Dagon

Dagon was a major northwest Semitic god, reportedly of the fish and/or fishing. He was worshipped by the early Amorites and by the inhabitants of the cities of Ebla and Ugarit (which was an ancient city near the Mediterranean containing a large variety of ancient writings and pagan shrines). He was also a major member, or perhaps head, of the pantheon of the Biblical Philistines . His name appears in Hebrew as דגון (in modern transcription Dagon , Tiberian Hebrew Dāḡôn ), in Ugaritic as dgn (probably vocalized as Dagnu ), and in Akkadian as Dagana , Daguna usually rendered in English translations as Dagan .

A conjectured colored engraving of Dagon, the "fish-god." Dagon was originally an East Semitic Mesopotamian ( Akkadian , Assyrian , Babylonian ) fertility god who evolved into a major Northwest Semitic god, reportedly of grain (as symbol of fertility) and fish and/or fishing (as symbol of multiplying). He was worshipped by the early Amorites and by the inhabitants of the cities of Ebla (modern Tell Mardikh, Syria) and Ugarit (modern Ras Shamra, Syria). He was also a major member, or perhaps head, of the pantheon of the Philistines . His name appears in Hebrew as דגון (in modern transcription Dagon , Tiberian Hebrew Dāḡôn ), in Ugaritic as dgn (probably vocalized as Dagnu ), and in Akkadian as Dagana , Daguna usually rendered in English translations as Dagan .

( Learn how and when to remove this message ) Dagon ( ; Dāgōn ) or Dagan ( ) is an ancient Mesopotamian and ancient Canaanite deity. He appears to have been worshipped as a fertility god in Ebla , Assyria , Ugarit , and among the Amorites . The Hebrew Bible mentions him as the national god of the Philistines with temples at Ashdod and elsewhere in Gaza . A long-standing association with a Canaanite word for "fish" (as in , Tib. /dɔːg/ ), perhaps going back to the Iron Age , has led to an interpretation as a "fish-god", and the association of " merman " motifs in Assyrian art (such as the "Dagon" relief found by Austen Henry Layard in the 1840s). The god's name was, however, more likely derived from a word for "grain", suggesting that he was in origin associated with fertility and agriculture .

Bronze Age god in ancient Syria For other uses, see Dagon (disambiguation) . Dagon ( , Dāgōn ) or Dagan ( ; ) was a god worshipped in ancient Syria across the middle of the Euphrates , with primary temples located in Tuttul and Terqa , though many attestations of his cult come from cities such as Mari and Emar as well. In settlements situated in the upper Euphrates area he was regarded as the "father of gods" similar to Mesopotamian Enlil or Hurrian Kumarbi, as well as a lord of the land, a god of prosperity, and a source of royal legitimacy. A large number of theophoric names , both masculine and feminine, attests that he was a popular deity. He was also worshiped further east, in Mesopotamia , where many rulers regarded him as the god capable of granting them kingship over the western areas. Attestations of Dagan from coastal areas are much less frequent and come mostly from the northern city of Ugarit , where Dagan's cult had a limited scope. According to the Hebrew Bible , Dagan was also the national god of the Philistines , with temples at Ashdod and Gaza , but there is no extrabiblical evidence confirming this. The extrasolar object designated Fomalhaut b is named after Dagon.