In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Utnapishtim is the flood survivor who builds the vessel.
The Mesopotamian story appears in the eleventh tablet of the standard version of the Epic of Gilgamesh. The god Ea warns Utnapishtim to abandon his possessions and build a boat because the gods intend to send a devastating flood. Utnapishtim saves his family, craftsmen, animals, and seeds of living things.
After the flood, he releases birds to test whether the waters have receded. He eventually offers a sacrifice, and the god Enlil grants him and his wife extraordinary immortality. This account is one of the most important ancient parallels to the Genesis flood narrative.
Utnapishtim is not Noah under a different spelling; he is the central flood survivor in a separate Mesopotamian literary tradition. The Epic of Gilgamesh also uses different divine characters, geography, measurements, and theological themes.