Apkallu or and Abgal (; Akkadian and Sumerian, respectively) are terms found in cuneiform inscriptions that in general mean either "wise" or "sage".
In several contexts the Apkallu are seven demigods, sometimes described as part man and part fish or bird, associated with human wisdom; these creatures are often referred to in scholarly literature as the Seven Sages. Sometimes the sages are associated with a specific primeval king. After the Great Flood (see Epic of Gilgamesh), further sages and kings are listed. Post-deluge, the sages are considered human, and in some texts are distinguished by being referred to as Ummanu, not Apkallu.
The term Apkallu-Abgal is also used as an epithet for kings and gods as a mark of wisdom or knowledge.
A further use of the term Apkallu is when referring to figurines used in apotropaic rituals; these figurines include fish-man hybrids representing the seven sages, but also include bird-headed and other figures.
In a later work by Berossus describing Babylonia, the Apkallu appear again, also described as fish-men who are sent by the gods to impart knowledge to people. In Berossus, the first one, Oannes (a variant of Uanna), is said to have taught people the creation myth, the Enūma Eliš.
Etymology, names, and meaning
The term apkallu has multiple uses, but usually refers to some form of wisdom; translations of the term generally equate to English language uses of the terms "the wise", "sage" or "expert".
As an epithet, prefix, or adjective it can mean "the wise"; it has been used as an epithet for the gods Ea and Marduk, simply interpreted as "wise one amongst gods" or similar forms. It has also been applied to Enlil, Ninurta, and Adad.
The term also refers to the "seven sages", especially the sage Adapa, and also to apotropaic figures, which are often figurines of the 'seven sages' themselves.
A collation of the names and "titles" of theses seven sages in order can be given as:
Uanna, "who finished the plans for heaven and earth", Uannedugga, "who was endowed with comprehensive intelligence", Enmedugga, "who was allotted a good fate", Enmegalamma, "who was born in a house", Enmebulugga, "who grew up on pasture land", An-Enlilda, "the conjurer of the city of Eridu", Utuabzu, "who ascended to heaven".
Additionally, the term is used when referring to human "priests" (also "exorcists", "diviners"). However, Mesopotamian human sages also used the term ummianu (ummânù) "expert".
Uanna (Oannes) or Adapa?
The first of these legendary fish-man sages is known as Oan/Oannes, Sumerian Uanna/U-An; on a few cuneiform inscriptions this first sage has "adapa" appended to his name. Borger notes, however, that it is difficult to believe that the half-man half-fish Adapa is the same as the fisherman of the Adapa myth, the son of the god Ea. A potential solution was given by W. G. Lambert—evidence that "adapa" was also used as an appellative meaning "wise".
considers the case for Adapa being one of or a name of one of the Apkallu. They note that while some texts contain plays on words between the terms "adapa" and "uan" and posit that "adapa" may be an epithet, though in the Adapa myth itself it is likely a proper name. In terms of the name of the first Apkallu they consider that both terms "adapa" ("wise") and "ummanu" ("craftsman") together form the whole proper name. Additionally, they note closer similarities between the 7th Apkallu Utuabzu, who is said to have ascended to heaven (in the Bit Meseri), and the myth of Adapa who also visited heaven. Both Adapa and the Apkallu have legends that place them halfway between the world of men and gods; but additionally just as Oannes in the Greek version passes all the knowledge of civilization to people, so Adapa is described as having been "[made] perfect with broad understanding to reveal the plans of the land." However, despite some clear parallels between Adapa stories and both the first and last Apkallu, Kvanvig finally notes that the name used for the first Apkallu is given in both Berossus, and in the Uruk King list—that is Uan.
Oannes was once conjectured to be a form or another name of the ancient Babylonian god Ea. It is now thought that the name is the Greek form of the Babylonian Uanna, an Apkallu.
Literary evidence
Uruk List of Kings and Sages
These Sages are found in the "Uruk List of Kings and Sages" (165 BC) discovered in 1959/60 in the Seleucid era temple of Anu in Bit Res; The text consisted of list of seven kings and their associated sages, followed by a note on the 'Deluge' (see Gilgamesh flood myth), followed by eight more king/sage pairs.
A tentative translation reads: