Ululu

Ululu
Lamassu Design Gurdjieff (talk) · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Name	Ululu
Native name	𒌗𒆥
Calendar	Babylonian calendar
Season	Autumn
Holidays	Akitu (Autumnal)

Ululu was the sixth month in the Babylonian calendar, the standardized lunisolar calendar of Ancient Mesopotamia. Corresponding roughly to modern August–September, it was a pivotal month marking the end of the summer and the beginning of the harvest season. Its observance was deeply intertwined with religious life, agricultural cycles, and the authority of the Babylonian monarchy.

Etymology and Meaning

The name Ululu is derived from the Sumerian word for the sixth month, Ulu-lu, which was adopted into the Akkadian lexicon. The term is directly linked to the Sumerian calendar, demonstrating the cultural and administrative continuity between Sumer and later Babylonian civilization. The precise meaning of the word is debated among Assyriologists, but it is generally associated with the concept of "work" or "labor," fittingly pointing to the intensive agricultural activities of the season. This etymological connection underscores the month's fundamental role in the agrarian economy that sustained Mesopotamia.

Role in the Babylonian Calendar

In the standardized Babylonian calendar established during the Old Babylonian period, Ululu was the sixth month of the year, which began with the month of Nisanu. The calendar was lunisolar, meaning months began with the first sighting of the crescent moon and were periodically intercalated with an additional month, often an "Ululu II," to keep the lunar year aligned with the solar year. The decision to intercalate was a significant administrative and astronomical act, often made by central authorities like the King of Babylon or the Chaldean rulers. The month of Ululu fell during the season of *qītu*, a time of critical transition from the heat of summer to the harvest period.

Association with Harvest and Deities

Ululu was quintessentially a harvest month, primarily associated with the reaping of dates, a staple crop of Lower Mesopotamia. This agricultural focus was reflected in its primary divine associations. The month was sacred to the god Sin, the moon god, whose celestial cycle governed the calendar itself. More specifically, the later part of Ululu was linked to the autumnal celebration for the god Marduk, the supreme patron deity of the city of Babylon. The month also held connections to Shamash, the sun god of justice, and Ishtar, the goddess of love and war, whose influences were invoked for the prosperity and protection of the land and its yield.

Rituals and Observances

The most significant observance in Ululu was the autumnal Akitu festival, distinct from the more famous spring Akitu in Nisanu. This autumnal ritual, dedicated to Marduk, involved a ceremonial procession where the king would "take the hand" of the god's statue, reaffirming the sacred bond between the monarchy and the divine, ensuring Marduk's continued favor for the coming year. Other rituals focused on apotropaic cleansing and thanksgiving for the harvest. Nabonidus, the last king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, left inscriptions detailing his pious attentions to temples during this period. The observance of the New Moon at the start of Ululu was itself a minor religious event, marked by special offerings.

Historical References in Texts

Ululu is frequently mentioned in a vast corpus of cuneiform texts. It appears in administrative documents from the reign of Hammurabi, recording the distribution of goods and labor. The Babylonian Chronicles, such as those detailing the reign of Nabopolassar, date military campaigns and accessions to the throne by month, with Ululu being a common reference point. Legal texts, like those from the time of Nebuchadnezzar II, often use "the month of Ululu" to date contracts and decrees. Furthermore, astronomical diaries from the Seleucid period meticulously record celestial events, proving the month's consistent place in the calendrical system for centuries.

Legacy in Later Calendars

The influence of the Babylonian month Ululu persisted long after the fall of the Neo-Babylonian Empire. It was directly adopted into the Hebrew calendar as the month of Elul, maintaining its position as the sixth month and its association with introspection and preparation for the High Holy Days. The Syriac calendar also preserves the name as *Īlūl*. This transmission occurred through the Achaemenid and Hellenistic administrations, which utilized the Babylonian calendar for official purposes. The survival of the name and its seasonal connotations in these later liturgical calendars is a testament to the enduring cultural and administrative legacy of Ancient Babylon's timekeeping systems.