[German version]

(Sumerian abzu; recorded in Greek as Ἀπασών; Apasṓn [1]). Apsû was the name given by the Mesopotamians to the ‘ocean of fresh water’ beneath the earth's surface which fed streams and springs. The fairly high level of the water table in Babylon must have given rise to the idea of the apsû. The apsû came within the remit of the god Enki/Ea (municipal god of Eridu and god of wisdom). According to the creation myth of Enūma eliš, the gods and every other being were produced by the union of Tiāmat (the salt water of the seas) and the apsû (the fresh water). Apsû was mastered by Enki…