What is the Akkadian phrase that begins the Standard Babylonian Epic?

The Akkadian phrase that begins the Standard Babylonian Epic is “ša nagba īmuru,” commonly written without diacritics as “Sha nagba imuru.”

The phrase is the poem’s incipit, meaning its opening words and identifying title. It is usually translated as “He who saw the deep” or “The one who saw the abyss.” The opening presents Gilgamesh as a king who travelled widely, endured hardship, and gained knowledge through experience. That emphasis on seeing and understanding frames the epic as more than a sequence of heroic battles.

The Standard Babylonian poem was written in Akkadian, the major language of ancient Mesopotamian scholarship and administration. Its best-preserved form is arranged on twelve tablets, although the surviving manuscripts are incomplete and scholars reconstruct damaged passages from multiple copies and related traditions.

Readers sometimes confuse this opening with Enūma Eliš, whose title comes from a different Akkadian phrase meaning “When on high.” “Anu ishtar” names deities, while “Shutur eli sharri” is associated with another expression in Mesopotamian literature. The wording also appears in several transliteration styles, so missing marks such as š and ī do not change the quiz answer.