WRITER

Enheduanna

2300 BC - 2300 BC

Photo of Enheduanna

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Enheduanna (Sumerian: 𒂗𒃶𒌌𒀭𒈾 Enḫéduanna, also transliterated as Enheduana, En-he2-du7-an-na, or variants) was the entu (high) priestess of the moon god Nanna (Sīn) in the Sumerian city-state of Ur in the reign of her father, Sargon of Akkad (r. c. 2334 – c. 2279 BCE). She was likely appointed by her father as the leader of the religious group at Ur to cement ties between the Akkadian religion of her father and the native Sumerian religion. Enheduanna has been celebrated as the earliest known named author in world history, as a number of works in Sumerian literature, such as the Exaltation of Inanna feature her as the first-person narrator, and other works, such as the Sumerian Temple Hymns may identify her as their author. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Enheduanna has received more than 881,828 page views. Her biography is available in 58 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 50 in 2019). Enheduanna is the 375th most popular writer (up from 462nd in 2019), the 36th most popular biography from Iraq (up from 41st in 2019) and the 5th most popular Iraqi Writer.

Enheduanna is most famous for being the first known female author in the world. She was a high priestess and the daughter of Sargon, the founder of the Akkadian Empire.

Memorability Metrics

  • 880k

    Page Views (PV)

  • 68.76

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 58

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 8.44

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 3.64

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Among WRITERS

Among writers, Enheduanna ranks 375 out of 7,302. Before her are Ennius, Octavio Paz, Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Tulsidas, Lucy Maud Montgomery, and Grazia Deledda. After her are Theocritus, Arthur de Gobineau, Julio Cortázar, Georges Bataille, Sergei Yesenin, and Jean Genet.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 2300 BC, Enheduanna ranks 2. Before her is Sargon of Akkad. After her are Merenre Nemtyemsaf II, Neferkare Neby, Dudu of Akkad, Autobiography of Harkhuf, Puzur-Inshushinak, Erridupizir, Pamba, Ankhesenpepi IV, and Iput II. Among people deceased in 2300 BC, Enheduanna ranks 1. After her are Rimush, Ur-Zababa, Erridupizir, and Pamba.

Others Born in 2300 BC

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Others Deceased in 2300 BC

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  • Photo of Enheduanna

    Enheduanna

    WRITER

    2300 BC - 2300 BC

    HPI: 68.76

    Rank: 1

  • Photo of Rimush

    Rimush

    POLITICIAN

    HPI: 57.72

    Rank: 2

  • Photo of Ur-Zababa

    Ur-Zababa

    POLITICIAN

    2350 BC - 2300 BC

    HPI: 53.14

    Rank: 3

  • Photo of Erridupizir

    Erridupizir

    POLITICIAN

    2300 BC - 2300 BC

    HPI: 52.48

    Rank: 4

  • Photo of Pamba

    Pamba

    POLITICIAN

    2300 BC - 2300 BC

    HPI: 50.20

    Rank: 5

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In Iraq

Among people born in Iraq, Enheduanna ranks 36 out of 384. Before her are Belshazzar (-600), Al-Ash'ari (873), Gudea (-2200), Möngke Khan (1209), Al-Mu'tasim (796), and Ahmad ibn Fadlan (900). After her are Eber (-2038), Antiochus I Soter (-324), Ur-Nammu (-2200), Al-Musta'sim (1213), Suleyman Shah (1178), and Faisal II of Iraq (1935).

Others born in Iraq

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Among WRITERS In Iraq

Among writers born in Iraq, Enheduanna ranks 5. Before her are Ahmad ibn Hanbal (780), Al-Masudi (896), Fuzûlî (1494), and Ahmad ibn Fadlan (900). After her are Berossus (-400), Ibn al-Jawzi (1116), Al-Mutanabbi (915), Ibn Sirin (653), Ibn Khallikan (1211), Ibn al-Nadim (1000), and Al-Khalil ibn Ahmad al-Farahidi (718).

Iraqi born Writers

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