TYPE: Sun Goddess
ORIGIN: Mesopotamia, Western Semitic
OTHER NAMES: Aya, Nin-Aya, Sherida, Ninkar, Sudaĝ, Sudgan
MAJOR CULT CENTER: Sippar, Larsa
CONSORT: Shamash/Utu, Šimige (only in Hurrian Religion)
CHILDREN: Ishum, Kittum, Mamu
CHARACTER: Aya's name means dawn in Akkadian. She was associated with morning light and the rising sun. In this role she was called "morning-maker." It has also been suggested that the Sumerian name Sherida was a loan from Akkadian šertum, "morning." This would make her one of the first deities whose name has Akkadian origin to be integrated into the pantheons of Sumerian-speaking areas. Other such examples are Suen, a name of the moon god, and Ishtaran, a divine judge. Further attested names of the sun god's wife include Ninkar, Sudag and Sudgan.
Her another primary function was that of a divine bride, as exemplified by her epithet kallatum ("bride," "daughter in law"). As Shamash's wife she was regarded as epitome of beauty and charm. Shamash and Aya are the divine couple most often invoked together in seal inscriptions from Sippar, followed by Adad and Shala and Enki and Damkina. Aya was also commonly invoked to intercede with her husband on behalf of human devotees. This function is also well attested for other divine spouses, such as Ninmug and Shala. It has also been pointed out that in the case of Inanna, her sukkal Ninshubur fulfilled a similar role.
In art Aya was commonly depicted frontally. Many depictions highlighted her beauty and sexual charm. On seals from Sippar she was often depicted wearing a type of garment which exposed her right breast, meant to emphasize her qualities as a charming and attractive bride. Ishtar and Annunitum (who in Sippar functioned as a separate goddess, rather than an epithet) were depicted similarly. The existence of an emblem representing Aya is mentioned in texts from Sippar, but no detailed descriptions of it are known.
ASSOCIATION WITH OTHER DEITIES: Aya was regarded as the wife of Shamash, and thus the daughter-in-law of his parents Suen and Ningal and sister-in-law of Ishtar. Their daughters were Mamu (or Mamud), the goddess of dreams and Kittum ("truth"). Another child of the sun god and his wife was Ishum. However, due to confusion between I (a title of Aya, "golden glow") and Sud (the tutelary goddess of Shuruppak, equated with Ninlil) the latter appears in the role Ishum's mother in a single myth. Sud and Sudag were only confused with each other rather than conflated or syncretised.
A single god list dated to the Middle Babylonian period or later equates Lahar with Aya and explains that the former should be understood as "Aya as the goddess of of caring for things," da-a šá ku-né-e. This equation is regarded as unusual, as Lahar was consistently regarded as male otherwise, and the evidence for connections between both goddesses and mortal women with herding sheep, a sphere of life Lahar was associated with, is limited.
WORSHIP: While Aya is overall less well attested in textual records than major goddesses such as Ishtar, Nanaya, Ninlil or Ninisina, it is nonetheless assumed that she was a popular target of personal devotion, as she appears commonly in personal names and on seals. She was worshiped already in the Early Dynastic period, and appears in texts from Ur, as well as in the Abu Salabikh and Fara god lists. The name Sherida is already attested in theophoric names from Lagash from the same period, such as Ur-Sherida. In the Old Babylonian period Aya was one of the most popular goddesses, with only Ishtar appearing more often in sources such as personal letters. Ebabbar (Sumerian: "Shining white house"), Shamash's temple in Sippar, was the primary center of Aya's cult as well. In legal documents from that city, she often appears as a divine witness, alongside her husband, their daughter Mamu and Shamash's sukkal Bunene, the latter two also regarded as a couple. Manishtushu dedicated a mace head to "Nin-Aya" in Sippar. Samsu-iluna, one of the Old Babylonian kings, called himself "beloved of Shamash and Aya" and both renovated the Ebabbar and built walls around Sippar.
Naditu priestesses from Sippar were particularly closely associated with Aya: they addressed her as their mistress, commonly took theophoric names invoking her, and exclusively swore oaths by her. They were a class of women closely associated with Shamash. Their existence is particularly well attested in the Old Babylonian period, and it has been argued that the institution first developed around 1880 BCE, during the reign of Sumu-la-El of Babylon. Naditu lived in a building referred to as gagûm, conventionally translated as "cloister," They can be compared to medieval Christian nuns. They are sometimes described as "priestesses" in modern literature, but while it is well attested that they were considered to be dedicated to a specific deity, there is little evidence for their involvement in religious activities other than personal prayer. It is not impossible they were understood as a fully separate social class. Family background of individual naditu varied, though they came predominantly from the higher strata of society. While many came from families of craftsmen, scribes or military officials, a number of them were daughters or sisters of kings. Both Zimri-Lim of Mari and Hammurabi of Babylon had naditu of Shamash among their female family members.
It has been argued Aya was less prominent in the other city associated with Shamash, Larsa, where she doesn't appear in official lists of offerings. It is assumed that the Ebabbar in this city was nonetheless regarded as dedicated to her alongside Shamash. Some references are also present in texts from the Neo-Babylonian period, with one text mentioning the priests from Larsa sent jewelry of Aya and of the "divine daughter of Ebabbar" to Uruk for repairs. References to a "treasury of Shamash and Aya" are known too. A goddess only known by the epithet Belet Larsa ("Lady of Larsa"), who appears in Neo-Babylonian letters, might be Aya.
A sanctuary dedicated to Aya, Eidubba ("house of storage bins") also existed in Assur. A further house of worship dedicated to her, mentioned in the Canonical Temple List, was known as Edimgalanna ("house, great bond of heaven"), but its location is unknown. In Seleucid Uruk, she was among the goddesses celebrated during the New Year festival.
Aya was also worshiped outside Mesopotamia in Mari. She appears in theophoric names of women from this city with comparable frequency to her husband Shamash and Dagan, the head god of inland Syria, though less commonly than Annu, Ishtar, Ishara, Kakka (regarded as a goddess in this city), Mamma and Admu. Examples include Aya-lamassi, Aya-ummi and Yatara-Aya.