What was the Canaanite Pantheon?
The following article was adapted from my YouTube video where I go more in-depth on the topic. To view the video click here.
It’s well known that the Canaanite religion was polytheistic, but unlike most other well-known polytheistic religions, we do not have much material in terms of mythology, unlike the Greek, Norse, and Egyptian pantheons (Greener 2019, 2). Because of this, we have to rely on archeology and literary sources we do have to try to form a “patchwork pantheon,” but often this pantheon varies from source to source (Golden 2004, 182). This is a staple of Canaanite religion as different regions, peoples, and cities would often worship different gods and goddesses, and even in the same place different gods were honored (Greener 2019, 15; Noll 2006, 72). Along with this religious syncretism was heavily present. During the Bronze Age, multiple different political powers would fight over Canaan, thus leading to religious influence, primarily from Egyptian and Hittite traditions (Greener 2019, 15; Van De Mieroop 2016, 142).
However, we do have a significant literary source that can help us piece together Canaanite polytheism, that being the Ugaritic texts. Ugarit was a city in northern Syria that was destroyed around the 13th century BCE, and archeological excavations made at Ugarit have revealed numerous texts that can help us understand the Canaanite pantheon. Although Ugarit was not a part of Canaan proper its religion was very closely related to that of the Canaanites (Greener 2019, 2). These texts found in Ugarit, and other pieces of information related to Canaan’s religion, scattered throughout the archeological and historical record, can help us piece together what Canaan’s pantheon was like (Noll 2006, 61).
Still, Canaan’s religion was extremely fluid and evolved over time, as beliefs and practices changed. However, despite this nearly constant evolution, there are some elements of the pantheon that remained constant (Noll 2006, 61). The Canaanite pantheon was somewhat of a divine family, with four tiers ranking the gods, the patron gods, the divine assembly (also called cosmic deities), gods of daily life, and messenger deities (Smith 2004, 45–46; Noll 2006, 74).
The Patron Gods
The patron gods consisted of El, the head deity of the Canaanite pantheon, and his consort, or wife, Asherah (also known as Atihrat). According to the Ugaritic texts El, often associated with a bull who was his sacred animal, was the creator of the world and humankind. He is often depicted and described as elderly, wise, and kind. Asherah was also alongside him bearing El seventy sons, who would make up the second tier or divine assembly (Noll 2006, 74–76; Ahlström 1994, 259). However, they were not alone in being patron deities, as the god, Ba’al Hadad would join them. Ba’al Hadad, meaning “Lord of Thunder” originally was considered an outsider to the divine family although he was granted the same status as El’s sons, possibly because El was his grandfather (Greener 2019, 2; Smith 2004, 45). Ba’al is famously depicted in the Ugaritic myth known as the “Ba’al Cycle,” and the myth shows how Ba’al was granted the status of “king of the gods” by El (Greener 2019, 2; Noll 2006, 76).
The Divine Assembly
The second tier of gods was the divine assembly, also known as cosmic gods, and they were the children of El and Asherah (Smith 2004, 45–46). One notable goddess of this tier is the goddess, Anat, the goddess of love and war and despite being Ba’al’s sister she is also his wife (Greener 2019, 3; Noll 2006, 77–78). Although, the topic is heavily debated, as some proposed that Anat was not Ba’al’s consort (Day 1992, 184–186). Regardless, another consort of Ba’al exists, Astarte, and like Anat, she also represents love and war (Greener 2019, 3; Noll 2006, 77–78). Other gods of the second tier include Dagon the father of Ba’al and the god of grain and rain (Noll 2006, 78). Reseph the god of plague and pestilence (Greener 2019, 3). Mot, the god of the underworld (ibid). Yamm, the possibly leviathan-like god of the sea (Smith 2004, 30; Smith 2002, 85). Raphiu, a god of the dead that presides over an assembly of dead kings (ibid). Molech another god of the dead that is often associated with human sacrifice, although it is debated if he was a deity or not (Noll 2006, 78–79). The goddess of the sun, Shaphash, and the less major gods of the moon, Yirakh, and Sheger (Noll 2006, 79; Greener 2019, 3).
Lower Tiers
Other gods existed as well in the lower tiers, albeit their role was somewhat minor compared to the first and second tiers. The third tier consisted primarily of craftsman gods and trader deities. However, deceased men who became gods were also a part of this tier. Kings, the heads of households, and other notable men such as prophets could gain this distinction as gods with their title being called the Rephaim. They are presided over by one of the gods of the dead, Raphiu as he hosts a banquet with these Rephaim. Along with this the seven goddesses of childbirth, the Kotharat were also part of this tier, along with other child-birth gods. Finally, the fourth tier is primarily composed mainly of messenger deities, similar to biblical angels (Noll 2006, 79; Greener 2019, 2).
To view the complete video and discussion click here.
Bibliography
Ahlström, Gösta Werner, and Gary O. Rollefson. The History of Ancient Palestine. Edited by Diana Edelman, Sheffield Academic Press, 1994.
Day, Peggy L. “Anat: Ugarit’s ‘Mistress of Animals.’” Journal of Near Eastern Studies, vol. 51, no. 3, July 1992, pp. 181–190.
Golden, Jonathan M. Ancient Canaan and Israel: New Perspectives. ABC-CLIO, 2004.
Greener, Aaron. “Archaeology and Religion in Late Bronze Age Canaan.” Religions, vol. 10, no. 4, 2019, p. 258.
Noll, K. L. “Canaanite Religion.” Religion Compass, vol. 1, no. 1, 27 Oct. 2006, pp. 61–92.
Smith, Mark S. The Early History of God: Yahweh and the Other Deities in Ancient Israel. Dove Booksellers, 2002.
Smith, Mark S. The Origins of Biblical Monotheism: Israel’s Polytheistic Background and the Ugaritic Texts. Oxford University Press, 2004.
Van De Mieroop, Marc. A History of the Ancient Near East. Third ed., Wiley Blackwell, 2016.