Which ancient Babylonian king is associated with the flood story in the Atrahasis Epic?

The story behind the answer

The flood survivor associated with the Atrahasis Epic is Atrahasis.

The Atrahasis Epic is an ancient Mesopotamian poem named after its human hero, Atrahasis. In the story, the god Enki warns Atrahasis about a coming flood and instructs him to build a boat. The narrative is preserved on clay tablets written in Akkadian and is an important early example of Mesopotamian flood literature.

Atrahasis is sometimes mistaken for a Babylonian king because the title can be read as a personal name within a royal and divine literary world. The best-known Babylonian king connected with the Epic of Gilgamesh is Gilgamesh, but he is the seeker of the flood survivor rather than the survivor himself. Hammurabi and Nebuchadnezzar are historical Babylonian rulers associated with other periods and texts, not the central flood hero of the Atrahasis Epic.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Oct. 2026

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