Lament for Ur
The masterpiece of the Sumerian city laments, mourning Ur's destruction through the voice of the goddess Ningal. Its poet is unknown.
- Original byline
- Anonymous
- Published
- Date not recorded
- Form
- Poems
- Authorship
- Still unknown
- Reason for anonymity
- Unrecorded
- Copyright
- Public domain
- Reference
- Wikipedia · Wikidata
The authorship story
The Lament for Ur is the finest of the Sumerian city laments, built around the goddess Ningal weeping over her ruined city while the storm of the gods flattens houses and corpses lie in the streets. Composed after Ur's fall around 2000 BCE, it was copied in the scribal schools for centuries and stands comparison with the biblical Lamentations, which the genre may have influenced. No poet's name is attached. One of the most affecting poems of the ancient world, a template for all literature of ruined cities, is anonymous.
Questions readers ask
Who wrote Lament for Ur?
Nobody knows. No author for Lament for Ur has been identified in the documented record.
Can I read Lament for Ur for free?
Lament for Ur is in the public domain, though this site has not yet verified a free full-text source for it.
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