Tiamat reigns over the sea. Her consort is Abzû, god of groundwater. Together they create the younger Gods. In later times she is symbolic of the chaos defeated by the hero god king Marduk. Their battle rages twelve days, hence the Twelve Days of Zagmuk.
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She represents primordial Chaos. The first mention of Tiamat is in the Bronze Age. Her union with Abzû produces the twins Lahmu and his sister Lahamu, both of whom represent silt. They are the parents of Anshar and Kishar, the morning and evening star, who are parents of the sky god Anu (An) and his sister Ki.
The myth of Tiamat sees her as a creator Goddess, and later as an embodiment of Chaos. She's sometimes represented as a dragon or sea serpent. As a creator goddess, she and Abzû fill the cosmic void with primeval waters. She's also called "Ummu-Hubur who formed all things". She's the shining personification of the sea, sometimes known as the "glistening one".
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One day her husband, Abzû, realizes his children are planning to kill him and take his throne, a common practice among godly families. He's drugged to sleep, then murdered.
Enraged, Tiamat attacks her husband's killers. Countless creatures spring to life such as dragons, serpents, scorpion men and merfolk. She brings forth the demons and monsters of the Mesopotamian pantheon, including the first dragons, whose bodies she fills with poison instead of blood.
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The mythology and names of the male protagonists have changed over the years and tellings. Usually storm-god Marduk slays Tiamat, then incorporates parts of her body into heavens and earth. In some variations, Marduk is killed by Tiamat on the winter solstice and resurrected on the vernal equinox.
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