Nabarbi (Nawarni) is Goddess of pastures, fields, meadows and flocks, and a major deity of the Bronze Age Hurrian pantheon. As a rustic Goddess she assures the health and fertility of pasture land, important to herding and farming cultures. She's associated with elemental Earth and the life-giving Sun.
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As a pastoral Goddess she compares to the Goat-God Pan of ancient Greece. He's a god of pastures, crossroads, flocks, music and lust. While Pan is half goat, Nabarbi is all woman.
Nabarbi's worship is best known in the area of the River Khabur, a tributary of the Euphrates. She's especially revered in Taite, a capital of the Mitanni (Hurrian) empire. From the 7th century BCE she's invoked as one of the deities to bless the King.
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In her river manifestation she's compared to Ḫabūrītum (Haburitum), a goddess of the River Khabur. She's sometimes identified with the Lady of Nagar, a term also applied to the Goddess Haburitum.
She may correspond to Belet Nagar of the Mesopotamian pantheons. Belet Nagar is the tutelary goddess of Nagar (modern Tell Brak, Syria).
Some mythologists consider her the same deity as Nabarbi. Being a patron deity, Belet Nagar also holds a strong position on local god lists or kaluti.
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A pan-cultural Goddess, Nabarbi appears in pantheons of the Hurrians, Hittites and the area of Emar (Aleppo), Syria. She's also involved in ritual purification, as indicated by the itkalzi rituals. The rituals are recorded on 22 clay tablets.
Nabarbi's husband is Tašmišu (Tashmishu), a warrior god. He's brother of storm god Teshub and Great Goddess Shaushka.
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A strong fighter himself, Tashmishu takes a supportive role to Teshub and may act as his sukkal. The Hittite equivalent of Tashmishu, Šuwaliyat, appears in area god lists as husband of Nabarbi.
From the Middle Hittite period (c. 1500 - 1300 BCE) onward, Nabarbi is also worshipped in Hattusa, the capital of the Hittite Empire. She appears on offering lists together with Sun Goddess Hepat and Great Goddess Shaushka.
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Nabarbi appears on god lists of Emar in north central Syria, but is low on the heirarchy. The sacrifice to entities of Nabarbi's rank is two sheep. Higher ranks receive five sheep, and the major deities are given ten sheep and five calves.
A connection between Nabarbi and Shuwala, tutelary goddess of Mardaman, is recorded. Mardaman in northern Iraq is inhabited from c. 2200 - 1200 BCE. Worship of Nabarbi continues into the Neo-Assyrian period c. 8th century BCE.
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