this form of the name originally developed in Syria, and from there reached Mesopotamia. In Emar, an ancient city in Syria, both forms were used. A further variant, Allantum, is attested in texts from Tigunani. It differs from the usual variant Allatum, but also represents a combination of the base Hurrian name with the Akkadian feminine suffix.