Changes

As with all pre-modern peoples, religion was very important to the ancient Hittites because it was a crucial component to how they viewed the world and was central to the role kingship played in their society. Unlike the modern secular world, religion permeated all aspects of life in the ancient world and was intertwined with politics, government, and even commerce. Unfortunately, although there are many extant Hittite religious texts, they do not present a cohesive pictures of the entire religion: many focus more on the ritual aspects of the religion and the mythological texts are incomplete. With that said, a number of conclusions can be drawn from those texts about the nature of Hittite religion, namely its influences.

===Religion in the Bronze Age Near East===

The Bronze Age Near East (c. 3000-1200 BC) had several different religious traditions, but the three most important came from Mesopotamia, the Levant (Syria-Palestine), and Egypt. The religion of these cultures was not dogmatic and would often spread peacefully through trade to other regions, leading to the syncretic fusion of deities and ideas. Although this syncretism was not at the level witnessed in classical antiquity, it was apparent in some places, especially during the Late Bronze Age (c. 1,500-1,200 BC).

===The Hittite Gods and Goddesses===

In order to understand the Hittite’s diverse religious influences, one should begin with their most important god – the “Storm-God.” As the name indicates, the Hittite Storm-God was an elemental god who controlled the weather and the winds. He was never given a specific name, but instead would be referred to be a specific locality: the “Storm-God of Hattusa” or the “Storm-God of Nerik,” for instance. Among all of the Hittite deities, the Storm-God was primarily an Indo-European god. <ref> Beckman, Gary. “The Religion of the Hittites.” <i>Biblical Archaeologist</i> 52 (1989) p. 99</ref> Similar to the Aryan Indra, the Greek Zeus, and the Norse Thor, the Hittite Storm-God had control over the elements and could use them constructively or destructively, depending upon the situation. Although the Storm-God clearly had Indo-European origins, his later worship was influenced by the Hurrians.

===References===

[[Category: Myths and Gods]] [[Category: Ancient History]] [[Category: Bronze Age History]] [[Category: Ancient Anatolian History]] [[Category: Religious History]]