Enheduana

Sophus Helle is a writer, translator, and cultural historian. He lives in Berlin.

“Helle’s translation feels urgent, incandescent, stripped of academic cladding. . . . The growing popularity of Enheduana gives all of us readers a chance to discover another lineage—and to bring this poet and her imagination flashing back to life again.”—Nilanjana Roy, Financial Times“This book is the ideal introduction to the priestess-poet. As well as being a first-rate Assyriologist, Helle is a gifted poet himself, and he presents us with translations that are nothing short of gripping.”—Ollie Randall, Times Literary Supplement“In [this] new translation of her poems, by Sophus Helle, Enheduana describes herself as ‘the weaver of the tablet.’ Helle argues that Enheduana compares her writing practice to pulling threads from a larger textile and rearranging them into a new pattern.”—Tatiana Hollier, New York Review of Books“We finally have a good English translation, alongside several essays, rich in detail, concerning what we know about her and how.”—Anna Della Subin, London Review of Books“Helle’s translations are elegant and pleasant to read, and they mostly succeed in the difficult task of conveying some of the verbal fabric and poetic texture of the Sumerian originals. To render in idiomatic English and with a certain level of faithfulness 4,000-year-old Sumerian literary compositions poses almost insurmountable challenges.”—Gonzalo Rubio, Poetry Birmingham Literary Journal“Comprehensive and engaging.”—Lauralee Jacks, History From a Woman’s Perspective“A wonderful new translation and commentary which returns Enheduana to her rightful place at the beginning of literary history.”—Zainab Bahrani, Columbia University“Helle’s Enheduana is a vibrant work that illuminates the complexity and wonder of the original texts. It crafts new insights into Enheduana and her world, invoking both elegance and—as could be expected of poems dedicated to the goddess Inana—a sense of awe.”—Gina Konstantopoulos, University of California–Los Angeles“Enheduana’s hymns are among the earliest comprehensible poems to have come down to us. For Sophus Helle they are not ancient fossils to be revered, but vibrant works of literature, and he has found a personal diction that makes them ring across the millennia without distortion. A masterful achievement.”—Piotr Michalowski, University of Michigan“I am thrilled to see my ancestor role model Enheduana coming back to life through this updated, wonderful translation of her poems and also fascinating research of her life and rituals.”—Dunya Mikhail, author of The Bird Tattoo“Sophus Helle’s translation of the world’s first known author—daughter of the world’s first known emperor—comes hot on the heels of his splendid edition of the Epic of Gilgamesh. In these pages the voice of Enheduana reaches across the millennia with more vibrancy, passion, and immediacy than the Homeric Hymns. The publication of this book is a major literary event.”—Robert Pogue Harrison, Stanford University  “Offering valuable and original insights into the study of authorship in Mesopotamia, this truly interdisciplinary book is widely accessible to scholars outside the field of Assyriology and should be read attentively.”—Paul Delnero, Johns Hopkins University