The Historical and Geographical Problematics of the Representations of the Goddess al-ʿUzzā in the Writings of Saad Aboud Sammar

Abstract

Al-ʿUzzā was one of the major female deities worshipped throughout the Arabian Peninsula and constituted a central element in pre-Islamic Arab consciousness. This prominence stemmed from her multifaceted functions, which combined fertility, light, warfare, and mediation between heaven and earth. Such attributes render her a key to understanding the integration of feminine and masculine symbols in ancient Arabian mythology prior to the transition to monotheism.

This study addresses the problematic of al-ʿUzzā in Arabian mythology and is structured around the following themes: first, the issue of nomenclature; second, the geography of her worship; and third, her functions and her parallels with deities from belief systems of the ancient Near East.

           t became clear that her religious and social functions included: functions related to war, as she was invoked before battles to seek spoils and victory, accompanied by animal symbols (the lion) that reinforced this attribute; functions related to fertility and nature, as she was the giver of rain, fertility, and agricultural growth, making her a multi-dimensional life-giving deity; and other functions related to health, comfort, happiness, moderate weather, and the safe return of travelers, demonstrating the expansion of her social and religious role to encompass the daily lives of individuals. This multiplicity of functions makes Al-Lat a comprehensive deity, combining military power, fertility, and social protection. The research concluded that the rituals of her worship and veneration included offering sacrifices and vows, building temples, tribal pilgrimages to her idol, swearing oaths in her name, and the belief in punishment for those who transgressed against her—all elements that reveal the intense ritual dimension of worship. These rituals are linked to place and time, such as circumambulating Al-Lat during the pilgrimage to Taif, indicating the sanctity of the place in ancient Arab belief. He also concluded that there are influences of ancient Near Eastern beliefs in it, manifested in: the clear similarity with the Babylonian Ishtar, the Canaanite Anat, and the Babylonian Ninhursag in the functions of war and fertility, and in the symbols associated with (the lion and the sun), which shows the influence of Semitic and Mesopotamian beliefs in Arab mythology.