Utnapishtim is the Babylonian flood-survivor character often compared with Noah in the Epic of Gilgamesh.
In the epic, the god Ea warns Utnapishtim to build a large boat because the gods intend to send a devastating flood. Utnapishtim brings aboard his family, skilled workers, animals, and provisions. After the boat survives, he sends out birds to discover whether the waters have receded. These similarities have made Utnapishtim a central figure in comparisons between Mesopotamian flood traditions and the Genesis account.
The story is not identical to Genesis. The boat's construction, the divine motives, the length of the flood, and the aftermath differ. Utnapishtim is also granted immortality, a feature not given to Noah in Genesis.
Earlier Sumerian tradition contains a related survivor named Ziusudra, while the Akkadian Atrahasis Epic features Atrahasis. Those names are plausible alternatives in comparative mythology, but the specific character in the Epic of Gilgamesh is Utnapishtim.