In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Utnapishtim is the flood survivor who builds a great boat.
Utnapishtim appears in the Flood story told to Gilgamesh in Tablet XI of the Epic of Gilgamesh. The god Ea warns him about a coming flood and instructs him to build a boat, preserve life, and bring aboard living creatures and provisions. After the flood, Utnapishtim sends out birds to learn whether the waters have receded.
The episode has several recognizable parallels with the Genesis account of Noah, including divine warning, a large vessel, preservation of life, and the use of birds. It is not, however, the same text or the same character. Utnapishtim belongs to Mesopotamian literature, while Noah belongs to the Hebrew Bible.
Utnapishtim is also granted immortality in the Epic of Gilgamesh, a feature that distinguishes his story from Noah’s. The character was formerly known in an earlier Mesopotamian tradition as Atrahasis, although the names belong to related versions and should not be treated as interchangeable in every context.